Cordele, Georgia

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Coordinates: 31°57′51″N 83°46′38″W / 31.96417, -83.77722
Cordele, Georgia
Location in Crisp County and the state of Georgia
Country	United States
State	Georgia
County	Crisp
Area
- Total	9.6 sq mi (24.8 km²)
- Land	9.5 sq mi (24.6 km²)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation	315 ft (96 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	11,608
- Density	1,209.2/sq mi (468.1/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	31010, 31015
Area code(s)	229
FIPS code	13-19616^[1]
GNIS feature ID	0312971^[2]

Cordele, also known as The Watermelon Capital of the World,^[1] is a city in Crisp County, Georgia, United States. The population was 11,608 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Crisp County^[3]. Cordele is located along Interstate 75, 140 miles south of Atlanta and 100 miles north of the Florida state line.

1 History
2 Geography
- 2.1 Highways
3 Demographics
4 Famous Cordelians
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

In November 1864 the area that is now Cordele served as the temporary capital of Georgia. During the last days of the Confederacy, Georgia's war governor Joseph E. Brown used his rural farm house to escape the wrath of Sherman's "March to the Sea." During that time the farm house which Brown called "Dooly County Place" served as the official capital for only a few days. It was replaced in 1890 by the Suwanee Hotel^[2], located in what became downtown Cordele. The hotel was destroyed by a fire in late 1994 and was rebuilt.

The small town of Cordele, GA was founded in the southern part of Dooly County in 1888 by J.E.D. Shipp of Americus. The city of Cordele was incorporated on December 22, 1888. It drew great benefits from the presence of two major railroads-the Savannah, Americus & Montgomery line and the Georgia Southern and Florida. It was named after Cordelia Hawkins, daughter of the president of the SAM railroad, and the town flourished from the junction of the two railroads.

As the railroads brought more people and business to the newly settled territory, Cordele was experiencing phenomenal growth. Before 1905 Cordele was located in southern Dooly County nine miles from the county seat in Vienna. With Cordele's continued progress, many in the community felt the need for a seat of government to be closer in proximity than Vienna. Crisp County was formed in 1905 by taking a portion of southern Dooly County and Cordele became its county seat.

By August 1930, Cordele housed the first county-owned electric system^[3] in the form of the Crisp County Hydroelectric System. Located on the Flint River, the hydroelectric plant continues to operate and the resulting Lake Blackshear has attracted residents to its water-front properties.

In 1968 a Titan missile was erected at the intersection of I-75 and U.S. 280 East,^[4] where there is also a Krystal restaurant.

[edit] Geography

Cordele is located at 31°57′51″N, 83°46′38″W (31.964178, -83.777277)^[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.6 square miles (24.8 km²), of which, 9.5 square miles (24.6 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.84%) is water.

[edit] Highways

Interstate 75,
U.S. Highway 280,
U.S. Highway 41,
GA Highway 300,
GA Highway 401,
GA Highway 30,
GA Highway 7

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 11,608 people, 4,303 households, and 2,839 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,222.5 people per square mile (471.8/km²). There were 4,782 housing units at an average density of 503.6/sq mi (194.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 31.90% White, 65.03% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.84% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.19% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.95% of the population.

There were 4,303 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.1% were married couples living together, 30.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-families. 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.6% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 81.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $17,615, and the median income for a family was $21,677. Males had a median income of $23,253 versus $17,282 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,746. About 38.1% of families and 41.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 59.2% of those under age 18 and 26.7% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Famous Cordelians

Jazz singer and "Cosby Show" grandfather, Joe Williams.
Jody Powell, who served as the White House Press Secretary under President Jimmy Carter.
Mac Hyman, author of No Time for Sergeants and Take Now Thy Son was a life long resident of Cordele, GA.
Tree Rollins, former NBA basketball player and Cordele native who attended Crisp County High School.
Janie Lou Gibbs, a serial killer, who poisoned her husband, three sons, and grandson. She was convicted in 1967.