Troup County, Georgia

Troup County (, ) is a county in the West Central region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 69,426. The county seat is LaGrange. Troup County comprises the LaGrange micropolitan statistical area along with Chambers County, AL. It is included in the Atlanta-Athens-Clarke County-Sandy Springs combined statistical area.

History

For thousands of years, this area of what is now defined as west central Georgia was occupied by cultures of indigenous peoples. In the historic period, it was part of a large area controlled by the Muscogee, also known as the Creek people.

The land for Lee, Muscogee, Troup, Coweta, and Carroll counties was ceded by the Creek to the United States in the 1825 Treaty of Indian Springs. The counties' boundaries were created by the Georgia General Assembly on June 9, 1826, but the counties themselves were not named until December 14, 1826.

The county is named for George Troup, thirty-fourth governor of Georgia, U.S. representative, and senator.

As with much of the Piedmont, this area was developed in the antebellum era for cotton cultivation after short-staple cotton was made profitable by invention of the cotton gin. By 1860 Troup County was the fourth-wealthiest in Georgia and fifth-largest slaveholding county in the state.

According to U.S. Census data, the 1860 Troup County population included 6,223 whites, 37 "free colored" and 10,002 slaves. By the 1870 census, the white population had increased about 3% to 6,408, while the "colored" population had increased about 12% to 11,224.

During the post-Reconstruction period, violence and the number of lynchings of blacks increased in the late 19th century, as whites exercised terrorism to re-establish and maintain white supremacy. Whites lynched three African Americans in Troup County in this period, most were killed around the turn of the 20th century. Such deaths occurred through the post-World War II period. A fourth man from Troup County was lynched in neighboring Harris County.

By 1960, the county was recorded in the US Census as having 31,418 whites and 15,760 "Negroes" (now classified as black or African Americans). Following passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, blacks gradually regained the ability to vote and take part in the political process.

Textile manufacturing was a major part of the economy until the late 20th century, when textile manufacturing moved offshore to areas with cheaper labor. The county has acquired other industry, notably auto parts manufacturers who support the nearby Kia Motors plant. Also in the area are West Point Lake and Callaway Gardens, which attract tourists and visitors as top recreation destinations in the state.

On January 25, 2017, Mayor Jim Thornton and Police Chief Louis M. Dekmar, of the county seat of LaGrange, publicly apologized to more than 200 people gathered for a reconciliation service at Warren Temple United Methodist Church for the police's failure decades before to protect Callaway, saying:

<blockquote>"I sincerely regret and denounce the role our Police Department played in Austin's lynching, both through our action and our inaction," Chief Dekmar told a crowd at a traditionally African-American church. "And for that, I'm profoundly sorry. It should never have happened."</blockquote>

Residents organized Troup Together, a grassroots group to acknowledge lynchings, commemorate the victims, and work on racial reconciliation. On March 18, 2017, black and white residents of the county gathered to dedicate a historic marker at Warren Temple Church "memorializing Callaway's lynching and three others documented in the area: Willis Hodnett in 1884; Samuel Owensby in 1913 and Henry Gilbert, a Troup County resident who was lynched in neighboring Harris County in 1947."

On April 7, 2017, Troup County's computer systems were the victim of a ransomware attack; it caused all county computer systems to be inaccessible. This included the sheriff's office and district attorney's office. After five days, the county was still working to get 400 computer systems back online.

Geography

thumb|right|Landscape of Troup County, near [[Hogansville, Georgia|Hogansville]]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (7.2%) is water. The county is located in the Piedmont region of the state.

The entirety of Troup County is located in the Middle Chattahoochee River-Lake Harding sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin).

Major highways

20px Interstate 85
23px Interstate 185
20px U.S. Route 27
20px U.S. Route 29
20px State Route 1
20px State Route 14
20px State Route 14 Connector
20px State Route 14 Spur
20px State Route 18
20px State Route 54
23px State Route 100
23px State Route 103
23px State Route 109
23px State Route 219
23px State Route 403 (unsigned designation for I-85)
23px State Route 411 (unsigned designation for I-185)

Adjacent counties

Coweta County (northeast)
Meriwether County (east)
Harris County (south)
Chambers County, Alabama (southwest/CST Border except for Lanett and Valley as they are part of the Columbus Metropolitan Area)
Randolph County, Alabama (northwest/CST Border)
Heard County (north)

Communities

Cities

Hogansville
LaGrange (county seat)
West Point

Unincorporated communities

Abbottsford
Harrisonville
Long Cane
Mountville

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Troup County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 1980

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|33,975

|38,284

|38,261

|40,408

|style='background: #ffffe6; |38,099

|67.95%

|68.94%

|65.09%

|60.27%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |54.88%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|15,449

|16,614

|18,650

|22,319

|style='background: #ffffe6; |24,157

|30.90%

|29.92%

|31.73%

|33.29%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |34.80%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|24

|53

|84

|134

|style='background: #ffffe6; |127

|0.05%

|0.10%

|0.14%

|0.20%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.18%

|Asian alone (NH)

|130

|286

|340

|1,054

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1,608

|0.26%

|0.51%

|0.58%

|1.57%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.32%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|10

|21

|style='background: #ffffe6; |36

|0.02%

|0.03%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.05%

|Other race alone (NH)

|13

|10

|55

|85

|style='background: #ffffe6; |239

|0.03%

|0.02%

|0.09%

|0.13%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.34%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|375

|853

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,204

|0.64%

|1.27%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.17%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|412

|289

|1,004

|2,170

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,956

|0.82%

|0.52%

|1.71%

|3.24%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.26%

|Total

|50,003

|55,536

|58,779

|67,044

|style='background: #ffffe6; |69,426

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had 69,426 people, 26,317 households, and 15,354 families residing in the county. The median age was 38.1 years. 24.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 87.5 males age 18 and over. 54.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 45.4% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 55.7% White, 35.0% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.3% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.5% from some other race, and 4.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 4.3% of the population.

Of those households, 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 33.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 28,721 housing units, of which 8.4% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 59.1% were owner-occupied and 40.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.1%. District 5 includes much of the territory of LaGrange, the county seat and most densely settled community in the county.

Politics

As of the 2020s, Troup County is a strongly Republican voting county, voting 62% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Troup County is part of Georgia's 3rd congressional district, currently represented by Brian Jack. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Troup County is part of District 29. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Troup County is part of districts 136 and 137.

Education

Public education is provided by the Troup County School District.