Union County, Georgia

Union County is a county in the Northeast region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,632. The county seat is Blairsville.

History

Union County was originally a core part of the homeland of the native Cherokee tribe. Mountainous and formerly one of the most remote and inaccessible parts of Georgia, the area became the object of desire for white settlers with the discovery of gold in the 1820s. While the gold rush didn't last long, a land lottery system opened up the area for settlement in the 1830s and Union County was formed in 1832, carved from part of Cherokee County. The newcomers formed political groups to force the Cherokee off their land, part of the removal of most of the southeastern native tribes in what is known as the Trail of Tears. The part that was Cherokee Removal occurred between 1836 and 1839. The Cherokee nation and roughly 1,600 of their black slaves were forced west to the Indian Territory (present day Oklahoma) in the then Western United States. The resultant deaths along the way and at the end of the movement of an estimated 4,000 Cherokee. The Union Party was a political group that supported removing the Indians and opening the area to white settlers, and is the probable reason for the county's name. The western part of Union County was annexed by Fannin County on January 12, 1854, and in 1856 the southern tip was given to Gilmer County and an eastern section went to Towns County. Many of the early white settlers of the area were Virginians or North Carolianians who came via various frontier roads. As a mountainous region not suited to plantation farming and settled by hardscrabble, independent farmers, Union County had relatively few slaves compared to other areas of Georgia. Despite general support for the Confederacy, a smaller number of Union sympathizers remained in Union County, which was one of the few Georgia counties to provide men for a Union Army unit, company A of the 1st Georgia Infantry Battalion, in which 6 men were killed.

After the war, railroad lines were built that linked Union County to other areas, including Gainesville and Culberson, North Carolina, giving farmers expanded distribution. The first paved road in Union County was completed in 1926 and ran from Cleveland to the North Carolina border. Tourism increased when the federal government acquired 31,000 acres of forest in the area, spread across Fannin, Gilmer, Lumpkin, and Union counties, and created the Chattahoochee National Forest in 1937. Brasstown Bald, the highest mountain in Georgia, rises in southeast Union County, straddling the Towns County line. The central and northern portion of Union County is located in the Hiwassee River sub-basin of the Middle Tennessee-Hiwassee basin, while the southwestern portion of the county is located in the Ocoee River sub-basin of the same larger watershed. A very small portion of the county's southeastern corner is located in the Upper Chattahoochee River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin, also listed as simply the Apalachicola Basin by USGS). This is also where the source of the Chattahoochee is found. The Appalachian Trail winds through southern Union County.

Adjacent counties

Cherokee County, North Carolina (north)
Clay County, North Carolina (northeast)
Towns County (east)
White County (southeast)
Lumpkin County (south)
Fannin County (west)

National protected area

Appalachian Trail (part)
Chattahoochee National Forest (part)

Transportation

Major highways

20px U.S. Route 19
20px U.S. Route 76
23px U.S. Route 129
20px State Route 2
20px State Route 11
20px State Route 60
23px State Route 180
23px State Route 325
23px State Route 348
23px State Route 515

Other roads

Blue Ridge Highway (Old US 76/Old SR 2)
Skeenah Gap Road
Town Creek School Road
Mulky Gap Road
Owltown Road
Spiva Bridge Way
Gumlog Road
Loving Road
Pat Haralson Memorial Drive
Trackrock Gap Road

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

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

|+Union 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)

|9,329

|11,884

|16,837

|20,345

|style='background: #ffffe6; |22,646

|99.35%

|99.09%

|97.39%

|95.27%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |91.94%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|19

|94

|95

|style='background: #ffffe6; |126

|0.03%

|0.16%

|0.54%

|0.44%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.51%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|10

|25

|41

|66

|style='background: #ffffe6; |74

|0.11%

|0.21%

|0.24%

|0.31%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.30%

|Asian alone (NH)

|16

|40

|75

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100

|0.05%

|0.13%

|0.23%

|0.35%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.41%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0

|0.02%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.00%

|Other race alone (NH)

|13

|style='background: #ffffe6; |63

|0.04%

|0.00%

|0.02%

|0.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.26%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|118

|239

|style='background: #ffffe6; |807

|0.68%

|1.12%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.28%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|39

|49

|153

|519

|style='background: #ffffe6; |816

|0.42%

|0.41%

|0.88%

|2.43%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.31%

|Total

|9,390

|11,993

|17,289

|21,356

|style='background: #ffffe6; |24,632

|100.00%

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

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 24,632, 10,607 households, and 6,957 families residing in the county. The median age was 55.9 years; 15.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 34.0% were 65 years of age or older.

For every 100 females there were 95.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.5 males age 18 and over. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 14,645 housing units, of which 27.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 81.4% were owner-occupied and 18.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.6%. The population density was . There were 14,052 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.5% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.9% from other races, and 1.2% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.4% of the population.

Of the 9,116 households, 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.0% were non-families, and 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.75. The median age was 50.7 years.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 17,289 people, 7,159 households, and 5,211 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 10,001 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.94% White, 0.58% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.88% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Union County was mentioned as an "Extreme Whitopia", a place with a high concentration of white residents, in Rich Benjamin's book, Searching for Whitopia. (Because American Indians were forced out, and black slavery was virtually nonexistent in this part of the Georgia mountains, the county has had a minuscule nonwhite population for almost 200 years.)

There were 7,159 households, out of which 24.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.90% were married couples living together, 7.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.20% were non-families. 24.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 20.00% under the age of 18, 6.60% from 18 to 24, 23.60% from 25 to 44, 28.20% from 45 to 64, and 21.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,893, and the median income for a family was $39,776. Males had a median income of $29,127 versus $20,871 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,845. About 9.30% of families and 12.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.10% of those under age 18 and 15.90% of those age 65 or over.

Media

The North Georgia News has been published weekly in Blairsville since 1909. Since 2012, it has been the only newspaper serving Union County.

Communities

City

Blairsville

Unincorporated communities

Choestoe
Ivy Log
Suches

Government and politics

The county's Sole Commissioner is Harold Collins, who has served since 2025.

As of the 2020s, Union County is a strongly Republican voting county, voting 80% for Donald Trump in 2024. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Union County is part of Georgia's 9th congressional district, currently represented by Andrew Clyde. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Union County is part of District 51. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Union County is part of District 8.

Education

The Union County School District has five schools, including the Union County High School.

References

External links

Union County Government Website
City of Blairsville Government Website
Blairsville and Union County Website
Blairsville-Union County Chamber of Commerce
Documents from Union County in the Digital Library of Georgia
North Georgia News (county legal organ) Website