Baker County, Georgia

County in Georgia, United States

County in Georgia

Baker County

County

Baker County Courthouse in Newton.

Seal

Location within the U.S. state of Georgia

Georgia's location within the U.S.

Coordinates: 31°20′N 84°27′W﻿ / ﻿31.33°N 84.45°W﻿ / 31.33; -84.45
Country|  United States
State|  Georgia
Founded| December 12, 1825; 200 years ago (1825)
Named after| John Baker
Seat| Newton
Largest city| Newton
Area

• Total

| 349 sq mi (900 km2)
• Land| 342 sq mi (890 km2)
• Water| 7.2 sq mi (19 km2)  2.1%
Population

(2020)

• Total

| 2,876
• Density| 8/sq mi (3/km2)
Time zone| UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)| UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district| 2nd
Website| https://www.bakercountyga.com/

Baker County is a county in Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,876, making it the fifth-least populous county in Georgia.[1] The county seat and only city is Newton.[2] The county was created December 12, 1825, from the eastern portion of Early County by an act of the Georgia General Assembly and is named for Colonel John Baker, a hero of the American Revolutionary War.[3]

Baker County is included in the Albany, GA metropolitan statistical area.

The Baker County Courthouse (Georgia) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Three other properties in Newton are also listed on the register: Notchaway Baptist Church and Cemetery, Pine Bloom Plantation, and Tarver Plantation.

## Geography

[edit]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 349 square miles (900 km2), of which 342 square miles (890 km2) is land and 7.2 square miles (19 km2) (2.1%) is water.[4]

The eastern half of Baker County is located in the Lower Flint River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The western half of the county is located in the Ichawaynochaway Creek sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin.[5]

### Major highways

[edit]

* State Route 37
* State Route 91
* State Route 200
* State Route 216
* State Route 253

### Adjacent counties

[edit]

* Dougherty County, Georgia \- northeast
* Mitchell County, Georgia \- east
* Decatur County, Georgia \- southwest
* Early County, Georgia \- west
* Miller County, Georgia \- west
* Calhoun County, Georgia \- northwest

## Communities

[edit]

### City

[edit]

* Newton

### Unincorporated communities

[edit]

* Anna
* Bethany
* Crestview
* Elmodel
* Hardup
* Milford
* Patmos

### Ghost towns

[edit]

* Cheevertown
* Dewsville[6]

## Demographics

[edit]

Historical population Census| Pop.| Note| %±

|
|
|

1830| 1,253| | —
1840| 4,226| | 237.3%
1850| 8,120| | 92.1%
1860| 4,985| | −38.6%
1870| 6,843| | 37.3%
1880| 7,307| | 6.8%
1890| 6,144| | −15.9%
1900| 6,704| | 9.1%
1910| 7,973| | 18.9%
1920| 8,298| | 4.1%
1930| 7,818| | −5.8%
1940| 7,344| | −6.1%
1950| 5,952| | −19.0%
1960| 4,543| | −23.7%
1970| 3,875| | −14.7%
1980| 3,808| | −1.7%
1990| 3,615| | −5.1%
2000| 4,074| | 12.7%
2010| 3,451| | −15.3%
2020| 2,876| | −16.7%
2023 (est.)| 2,743| [7]| −4.6%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
1790-1880[9] 1890-1910[10]
1920-1930[11] 1930-1940[12]
1940-1950[13] 1960-1980[14]
1980-2000[15] 2010[16] 2020[17]
Baker County, Georgia – Racial and ethnic composition
Note: the US 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[18] | Pop 2010[19] | Pop 2020[17] | % 2000  | % 2010  | % 2020

|
|
|
|
|
|

White alone (NH)  | 1,889  | 1,642  | 1,514  | 46.37%  | 47.58%  | 52.64%
Black or African American alone (NH)  | 2,038  | 1,600  | 1,128  | 50.02%  | 46.36%  | 39.22%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)  | 9  | 9  | 1  | 0.22%  | 0.26%  | 0.03%
Asian alone (NH)  | 0  | 24  | 18  | 0.00%  | 0.70%  | 0.63%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)  | 1  | 2  | 0  | 0.02%  | 0.06%  | 0.00%
Other race alone (NH)  | 2  | 1  | 2  | 0.05%  | 0.03%  | 0.07%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)  | 24  | 28  | 70  | 0.59%  | 0.81%  | 2.43%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)  | 111  | 145  | 143  | 2.72%  | 4.20%  | 4.97%
Total | 4,074 | 3,451 | 2,876 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,876 people, 1,425 households, and 788 families residing in the county.

## Education

[edit]

Baker County School System school building

Baker County School System operates public schools.[20]

## Politics

[edit]

Like most Deep South counties, Baker County is historically Democratic. Starting in 1964, the county began to see a realignment, with Barry Goldwater and Richard Nixon carrying it in 1964 and 1972, and American Independent candidate George Wallace winning the county in 1968 as a third-party candidate. In 1956, Adlai Stevenson received over 96 percent of the county's vote.[21] The county voted Democratic consistently from 1976 until 2012, but by closer margins than in 1956, and the county shifted more to the right throughout the early 2000s. In 2008 Barack Obama won with just 50.1 percent to John McCain's 49.1 percent,[22] while Donald Trump won the county by almost ten percent in 2016, despite declining on Mitt Romney’s performance statewide. Brian Kemp repeated this feat by double digits in the 2018 gubernatorial race, and in 2020, Trump won Baker County by nearly sixteen percentage points.[23]

