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Rockdale County, Georgia

Coordinates: 33°39′N 84°02′W / 33.65°N 84.03°W / 33.65; -84.03
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Rockdale County
County
Rockdale County Courthouse in Conyers
Rockdale County Courthouse in Conyers
Flag of Rockdale County
Flag
Official seal of Rockdale County
Seal
Map of Georgia highlighting Rockdale County
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Map of the United States highlighting Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 33°39′N 84°02′W / 33.65°N 84.03°W / 33.65; -84.03
Country United States
State Georgia
FoundedOctober 18, 1870; 154 years ago (1870-10-18)
Named forRockdale Baptist Church
SeatConyers
Largest cityConyers
Area
 • Total
132 sq mi (340 km2)
 • Land130 sq mi (300 km2)
 • Water2.3 sq mi (6 km2)  1.7%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
93,570
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district4th
Websiterockdalecountyga.gov

Rockdale County is a county located in the North Central portion in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 93,570 up from 85,215 in 2010.[1][2] The county seat is Conyers.[3]

Rockdale County is included in Metro Atlanta.

History

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Rockdale Baptist Church

Rockdale County was created on October 18, 1870[4][5] and received its name from Rockdale Baptist Church (est. 1846), which was named after the granite strata that rests under the county's red clay top soil.[6] A bill introduced by John F. Hardin and John Harris carved Rockdale out of the northern portion of Newton County; parts of Rockdale County also came from neighboring Henry, Walton, Gwinnett, and DeKalb counties. Conyers, Rockdale's only incorporated town and urban center, became the county seat.

Prior to Rockdale becoming a county, the land had been inhabited by the Creek and Cherokee; the boundary between the two native nations, the Hightower Trail, ran directly through the area. Burial remains have been discovered in the Honey Creek and Hi-Roc areas. Whites began migrating to the area in the early 19th century and initial white settlers suffered from Indian raids. Early white settlements developed along Big Haynes Creek in the northern part of the county, the Yellow River in the middle portion of the county, and Honey Creek in the south.

Communities formed around grist mills and newly formed churches such as Haralson Mill, Costleys Mill, Dial Mill, Zacharys Mill, McElroys Mill, Union Grove Baptist Church, Ebenezer Methodist Church, Philadelphia Methodist Church, Salem Baptist Church, Smyrna Presbyterian Church, Pleasant Hill Baptist Church, Bethel Christian Church, Honey Creek Baptist Church, and Whites Chapel Methodist Church. Other communities included Magnet and Zingara. These settlers were largely subsistence farmers.

During the American Civil War, General William Tecumseh Sherman marched the Union Army north of Conyers on his way to Covington from Lithonia. Seizure and destruction of property accompanied his army's march through the area. Many of the residents of Conyers, fearing Sherman would raze the city, fled to nearby Social Circle in Walton County, since Conyers was an important stop on the Georgia Railroad, but Conyers remained unscathed by the war.

The city is a fine example of residential and commercial architecture of the 19th century. According to a historical marker on U.S. Highway 278 west of Conyers, Major General Joseph Wheeler of the Confederate States Army and part of his staff were captured by Union troops pursuing Jefferson Davis on May 9, 1865. Wheeler was later released in Athens only to be recaptured again. He was wounded three times and had his horse shot out from under him sixteen times.

During Reconstruction, Conyers and Rockdale County experienced tremendous growth. According to the local newspaper, The Weekly Farmer, the population of Conyers increased from 300 to 2,000. The number of stores, businesses, schools, and churches of the county rapidly multiplied as well. Parts of the county were infamous for moonshining and the county became dry in 1882, prohibiting the sale and manufacture of liquor except by a licensed pharmacist as prescribed by a physician. The economy of the county was still based primarily on agriculture into the early 20th century. The PBS documentary The Lost Children of Rockdale County is about a syphilis outbreak which occurred in the county during the 1990s.

Geography

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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 132 square miles (340 km2), of which 130 square miles (340 km2) is land and 2.3 square miles (6.0 km2) (1.7%) is water.[7] It is the second-smallest county in Georgia by area, ahead of Clarke County.

The entirety of Rockdale County is located in the Upper Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin.[8]

Adjacent counties

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Communities

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City

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Census-designated place

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Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
18806,838—
18906,813−0.4%
19007,51510.3%
19108,91618.6%
19209,5216.8%
19307,247−23.9%
19407,7246.6%
19508,4649.6%
196010,57224.9%
197018,15271.7%
198036,747102.4%
199054,09147.2%
200070,11129.6%
201085,21521.5%
202093,5709.8%
2023 (est.)95,987[9]2.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]
1790-1880[11] 1890-1910[12]
1920-1930[13] 1930-1940[14]
1940-1950[15] 1960-1980[16]
1980-2000[17] 2010[18] 2020[19]
Rockdale County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the U.S. census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) Pop 2000[20] Pop 2010[18] Pop 2020[19] % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 50,967 34,826 24,500 72.69% 40.87% 26.18%
Black or African American alone (NH) 12,670 38,996 53,785 18.07% 45.76% 57.48%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 166 179 168 0.24% 0.21% 0.18%
Asian alone (NH) 1,339 1,498 1,532 1.91% 1.76% 1.64%
Pacific Islander alone (NH) 36 52 72 0.05% 0.06% 0.08%
Other race alone (NH) 100 230 617 0.14% 0.27% 0.66%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) 651 1,371 3,356 0.93% 1.61% 3.59%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 4,182 8,063 9,540 5.96% 9.46% 10.20%
Total 70,111 85,215 93,570 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 93,570 people, 32,792 households, and 23,533 families residing in the county.

