Troup County, Georgia

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 controlled by 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 they 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. 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.

In the late 19th century, entrepreneurs in LaGrange built the first cotton mill, and others were rapidly established in this area. Initially they employed only white workers. Textile manufacturing was a major part of the economy until the late 20th century, when textile manufacturing moved offshore to areas with cheaper labor.

20th century to present

During the first half of the 20th century, thousands of blacks left Georgia and other southern states in what is known as the Great Migration. They were seeking work as mechanization reduced the number of farm jobs, and they were seeking more opportunities than in the Jim Crow South, where they were disenfranchised and socially suppressed.

On September 8, 1940, 16-year-old Austin Callaway, a black youth, was arrested in LaGrange as a suspect in an attack on a white woman. The next night a small, armed group of white men took him from the county jail, driving him out to the nearby countryside, where they lynched him, shooting him several times and leaving him for dead. He died the next day in the hospital. His death from gunshot wounds was noted by the local paper; it was the New York Times that described it as a lynching.

By 1960, the county was recorded in the US Census as having 31,418 whites and 15,760 "Negroes" (or blacks, 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.

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:

"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."

As of 2015, the official historian of Troup County is writer Forrest Clark Johnson, III, who has published several books on the county and region's history. He is a retired former teacher in the county's school system.

Government

The government of Troup County is based on an elected county commission, or council. The chairman is elected county-wide, or at-large, and four commissioners are each elected from single-member districts. District 5 includes much of the territory of LaGrange, the county seat and most densely settled community in the county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 446 square miles (1,160 km²), of which 414 square miles (1,070 km²) is land and 32 square miles (83 km²) (7.2%) is water.

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).

Adjacent counties

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 58,779 people, 21,920 households, and 15,607 families residing in the county. The population density was 142 people per square mile (55/km²). There were 23,824 housing units at an average density of 58 per square mile (22/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 65.80% White, 31.87% Black or African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. 1.71% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 21,920 households out of which 34.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.10% were married couples living together, 17.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.80% were non-families. 24.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the county, the population was spread out with 27.90% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 28.40% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 91.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,469, and the median income for a family was $41,891. Males had a median income of $31,863 versus $22,393 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,626. About 12.20% of families and 14.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.70% of those under age 18 and 14.00% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 67,044 people, 24,828 households, and 17,489 families residing in the county. The population density was 161.9 inhabitants per square mile (62.5/km²). There were 28,046 housing units at an average density of 67.7 per square mile (26.1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 61.5% white, 33.4% black or African American, 1.6% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 1.7% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 12.3% were English, 12.1% were American, 11.4% were Irish, and 7.3% were German.

Of the 24,828 households, 37.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.0% were married couples living together, 20.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.6% were non-families, and 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.12. The median age was 36.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $41,770 and the median income for a family was $50,625. Males had a median income of $39,960 versus $28,218 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,699. About 15.5% of families and 19.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.1% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.

Communities