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Meriwether County is a county in the West Central region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,613.[2][1] The county seat is Greenville,[3] home of the Meriwether County Courthouse. The county was formed on December 14, 1827, as the 73rd county in Georgia. It was named for David Meriwether, a general in the American Revolutionary War and member of Congress from Georgia.[4]

Meriwether County is part of the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell MSA.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 505 square miles (1,310 km2), of which 501 square miles (1,300 km2) is land and 4.2 square miles (11 km2) (0.8%) is water.[5]

The county is located in the Piedmont region of the state. Portions of the Pine Mountain Range are found in the southern parts of the county near the cities of Warm Springs and Manchester.

The eastern two-thirds of Meriwether County, going east from just west of U.S. Route 27 Alternate, is located in the Upper Flint River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The western third of the county is located in the Middle Chattahoochee RiverLake Harding sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin.[6]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated community

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
18304,422
184014,132219.6%
185016,47616.6%
186015,330−7.0%
187013,756−10.3%
188017,65128.3%
189020,74017.5%
190023,33912.5%
191025,1807.9%
192026,1673.9%
193022,437−14.3%
194022,055−1.7%
195021,055−4.5%
196019,756−6.2%
197019,461−1.5%
198021,2299.1%
199022,4115.6%
200022,5340.5%
201021,992−2.4%
202020,613−6.3%
2025 (est.)21,516[7] Increase4.4%
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[2] 2020[1]

Racial and ethnic composition

Meriwether 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 1980[16] Pop 1990[17] Pop 2000[18] Pop 2010[19] Pop 2020[20] % 1980 % 1990 % 2000 % 2010 % 2020
White alone (NH) 11,529 12,308 12,579 12,606 12,084 54.31% 54.92% 55.82% 57.32% 58.62%
Black or African American alone (NH) 9,413 9,940 9,467 8,583 7,273 44.34% 44.35% 42.01% 39.03% 35.28%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) 22 25 71 67 64 0.10% 0.11% 0.32% 0.30% 0.31%
Asian alone (NH) 14 11 52 141 78 0.07% 0.05% 0.23% 0.64% 0.38%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) x [21] x [22] 11 2 6 x x 0.05% 0.01% 0.03%
Other race alone (NH) 12 6 15 18 50 0.06% 0.03% 0.07% 0.08% 0.24%
Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) x [23] x [24] 148 228 583 x x 0.66% 1.04% 2.83%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 239 121 191 347 475 1.13% 0.54% 0.85% 1.58% 2.30%
Total 21,229 22,411 22,534 21,992 20,613 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 20,613. The median age was 46.2 years. 19.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.8 males age 18 and over. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[25][26]

The racial makeup of the county was 59.3% White, 35.3% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.0% from some other race, and 3.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.3% of the population.[27]

There were 8,396 households in the county, of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 31.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[26]

There were 9,456 housing units, of which 11.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.5% were owner-occupied and 27.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.3%.[26]

Politics

Meriwether County is a moderately Republican county, voting 62% for Donald Trump in 2024. The last Democrat to win the county in a presidential election was Al Gore in 2000. For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Meriwether County is part of Georgia’s 3rd congressional district, currently represented by Brian Jack. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Meriwether County is part of District 29.[28] For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Meriwether County is part of districts 136 and 137.[29]

