DeKalb County, Georgia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| DeKalb County, Georgia | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of Georgia |
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 Georgia's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1822 |
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| Seat | Decatur |
| Largest city | Decatur |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
271 sq mi (702 km²) 268 sq mi (694 km²) 3 sq mi (8 km²), 1.00% |
| Population - (2006) - Density |
737,093 2,484/sq mi (959/km²) |
| Website: www.co.dekalb.ga.us | |
DeKalb County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 686,712. According to the 2007 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, the county's population had risen to 737,093 [1]. The county seat is Decatur, Georgia[1].
DeKalb County is included in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the third-largest county in the Atlanta area, just behind Gwinnett County. DeKalb is primarily a suburban county and is second most affluent county with an African-American majority in the United States. It is just behind Prince George's County, Maryland in suburban Washington D.C.
DeKalb County has the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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[edit] History
DeKalb County was created in 1822 from Henry, Gwinnett and Fayette Counties. It was named for Baron Johann de Kalb, a German soldier who fought on the side of the Americans in the American Revolutionary War. In 1853, Fulton County was formed from part of DeKalb. Until this time, the growing city of Atlanta had been inside DeKalb. During the American Civil War, much of the Battle of Atlanta was fought in DeKalb. Until the 1960s, DeKalb was a mainly agricultural county, but as Atlanta and its suburbs grew, DeKalb became more urban.
[edit] Law and government
In 1984 DeKalb's state delegation created a unique CEO position which is the chief elected official. All employees report to the CEO rather than to commissioners for day-to-day operations. The CEO serves as the chairman of the seven-member commission, but does not vote except to break a tie. The county commission is elected from five small districts and two super-districts that each make up half of the county and overlap the smaller districts. DeKalb's current CEO is Vernon Jones.
Most of DeKalb makes up Georgia's 4th United States House of Representatives District.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 271 square miles (702 km²), of which, 268 square miles (695 km²) of it is land and 3 square miles (7 km²) of it (1.00%) is water.
The county is crossed by the South River and numerous creeks, including Nancy Creek, Snapfinger Creek and two forks of Peachtree Creek. Peachtree Creek and Nancy Creek drain into the Chattahoochee River and eventually to the Gulf of Mexico. South River drains into the Ocmulgee River and ultimately into the Atlantic Ocean.
Stone Mountain lies near the eastern border of the county. Soapstone Ridge, parallel to the southern border, was heavily quarried between 1400 and 100 B.C. and objects made from the soapstone have been found as far away as the Great Lakes.
[edit] Major highways |
[edit] Adjacent counties
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[edit] Secondary highways
- Ashford-Dunwoody Road
- Bouldercrest Road
- Briarcliff Road
- Brockett Road
- Browns Mill Road (S.R. 212)
- Buford Highway (U.S. 23/S.R. 13)
- Candler Road (S.R. 155)
- Cedar Grove Road
- Chamblee-Dunwoody Road
- Chamblee-Tucker Road
- Church Street
- Clairmont Road (U.S. 23/S.R. 155)
- Clifton Springs Road
- Columbia Drive
- Commerce Drive (S.R. 155)
- Covington Highway (U.S. 278/S.R. 12)
- DeKalb Industrial Way
- East Ponce de Leon Avenue
- Evans Mill Road
- Flakes Mill Road
- Flat Shoals Parkway (S.R. 155)
- Flat Shoals Road (S.R. 155)
- Glenwood Road (former S.R. 260)
- Gresham Road
- Henderson Mill Road
- Hugh Howell Road (S.R. 236)
- Idlewood Road
- Johnson Ferry Road
- Klondike Road
- LaVista Road (S.R. 236)
- Lawrenceville Highway (U.S. 29/S.R. 8)
- Lithonia Industrial Boulevard
- Main Street
- Memorial Drive (S.R. 10/S.R. 154)
- Moreland Avenue (U.S. 23/S.R. 42)
- Mount Vernon Road
- Mountain Industrial Boulevard
- North Clarendon Avenue
- North Decatur Road
- North Deshon Road
- North Druid Hills Road (S.R. 42)
- North Hairston Road
- North Indian Creek Drive
- North Peachtree Road
- North Stone Mountain-Lithonia Road
- Northcrest Road
- Northlake Parkway
- Oakcliff Road
- Panola Road
- Panthersville Road
- Peachtree Road (S.R. 141)
- Peachtree Industrial Boulevard (S.R. 141)
- Peeler Road
- Pleasantdale Road
- Rainbow Drive
- Redan Road
- River Road
- Roberts Drive
- Rockbridge Road (S.R. 124
- Rock Chapel Road (S.R. 124)
- Scott Boulevard (U.S. 29/S.R. 8/U.S. 78)
- Shallowford Road
- Snapfinger Road (S.R. 155)
- South Deshon Road
- South Hairston Road
- South Indian Creek Drive
- South Stone Mountain-Lithonia Road
- Thurman Road (S.R. 160)
- Tilly Mill Road
- Turner Hill Road (S.R. 124)
- Valley Brook Road
- Wesley Chapel Road
- West Ponce de Leon Avenue
- Windsor Parkway
- Winters Chapel Road
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1830 | 10,042 |
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| 1840 | 10,467 | 4.2% | |
| 1850 | 14,328 | 36.9% | |
| 1860 | 7,806 | −45.5% | |
| 1870 | 10,014 | 28.3% | |
| 1880 | 14,497 | 44.8% | |
| 1890 | 17,189 | 18.6% | |
| 1900 | 21,112 | 22.8% | |
| 1910 | 27,881 | 32.1% | |
| 1920 | 44,051 | 58% | |
