| Union County, Georgia | |
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Union County courthouse in Blairsville, Georgia
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Location in the state of Georgia |
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Georgia's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1832 |
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| Seat | Blairsville |
| Largest city | Blairsville |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
329.02 sq mi (852 km²) 322.55 sq mi (835 km²) 6.47 sq mi (17 km²), |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
17,289 63.7/sq mi (25/km²) |
Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 17,289. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 20,968.[1] The county seat is Blairsville.[2]
Its Sole commissioner is Lamar Paris, who has served since 2001.[3]
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According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 329.02 square miles (852.2 km2), of which 322.55 square miles (835.4 km2) (or 98.03%) is land and 6.47 square miles (16.8 km2) (or 1.97%) is water.[4] Brasstown Bald, the highest mountain in Georgia, rises in southeast Union County, straddling the Towns County line.
As of the census[5] of 2000, there were 17,289 people, 7,159 households, and 5,211 families residing in the county. The population density was 54 people per square mile (21/km²). There were 10,001 housing units at an average density of 31 per square mile (12/km²). 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.
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.
Union County was carved from Cherokee County territory during the Georgia Land Lottery of 1832. Originally inhabited by Native Americans, the area became more desirable to white settlers with the discovery of gold in the 1820s.
The Union Party, a political group that supported removing the Indians and opening the area to white settlers, is the probable inspiration for the county’s name. Upon entering the town of Blairsville, Georgia, one can see a plaque crediting John Thomas (former Justice of the Inferior Court and serving Union County in the Georgia House of Representatives in 1833) for giving the county the name of Union. When asked to suggest a name, he is reported to have said, "Name it Union, for none but union-like men reside in it." Since the county was founded almost 30 years before the U.S. Civil War, Union County obviously was not named in sympathy for the North, as is sometimes thought. County residents, however, were largely pro-Union in the years leading up to the war, as was true of much of Georgia's mountainous north, and the county's delegates to the state convention of 1861 voted against secession. When the state seceded, most Union County residents supported the Confederacy, and the majority of its Civil War soldiers fought on the Confederate side, although a significant minority fought for the Union. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the county's memorial to its generations of war dead may be the only one in the South that specifically includes homage to Union soldiers and to American Indians who fought white settlement.
Union County is sometimes called "The Top of Georgia" because Brasstown Bald is partly in the county.
| Cherokee County, North Carolina | Clay County, North Carolina | |||
| Fannin County | Towns County | |||
| Union County, Georgia | ||||
| Lumpkin County | White County |
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