United States presidential election results for Baker County, Georgia[24] Year  | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies)

|
|
|

No.  | % | No.  | % | No.  | %
2024 | 883  | 59.82% | 590  | 39.97%  | 3  | 0.20%
2020 | 897  | 57.68% | 652  | 41.93%  | 6  | 0.39%
2016 | 775  | 53.82% | 650  | 45.14%  | 15  | 1.04%
2012 | 785  | 49.34%  | 794  | 49.91% | 12  | 0.75%
2008 | 828  | 49.02%  | 846  | 50.09% | 15  | 0.89%
2004 | 821  | 46.52%  | 936  | 53.03% | 8  | 0.45%
2000 | 615  | 40.49%  | 893  | 58.79% | 11  | 0.72%
1996 | 408  | 27.66%  | 955  | 64.75% | 112  | 7.59%
1992 | 391  | 26.63%  | 864  | 58.86% | 213  | 14.51%
1988 | 629  | 46.66%  | 707  | 52.45% | 12  | 0.89%
1984 | 675  | 49.41%  | 691  | 50.59% | 0  | 0.00%
1980 | 510  | 32.61%  | 1,035  | 66.18% | 19  | 1.21%
1976 | 305  | 20.79%  | 1,162  | 79.21% | 0  | 0.00%
1972 | 965  | 73.66% | 345  | 26.34%  | 0  | 0.00%
1968 | 99  | 5.78%  | 548  | 31.97%  | 1,067  | 62.25%
1964 | 914  | 60.33% | 600  | 39.60%  | 1  | 0.07%
1960 | 66  | 8.40%  | 720  | 91.60% | 0  | 0.00%
1956 | 32  | 3.93%  | 783  | 96.07% | 0  | 0.00%
1952 | 155  | 13.36%  | 1,005  | 86.64% | 0  | 0.00%
1948 | 7  | 2.47%  | 218  | 77.03% | 58  | 20.49%
1944 | 31  | 6.09%  | 478  | 93.91% | 0  | 0.00%
1940 | 30  | 5.10%  | 557  | 94.73% | 1  | 0.17%
1936 | 13  | 2.12%  | 599  | 97.72% | 1  | 0.16%
1932 | 2  | 0.31%  | 647  | 99.23% | 3  | 0.46%
1928 | 99  | 17.65%  | 462  | 82.35% | 0  | 0.00%
1924 | 21  | 7.69%  | 245  | 89.74% | 7  | 2.56%
1920 | 80  | 36.20%  | 141  | 63.80% | 0  | 0.00%
1916 | 94  | 17.77%  | 435  | 82.23% | 0  | 0.00%
1912 | 5  | 2.66%  | 183  | 97.34% | 0  | 0.00%

## See also

[edit]

* State of Georgia portal

* National Register of Historic Places listings in Baker County, Georgia
* List of counties in Georgia

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Census - Geography Profile: Baker County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
2. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. ^ Candler, Allen Daniel; Evans, Clement Anselm (1906). Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons. State historical association. p. 114.
4. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
5. ^ "Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience". Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Archived from the original on October 3, 2018. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
6. ^ Baker County Historical Society (1991). The History of Baker County. Newton, Baker County, Georgia, USA: Baker County Historical Society. pp. 54–69\. LCCN 92080765.
7. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
8. ^ "Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades". US Census Bureau.
9. ^ "1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1880.
10. ^ "1910 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1910.
11. ^ "1930 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1930.
12. ^ "1940 Census of Population - Georgia" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1940.
13. ^ "1950 Census of Population - Georgia -" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1950.
14. ^ "1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 1980.
15. ^ "2000 Census of Population - Population and Housing Unit Counts - Georgia" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 2000.
16. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
17. ^ a b "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Baker County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
18. ^ "P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Baker County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
19. ^ "P2 Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Baker County, Georgia". United States Census Bureau.
20. ^ Baker County School System Retrieved February 23, 2011.
21. ^ David Leip's Presidential Atlas: 1956 statistics
22. ^ The New York Times Electoral Map (Zoom in on Georgia)
23. ^ "Pivot Counties in Georgia", ballotpedia.org, retrieved September 23, 2024
24. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 18, 2018.

## Further reading

[edit]

* John P. Campbell, ed. (1854). "Georgia: Baker County". Southern Business Directory. Charleston, SC: Press of Walker & James – via HathiTrust.
* Adiel Sherwood (1860), "Baker County", A Gazetteer of Georgia (4th ed.), Georgia – via HathiTrust`{{citation}}`: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
* Allen D. Candler; Clement A. Evans, eds. (1906). "Baker County". Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons Arranged in Cyclopedic Form. Vol. 1\. Atlanta: State Historical Association. p. 114 – via HathiTrust.

## External links

[edit]

* Baker County Sheriff's Office
* Baker County historical marker
* "Baker County", New Georgia Encyclopedia, Georgia Humanities Council
* Digital Public Library of America. Assorted items related to Baker County

* v
* t
* e

Places adjacent to Baker County, Georgia

| Calhoun County |  | Dougherty County

|
|

|  |
Early County and Miller County |

Baker County, Georgia

| Mitchell County
|  |
Decatur County |  |

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Baker County, Georgia, United States

County seat: Newton

City|

* Newton

Map of Georgia highlighting Baker County

Unincorporated
communities|

* Anna
* Bethany
* Crestview
* Elmodel
* Hard-Up
* Milford
* Patmos

Ghost towns|

* Cheevertown
* Dewsville

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31°20′N 84°27′W﻿ / ﻿31.33°N 84.45°W﻿ / 31.33; -84.45
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