Macon County, Georgia

Macon County is a county located in the west central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,082. The county seat is Oglethorpe.

The Macon County Courthouse is located in Oglethorpe.

History
Macon County was created in 1837 from parts of Houston ("house-ton") and Marion counties, effective December 14 of that year. The 91st county, it was named for the then-recently deceased General Nathaniel Macon of North Carolina, who served in the U.S. Congress for 37 years and ran for U.S. vice president. The city of Macon, Georgia was also named for him, but the city of Macon, Georgia, is the seat of Bibb County, a different county. The county was later reduced when parts were separated to organize Taylor and Peach counties, in 1852 and 1924, respectively.

The first county seat was not chosen until 1838, when the county's inferior court selected Lanier. The Georgia General Assembly (state legislature) designated it on December 29 of that year and incorporated it as a town.

In the 1850s, the Central of Georgia Railroad was built through Oglethorpe, changing county dynamics. As a result, the Georgia Assembly called for a referendum on moving the Macon County seat to Oglethorpe in February of both 1854 and 1856. Little is known about the first vote, but the second vote resulted in approval for a change to the county seat, and Oglethorpe was designated the following year in 1857.

During the Civil War, 13,000 Union soldiers who were prisoners of war died at the Confederate camp in Andersonville, Georgia from starvation and disease. In the late period of the war, Georgia also had difficulty supplying its own troops and people with food. Throughout the Civil War, more men on both sides died of disease than of their wounds. Commandants of the camp were prosecuted after the war for poor treatment of prisoners. The Andersonville National Cemetery, established for the many Union dead, is at the southwestern tip of the county.

The county has an active Mennonite community. The area code for Macon County is currently 478.

Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 406 sqmi, of which 401 sqmi is land and 5.4 sqmi (1.3%) is water. The county is located in the upper Atlantic coastal plain region of the state.

Most of the southern half of Macon County, from west of Ideal to State Route 49 north of Montezuma, then running north along State Route 49 to Marshallville, and then running southeast in the direction of Unadilla, is located in the Middle Flint River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The northern and northwestern portion of the county, from north of Marshallville heading west, is located in the Upper Flint River sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin. The northeastern corner of Macon County, east of Marshallville, is located in the Lower Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin.

Major highways

 * Georgia 26.svg State Route 26
 * Georgia 49.svg State Route 49
 * Georgia 90.svg State Route 90
 * Georgia 127.svg State Route 127
 * Georgia 128.svg State Route 128
 * Georgia 128 Bypass.svg State Route 128 Bypass
 * Georgia 224.svg State Route 224
 * Georgia 240.svg State Route 240
 * Georgia 329.svg State Route 329

Adjacent counties

 * Peach County (northeast)
 * Houston County (east)
 * Dooly County (southeast)
 * Sumter County (south)
 * Schley County (southwest)
 * Taylor County (northwest)

National protected area

 * Andersonville National Historic Site (part)

Cities

 * Ideal
 * Marshallville
 * Montezuma
 * Oglethorpe (county seat)

Demographics
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 12,082 people, 4,696 households, and 3,033 families residing in the county.

In popular culture
Macon County has been an important setting for season 4 of AMC's hit TV show, The Walking Dead. Macon County was a shooting place for the 2013 movie, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

The Mountain Goats reference Macon County, Georgia in their song, "Going to Georgia".