United States presidential election results for Meriwether County, Georgia[30]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
1912 26 2.66% 862 88.05% 91 9.30%
1916 36 2.88% 1,118 89.44% 96 7.68%
1920 186 14.94% 1,059 85.06% 0 0.00%
1924 103 7.74% 886 66.57% 342 25.69%
1928 287 15.93% 1,515 84.07% 0 0.00%
1932 53 1.99% 2,604 97.82% 5 0.19%
1936 138 5.36% 2,438 94.61% 1 0.04%
1940 174 5.98% 2,726 93.74% 8 0.28%
1944 189 7.95% 2,187 92.05% 0 0.00%
1948 204 8.47% 1,967 81.65% 238 9.88%
1952 531 13.01% 3,551 86.99% 0 0.00%
1956 592 15.88% 3,137 84.12% 0 0.00%
1960 706 18.55% 3,100 81.45% 0 0.00%
1964 2,250 48.14% 2,423 51.84% 1 0.02%
1968 1,120 20.55% 1,760 32.29% 2,571 47.17%
1972 3,420 73.82% 1,213 26.18% 0 0.00%
1976 1,450 23.09% 4,830 76.91% 0 0.00%
1980 1,838 31.66% 3,876 66.77% 91 1.57%
1984 3,195 52.73% 2,864 47.27% 0 0.00%
1988 3,101 51.31% 2,934 48.54% 9 0.15%
1992 2,364 32.30% 4,002 54.67% 954 13.03%
1996 2,259 36.13% 3,492 55.85% 502 8.03%
2000 3,162 47.13% 3,441 51.29% 106 1.58%
2004 4,402 53.98% 3,709 45.48% 44 0.54%
2008 4,982 52.34% 4,465 46.91% 71 0.75%
2012 4,856 52.36% 4,331 46.70% 87 0.94%
2016 5,222 56.47% 3,804 41.13% 222 2.40%
2020 6,524 59.96% 4,287 39.40% 69 0.63%
2024 7,375 62.26% 4,373 36.92% 98 0.83%
United States Senate election results for Meriwether County, Georgia2
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 6,432 59.68% 4,135 38.37% 211 1.96%
2020 5,833 59.25% 4,012 40.75% 0 0.00%
[31]
United States Senate election results for Meriwether County, Georgia3
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 3,255 30.40% 3,018 28.19% 4,434 41.41%
2020 5,808 59.00% 4,036 41.00% 0 0.00%
2022 5,336 60.13% 3,363 37.90% 175 1.97%
2022 5,020 60.74% 3,245 39.26% 0 0.00%
Georgia Gubernatorial election results for Meriwether County
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2022 5,704 64.03% 3,160 35.47% 44 0.49%

Education

The Meriwether County School District has six schools:

Media

The county is served by the Meriwether Vindicator newspaper.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c US 2020 Census Bureau report, Meriwether County, Georgia
  2. ^ a b “State & County QuickFacts”. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  3. ^ “Find a County”. National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  4. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 206.
  5. ^ “US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990”. United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  6. ^ “Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Interactive Mapping Experience”. Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  7. ^ “County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2025”. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 15, 2026.
  8. ^ “Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades”. United States Census Bureau.
  9. ^ “1880 Census Population by Counties 1790-1800” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1880.
  10. ^ “1910 Census of Population – Georgia” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1910.
  11. ^ “1930 Census of Population – Georgia” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1930.
  12. ^ “1940 Census of Population – Georgia” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1940.
  13. ^ “1950 Census of Population – Georgia -“ (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1950.
  14. ^ “1980 Census of Population – Number of Inhabitants – Georgia” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 1980.
  15. ^ “2000 Census of Population – Population and Housing Unit Counts – Georgia” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. 2000.
  16. ^ “1980 Census of Population – General Social and Economic Characteristics – Georgia – Table 58 – Race by Sex: 1980 and Table 59 – Persons by Spanish Origin, Race, and Sex: 1980” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. p. 12-52. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 18, 2026 – via Wayback Machine.
  17. ^ “1990 Census of Population – General Population Characteristics – Georgia: Table 6 – Race and Hispanic Origin” (PDF). United States Census Bureau. p. 15-65. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 1, 2025 – via Wayback Machine.
  18. ^ “P004: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2000: DEC Summary File 1 – Meriwether 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) – Meriwether County, Georgia”. United States Census Bureau.
  20. ^ “P2: Hispanic or Latino, and Not Hispanic or Latino by Race – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Meriwether County, Georgia”. United States Census Bureau.
  21. ^ included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census
  22. ^ included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census
  23. ^ not an option in the 1980 Census
  24. ^ not an option in the 1990 Census
  25. ^ “2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)”. United States Census Bureau. 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  26. ^ a b c “2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)”. United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  27. ^ “2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)”. United States Census Bureau. 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
  28. ^ “Georgia General Assembly”. www.legis.ga.gov. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
  29. ^ “Georgia General Assembly”. www.legis.ga.gov. Retrieved November 28, 2025.
  30. ^ Leip, David. “Dave Leip’s Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections”. uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
  31. ^ “2022 Senate Election (Official Returns)”. Commonwealth of Georgia by county. November 5, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2024.

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