In 2010, the median income for a household in the county was $53,599, and the median income for a family was $60,065. Males had a median income of $41,087 versus $29,189 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,300. About 5.70% of families and 8.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.00% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.

Education

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Main article: Rockdale County School District

Government and policing

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Rockdale County Sheriff

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The Sheriff's Office provides police patrol to the county areas other than in Conyers which has a municipal police department. The Sheriff also protects the court, maintains the county prison, and provides administration services.

Politics

[edit]

A former Republican stronghold, Rockdale County has undergone a massive shift towards the Democratic Party in recent decades, primarily due to large growth of the African-American population. In 2000, Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush won 62.64% of the county's vote, defeating Democrat Al Gore by 29 percentage points. However, just 20 years later, Democratic nominee Joe Biden won 69.88% of the county's vote, defeating Republican incumbent Donald Trump by nearly 41 percentage points. Contrary to national and statewide trends, Rockdale County delivered an even larger margin for Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in 2024, who defeated Republican nominee Donald Trump by 47 percentage points even as Trump narrowly flipped the state of Georgia back to the GOP column.

United States presidential election results for Rockdale County, Georgia[21]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2024 11,711 25.93% 33,165 73.44% 284 0.63%
2020 13,014 29.11% 31,237 69.88% 448 1.00%
2016 13,478 35.39% 23,255 61.06% 1,354 3.56%
2012 15,716 41.19% 22,023 57.72% 417 1.09%
2008 16,921 44.78% 20,526 54.32% 337 0.89%
2004 18,856 60.42% 12,136 38.89% 214 0.69%
2000 15,440 62.64% 8,295 33.65% 914 3.71%
1996 13,006 57.31% 7,656 33.73% 2,034 8.96%
1992 11,945 52.64% 7,003 30.86% 3,742 16.49%
1988 12,413 73.77% 4,330 25.73% 83 0.49%
1984 10,121 75.46% 3,291 24.54% 0 0.00%
1980 5,300 52.65% 4,395 43.66% 372 3.70%
1976 2,974 39.06% 4,640 60.94% 0 0.00%
1972 3,560 81.82% 791 18.18% 0 0.00%
1968 1,195 25.85% 1,213 26.24% 2,215 47.91%
1964 1,503 43.25% 1,972 56.75% 0 0.00%
1960 496 21.94% 1,765 78.06% 0 0.00%
1956 484 21.39% 1,779 78.61% 0 0.00%
1952 321 16.16% 1,665 83.84% 0 0.00%
1948 146 9.86% 1,209 81.63% 126 8.51%
1944 96 9.21% 946 90.79% 0 0.00%
1940 86 6.23% 1,291 93.55% 3 0.22%
1936 73 8.01% 837 91.88% 1 0.11%
1932 18 3.73% 461 95.45% 4 0.83%
1928 156 24.84% 472 75.16% 0 0.00%
1924 24 5.53% 382 88.02% 28 6.45%
1920 201 29.17% 488 70.83% 0 0.00%
1916 56 9.05% 490 79.16% 73 11.79%
1912 51 10.32% 432 87.45% 11 2.23%
Board of Commissioners
District Commissioner Party
CHAIR (at-large) Oz Nesbitt Sr. (chairman) Democratic
Post 1 Sherri L. Washington Democratic
Post 2 Doreen Williams Democratic

Recreation

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Transportation

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Major highways

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The county features an interchange of I-20 and SR 20. In order to ease potential motorist confusion, the concurrency of SR 20 & 138 is usually called just "138".

Pedestrians and cycling

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Notable people

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See also

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Sources

[edit]
  • Margaret G. Barksdale, E. L. Cowan, Francis A. King, eds. A History of Rockdale County (Conyers, Ga., 1978).
  • The Heritage of Rockdale County, Georgia (Waynesville, N.C., 1998).

References

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  1. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 3, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
  2. ^ US Census Bureau, 2020 Report, Rockdale County, Georgia
  3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ^ "History of Rockdale County". Rockdale County. Archived from the original on June 25, 2014. Retrieved June 28, 2014.
  5. ^ "Rockdale County". Georgia.gov. Retrieved June 28, 2014.
  6. ^ Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (PDF). Macon, GA: Winship Press. p. 191. ISBN 0-915430-00-2. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 17, 2003.
  7. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  8. ^ "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  9. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  10. ^ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decade". United States Census Bureau.
  11. ^ "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
  12. ^ "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910.
  13. ^ "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
  14. ^ "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
  15. ^ "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
  16. ^ "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
  17. ^ "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
  18. ^ a b "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  19. ^ a b "P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  20. ^ "P004 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Rockdale County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
  21. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
  22. ^ The Conyers (2023). "Georgia International Horse Park". Georgia International Horse Park. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
  23. ^ "Monastery of the Holy Spirit |". www.trappist.net. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
  24. ^ Salem Campground website
  25. ^ "Soccer | Georgia Revolution | Mcdonough". Georgia Revolution. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
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33°39′N 84°02′W / 33.65°N 84.03°W / 33.65; -84.03

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