Oglethorpe County, Georgia

Oglethorpe County Education, Geography, and History

Oglethorpe County is a county located in the state of Georgia. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 14,899.  Oglethorpe County was created on December 19, 1793. The county seat is Lexington. The county is named in honor of General James Edward Oglethorpe (1696-1785), the founder of the Colony of Georgia.

Oglethorpe County is included in the Athens-Clarke County, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Atlanta-Athens-Clarke County-Sandy Springs, GA Combined Statistical Area. It is the largest county in Northeast Georgia

Etymology - Origin of Oglethorpe County Name

 The county is named for the state's founder, General James E. Oglethorpe.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Oglethorpe County History

Oglethorpe County was created in 1793. Georgia's 19th county is named for the state's founder, General James E. Oglethorpe.

Lexington, the county seat, is named in honor of the Revolutionary War battle. The largest city is Crawford, named for William H. Crawford, former Governor, US Senator, Secretary of the Treasury and Minister to France.

Points of Interest

The site known as Cherokee Corner was once an angle in the boundary between Creek and Cherokee lands. At one time, the site was important to surveying in the region.

Other important sites are the home of Governor Gilmer and Watson Mill Bridge State Park, which is shared with Madison County. The bridge, which is located on the South Fork Broad River, is the largest in Georgia, and was in the past the site of a grist mill and power generation plant.

Bartram Buffalo Lick, located in Philomath, is an iron-bearing clay pit of about 1.5 acres. This site was often visited by buffalo, deer and cattle, although it has no saline properties. It was a meeting place for the area's Indians.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 442 square miles (1,140 km²), of which 439 square miles (1,140 km²) is land and 3.0 square miles (7.8 km²) (0.7%) is water.

 Oglethorpe county is located in north Georgia. The county is mostly in the Savannah River basin and the western portion of the county is in the Oconee River basin.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Northeast: Elbert County
• Southeast: Wilkes County; Taliaferro County
• South: Greene County
• West: Oconee County
• Northwest: Clarke County; Madison County

Education

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