Athens, Georgia

For the capital of Greece, see Athens.
Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, USA
Nickname(s): "Classic City"
"The Classic"
"The Baby A"
Location in Clarke County and the state of Georgia
Location in Clarke County and the state of Georgia
Coordinates:
Country United States
State Georgia
County Clarke
Area
 - Total 118.2 sq mi (306.2 km²)
 - Land 117.8 sq mi (305.0 km²)
 - Water 0.5 sq mi (1.2 km²)
Population (2006)
 - Total 175,085 (metro)
 - Density 851.5/sq mi (328.8/km²)
Time zone EST (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
Area code(s) 706/762
FIPS code 13-03440[1]
Website: http://www.athensclarkecounty.com/
Downtown Athens, looking down College Avenue towards Broad Street
Broad Street in Downtown Athens near North Campus of the University of Georgia
Downtown Athens at the intersection of Clayton St. and College Avenue
Downtown Athens on a Sunday morning in May

Athens-Clarke County is a unified city-county in Georgia, U.S., in the northeastern part of the state, at the intersection of U.S. Highways 29, 78, 129, and 441, and near the eastern terminus of Georgia 316. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial creation of Athens and its subsequent growth. In 1991, after a vote the preceding year, the original city abandoned its charter in order to form a unified government with Clarke County, referred to collectively as Athens-Clarke County.[2] As of the 2000 census, the consolidated city-county (including all of Athens-Clarke County except Winterville and a part of Bogart) had a total population of 100,266. The metro area had a population of 175,085 as of 2005 Census estimates. Athens-Clarke County is the principal city of and is included in the Athens-Clarke County, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area.[3]

Contents

History

In the late 18th century, a trading settlement on the banks of the Oconee River called Cedar Shoals stood where Athens is located today. On January 27, 1785, the Georgia General Assembly granted a charter by Abraham Baldwin for the University of Georgia as the first state-supported university. Sixteen years later, in 1801, a committee from the university's board of trustees selected a site for the university on a hill above Cedar Shoals in what was then Jackson County. On July 25, John Milledge, one of the trustees and later governor of Georgia, bought 633 acres (2.6 km²) from Daniel Easley and donated it to the university. Milledge named the surrounding area Athens after the city that was home to the academy of Plato and Aristotle in Greece.

The first buildings on the University of Georgia campus were made from logs. The town grew as lots adjacent to the college were sold to raise money for the additional construction of the school. By the time the first class graduated from the University in 1804, Athens consisted of three homes, three stores and a few other buildings facing Front Street, now known as Broad Street. Completed in 1806 and named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, Franklin College was the University of Georgia and the City of Athens' first permanent structure. This brick building is now called Old College.

Athens officially became a town in December 1806 with a government made up of a three-member commission. The university continued to grow, as did the town, with cotton mills fueling the industrial and commercial development. Athens became known as the "Manchester of the South" after the city in England known for its mills. In 1833 a group of Athens businessmen led by James Camak, tired of their wagons getting stuck in the mud, built Georgia's first railroad, the Georgia, connecting Athens to Augusta by 1841, and to Marthasville (now Atlanta) by 1845.

During the American Civil War, Athens became a significant supply center when the New Orleans armory was relocated to what is now the called the Chicopee building. Fortifications can still be found along parts of the North Oconee River between College and Oconee St. In addition, Athens played a small part in the ill-fated Stoneman Raid when a skirmish was fought on a site overlooking the Middle Oconee River near what is now the old Macon Highway. Like many southern towns, Athens still hosts a confederate memorial that is located on Broad St, near the University of Georgia Arch.

During Reconstruction, Athens continued to grow. The form of government changed to a mayor-council government with a new city charter on August 24, 1872 with Captain Henry Beusse as the first mayor of Athens. Henry Beusse was instrumental in the rapid growth of the city after the Civil War. After holding the position of mayor he worked in the railroad industry and helped to bring railroads to the region creating growth in many of the surrounding communities. Freed slaves moved to the city, many attracted by the new centers for education such as the Freedman's Bureau. This new population was served by three black newspapers - the Athens Blade, the Athens Clipper, and the Progressive Era.