| 1930 | 70,278 | 59.5% | |
| 1940 | 86,942 | 23.7% | |
| 1950 | 136,395 | 56.9% | |
| 1960 | 256,782 | 88.3% | |
| 1970 | 415,387 | 61.8% | |
| 1980 | 483,024 | 16.3% | |
| 1990 | 545,837 | 13% | |
| 2000 | 665,865 | 22% | |
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 665,865 people, 249,339 households, and 156,584 families residing in the county. The population density was 2,483 people per square mile (959/km²). There were 261,231 housing units at an average density of 974 per square mile (376/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 35.82% White, 54.23% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 4.01% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 3.53% from other races, and 2.12% from two or more races. 7.89% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 249,339 households out of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.10% were married couples living together, 17.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.20% were non-families. 26.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.20.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.60% under the age of 18, 10.90% from 18 to 24, 36.70% from 25 to 44, 19.70% from 45 to 64, and 8.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 94.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $49,117, and the median income for a family was $54,018. Males had a median income of $36,270 versus $31,653 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,968. About 7.80% of families and 10.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.10% of those under age 18 and 8.70% of those age 65 or over.
Northeastern DeKalb has experienced an influx of Asian-American residents, both native and immigrant, over the past 20 years. This northeastern region of the county has demographic characteristics that are more similar to areas in Southern California than the rest of Georgia (and the Atlanta region), with a high population of Hispanic and Asian residents.[citation needed]
Although Fulton County has more people, DeKalb County has the highest population density of any county in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
[edit] Cities and Other Places in DeKalb County
[edit] Cities
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[edit] Census-designated places |
[edit] Other communities
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[edit] Education
[edit] Primary and Secondary Education
[edit] Public schools
The portion of DeKalb County not within the city of Atlanta nor the city of Decatur is served by DeKalb County School System.
The Atlanta portion is served by Atlanta Public Schools.
The Decatur portion is served by City Schools of Decatur.
[edit] Private schools
Private schools in DeKalb County include:
- Marist High School (Unincorporated)
[edit] Higher Education
Agnes Scott College is a private, all female, undergraduate liberal arts college.
Emory University is a private, coeducational, liberal arts university. The university consists of the following divisions: Emory College, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Candler School of Theology, Goizueta Business School, Emory University School of Law, Rollins School of Public Health, and the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing.
Mercer University is a private, coeducational, faith-based university with a Baptist heritage. The main campus is in Macon. The Cecil B. Day Graduate and Professional Campus is in DeKalb County; it houses the College of Nursing, the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, and the James and Carolyn McAfee School of Theology along with programs of the Eugene W. Stetson School of Business and Economics, the School of Medicine, and the Tift College of Education.
Oglethorpe University is a private, coeducational, liberal arts school and is named after James Oglethorpe, founder of the Georgia Colony.
Georgia Perimeter College has three campuses within the county and offers two-year associate degrees.
DeKalb Tech is the largest vocational institution in Georgia. DeKalb Tech trains students in business, engineering, technologies, health, human services, industrial arts, information systems, and transportation.
DeVry Institute offers training in computers and electronics.
Columbia Theological Seminary, a theological institution of the Presbyterian Church. More than 640 students are enrolled at Columbia in one of five degree programs: Master of Divinity, Master of Arts in Theological Studies, Master of Theology, Doctor of Ministry, and Doctor of Theology.
[edit] Public libraries
The DeKalb County Public Library has 22 branches throughout the county, with three additional branches planned by 2010.
[edit] Bibliography
- DeKalb Historical Society. Vanishing DeKalb: A Pictoral History. Decatur, Ga.: DeKalb Historical Society, 1985. ISBN 0-9615459-0-9
- Mason, Herman "Skip" Jr. African-American Life in DeKalb County, 1821-1970. Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 1998. ISBN 0-7385-0034-8
- Owens, Sue Ellen, and Megan Milford. DeKalb County in Vintage Postcards. Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2001. ISBN 0-7385-1401-2
- Price, Vivian. The History of DeKalb County, Georgia, 1822-1900. Fernandina Beach, Fla.: Wolfe Publishing Company, 1997. ISBN 1-883793-27-0
[edit] External links
- DeKalb County official web site
- DeKalb History Center
- DeKalb Convention and Visitors Bureau
- DeKalb HomeTownDekalb.com - Dekalb County Online News & Community Publication
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