Sparta, Georgia

Sparta is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Georgia, United States. The city's population was 1,357 at the 2020 census.

History

Sparta was founded in 1795 in the newly formed Hancock County. It became the county seat in 1797, was incorporated as a town in 1805, and later as a city in 1893. The community was named after Sparta, a city-state in Ancient Greece.

In 1864, during Sherman's March to the Sea, the town remained completely unscathed, reportedly due to the efforts of Confederate Captain Henry Culver, the son-in-law of local industrialist William Fraley, who successfully diverted Union troops away from the area.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.

Major highways

20px State Route 15
20px State Route 16
20px State Route 22

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Sparta had a population of 1,357. The median age was 49.0 years. 18.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 24.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 90.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 88.9 males age 18 and over.

0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 546 households in Sparta, of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 25.1% were married-couple households, 24.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 44.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 38.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The district has 83 full-time teachers and over 670 students.

Lewis Elementary School
Hancock Central Middle School
Hancock Central High School
John Hancock Academy

Notable people

Thomas "Pee Wee" Butts – professional baseball player
George Darden – United States Representative from Georgia who went to high school in Sparta
Harvey Grant – professional basketball player
Horace Grant – professional basketball player
Tommy Hurricane Jackson – professional boxer
Adella Hunt Logan – suffragist
Jean Toomer – Harlem Renaissance writer and poet, once served as a principal in Sparta
Angeria Paris VanMicheals – drag queen and finalist on season 14 of RuPaul's Drag Race and winner of the ninth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.