In the 1880s as Athens became more densely populated city services and improvements were undertaken. The Athens Police Department was founded in 1881 and public schools opened in fall of 1886. Telephone service was introduced in 1882 by the Bell Telephone Company. Transportation improvements were also introduced with a street paving program beginning in 1885 and streetcars, pulled by mules, in 1888.

By its centennial in 1901, Athens was a much-changed city. A new city hall was completed in 1904. An African-American middle class and professional class had grown around the corner of Washington and Hull Streets, known as the "Hot Corner." The theater at the Morton Building hosted movies and performances by well-known black musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, and Duke Ellington. In 1907 aviation pioneer Ben Epps became Georgia's first pilot on a hill outside town that would become the Athens-Ben Epps Airport. Athens got its first tall building in 1908 with the seven-story Southern Mutual Insurance Company building.

During World War II, the U.S. Navy built new buildings and paved runways to serve as a training facility for naval pilots. In 1954, the U.S. Navy chose Athens as the site for the Navy Supply Corps school. The school was located in Normal Town in the buildings of the old Normal School. The school is now scheduled to be moved in 2011 under the Base Realignment and Closure process.

In 1961, Athens witnessed part of the civil rights movement when Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes became the first two black students to enter the University of Georgia. Three years later, Athens was witness to the murder of Lemuel Penn, who was followed out of town and murdered in Madison County near Colbert, Georgia. Despite the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling in 1954, the Athens - Clarke County school district remained segregated until 1970.

Geography and climate

Athens is located at (33.955464, -83.383245)[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the balance has a total area of 118.2 square miles (306.2 km²), of which, 117.8 square miles (305.0 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.2 km²) of it (0.41%) is water.

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Rec High °F 80 81 88 93 97 104 104 107 99 98 86 79
Norm High °F 51.4 56.5 64.7 73 80.5 87.2 90.2 88.2 82.5 72.9 63.2 54.2
Norm Low °F 32.9 35.4 42.3 48.7 57.6 65.3 69.3 68.5 62.7 50.7 42.2 35.3
Rec Low °F -4 5 11 26 37 45 55 54 36 24 7 2
Precip (in) 4.69 4.39 4.99 3.35 3.86 3.94 4.41 3.78 3.53 3.47 3.71 3.71
Source: USTravelWeather.com [3]

Neighborhoods

Government

Politics

The Human Rights Festival, held annually, has brought in speakers and activists such as Jesse Jackson and David Dellinger.

The first Really Really Free Market was held April 28, 2007 as part of the May Day celebrations organized by Autonomous Athens.[5] It has since been held monthly in the spring, summer, and fall.

Demographics

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 100,266 people, 39,239 households, and 19,344 families residing in the city. The population density was 851.5 people per square mile (328.8/km²). There were 41,633 housing units at an average density of 353.6/sq mi (136.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 64.71% White, 27.37% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 3.15% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.11% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.39% of the population.

There were 39,239 households out of which 22.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.3% were married couples living together, 13.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.7% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.8% 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 2.95.

In the city the population was spread out with 17.8% under the age of 18, 31.6% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 15.3% from 45 to 64, and 8.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25 years. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,118, and the median income for a family was $41,407. Males had a median income of $30,359 versus $23,039 for females. The per capita income for the balance was $17,103. About 15.0% of families and 28.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.2% of those under age 18 and 13.5% of those age 65 or over.

Culture

Athens has a significant investment in culture, common in many college towns, that coexists with the university students in creating an art scene, music scene and intellectual environment. The city is home to numerous eclectic music venues, restaurants, bars, and coffee shops that cater to its creative climate.

The town is home to such notable features as the only remaining one of two double barrelled cannons produced during the American Civil War, the famous "Tree That Owns Itself"-which now is an offspring of the original tree, the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, and the University of Georgia Campus Arboretum. Athens is also home to The Globe, a well-known bar voted by Esquire magazine as the third top bar in America in 2007.[6] Athens was home to Network Translations, Inc., which produced the PIX firewall which was later purchased by Cisco Systems.

Athens also has a vibrant literary scene. The city is home to independent publisher Hill Street Press and well-known authors with previous or current residence in the city include Pulitzer Prize winners Deborah Blum and Edward Larson, as well as Judith Ortiz Cofer, Reginald McKnight and Coleman Barks.

Every spring Athens plays host to a number of bicycle races collectively known as the Twilight Series. The most popular of these is the Twilight Criterium. In addition to its yearly weekend of bike events, Athens has an active bicycle culture, easily observed the last Friday of each month at Courteous Mass (sponsored by BikeAthens) and Critical Mass (an independent gathering).

Music

Main article: Music of Athens, Georgia

The Athens music scene grew in the early 1970s with Ravenstone, a regional band sometimes called "one of the godfathers of Athens rock," along with the Normaltown Flyers at Allen's[7] and later during the 1980s with the Uptown Lounge, Georgia Theatre, and 40 Watt Club as the bands R.E.M. and the B-52's scored breakout hits. The original Allen's was one of the oldest bars in Athens. It closed in 2003 and re-opened in 2007 at a new location. Other notable bands were Perpetual Groove, Mercyland, Dreams So Real, Indigo Girls, Matthew Sweet, The Method Actors, Love Tractor, Pylon, Flat Duo Jets, The Primates, Modern Skirts, and Widespread Panic.

National acts that have come out of Athens include: Danger Mouse, alternative duo Jucifer, Vic Chesnutt, Drive-By Truckers, Elf Power, Azure Ray, The Fountains, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Olivia Tremor Control, Of Montreal, Five Eight, King of Prussia, Michelle Hutchings Jet by Day, and R.E.M. members Michael Stipe, Mike Mills and Bill Berry still maintain residences in Athens.

Every Summer the city has hosted Athfest, a non-profit music and arts festival held in the downtown area.

Media

The local daily newspaper in Athens is the Athens Banner-Herald. UGA's independent daily newspaper is The Red and Black.

Radio stations include The University of Georgia's student-run radio station WUOG 90.5 FM, and the local Georgia Public Broadcasting and NPR affiliate, WUGA 91.7 FM. The primary AM news-talk station is on the dial at 1340, WGAU. Additional stations in the area are contemporary radio station 102.1 FM, WGMG and ESPN sports radio affiliate 960 AM WRFC.

Even though part of the Atlanta television market, television reception in Athens is near impossible. Channel 8, WGTV and channel 34, WUVG are both licensed to Athens, however their transmitters are in the Atlanta metropolitan area. WGTV broadcasts off of the top of Stone Mountain. Moreover, because of Stone Mountain, the line of sight from other Atlanta broadcast television stations, such as WSB-TV Channel 2, is blocked or at least hindered. Toccoa's WNEG-TV is now owned by The University of Georgia, and will soon start adding more locally-produced programming to its lineup.

Education

Public schools

Public schools are run by the Clarke County School District.

Private schools

Colleges and universities

The Arch in Downtown Athens

Sister cities

Notable residents and natives

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ↑ Athens-Clarke County Unification History
  3. ↑ U.S. Whitehouse OMB Bulletin No. 05-02 Appendix (Code 12020*)
  4. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  5. ↑ Athens' "Really Really Free Market"
  6. ↑ Best Bars - Esquire
  7. ↑ [1]
  8. ↑ [2]

External links

Municipalities and communities of
Clarke County, Georgia
County seat: Athens
Cities

Athens | Winterville
Map of Georgia highlighting Clarke County
Town

Bogart‡
Footnotes

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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Mayors of cities with populations of 100,000 in Georgia
   
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    (Atlanta)
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    (Augusta)
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  1. Heidi Davison
    (Athens)
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