- Moultrie, Georgia
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Moultrie, Georgia, USA — City — Colquitt County Courthouse
Nickname(s): The City Of Southern Living Location in Colquitt County and the state of Georgia
Coordinates: 31°10′N 83°47′W / 31.167°N 83.783°WCoordinates: 31°10′N 83°47′W / 31.167°N 83.783°W Country United States State Georgia County Colquitt Government - Mayor William M. McIntosh Area - Total 14.2 sq mi (36.9 km2) - Land 14.2 sq mi (36.8 km2) - Water 0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2) Elevation 318 ft (97 m) Population (2000) - Total 14,387 - Density 1,013.0/sq mi (389.89/km2) Time zone EST (UTC-5) - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4) ZIP codes 31768, 31776, 31788 Area code(s) 229 FIPS code 13-53060[1] GNIS feature ID 0332427[2] Website http://www.moultriega.com/ Moultrie is the county seat and largest city of Colquitt County[3] and the third largest in Southwest Georgia behind Thomasville and Albany. As of 2009, Moultrie's population is 15,199 people. Since 2000, it has had a population growth of 6.07 percent.
Moultrie is an agricultural community set in the Southern Rivers part of the State of Georgia. It is well known for its antique shops and has been styled "The Antique Capital of South Georgia." Moultrie is also the home of US Senator Saxby Chambliss.
Contents
Geography
Located in Southwest Georgia, Moultrie is in the center of Colquitt County, 24 miles (39 km) west of Interstate 75 - about 200 miles (300 km) south of Atlanta and 60 miles (100 km) northeast of Tallahassee, Florida.
The city is geographically in the middle of Albany to the NW, Tifton to the NE, Thomasville to the SW, and Valdosta to the SE. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.2 square miles (36.9 km²). Moultrie is located at 31°10′13″N 83°47′1″W / 31.17028°N 83.78361°W (31.170188, -83.783601)[4].
History
The City was named Moultrie, after Gen. William Moultrie, the Revolutionary War hero after whom Fort Moultrie was named following the successful defence of Charleston, South Carolina in the American War of Independence, against the British under Peter Parker, an anniversary subsequently celebrated as Carolina Day.
Colquitt County became the 115th county in Georgia by an act of the Legislature on February 25, 1856. It was named after Walter Terry Colquittt, a minister, statesman and lawyer who was a military leader in the mid 1860's. In 1879, a charter was adopted and 50 acres (0 km2) in the center of the county was declared the county seat.
During the American Civil War Colquitt County raised several companies of Confederate troops, particularly Company H, 50th Georgia Volunteer Infantry.
Founders of naval stores started harvesting the timbers in the late 1890s. They set up turpentine stills and built tram roads, allowing for the railroad to come into the territory. The Boston & Albany line, which later became the Georgia Northern Railway, was the first through town, bringing with it growth and prosperity for the County. Practically every train brought new residents interested in supplying naval stores or working in the saw mills.
By 1900, through the work of businessmen, bankers and speculators, the county was becoming a farmer's paradise.
Land was cleared and development companies began dividing the forested area into farm tracts. Experienced farmers from north Georgia and the Carolinas were invited to come and develop the land. The county's agriculture industry thrives today.
There were 5,663 households out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 23.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.7 males.
African American Presence
The African-American community has made a significant impact on the city of Moultrie over the years. Several of those making the most impact have been honored by having community buildings or parks bear their names. One late Moultrie resident has even had a railway terminal in the Atlanta area named in his honor. In 2001, the John W. Whitaker Intermodal Terminal in Austell was named for John Whitaker, a Moultrie native who worked with Norfolk Southern most of his lifetime and helped to form the International Brotherhood of Railroad Employees to address workplace discrimination. He was also training as a pilot with the famed Tuskegee Airmen during World War II, but his training was not completed by the time the war ended in 1945. A section of Ninth Street Northwest was named in honor of Moultrie native Ellis Hanks Jr. in 2003. Hanks received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, which is the highest award given to a Marine for heroism in a non-combat situation. He was also the first American to receive the Finnish Life Saving Award. Moultrie is also the home of two Negro leagues professional baseball players R.C. Stevens and John Glenn, Nationally Recognized Author Odessa Walker Hooker, Corporate executive Reatha Clark King, the first Miss Black Deaf America Pageant winner Mrs. Ronnie Mae Tyson-Jones and many more prominent African Americans. Both of Moultrie's middle schools bear the names of successful black educators. C.A. Gray Junior High School was named for Charlie A. Gray, a faculty member at Moultrie High for Negro Youth and Willie J. Williams Middle School in honor of its former principal. Ram Round-up is a historical class reunion of black high schools for Colquitt County, Georgia from the 1920s to the 1970s. It is held every even year in Moultrie, Georgia during the 4th of July holiday week boosting the local economy tremendously. The theme is "A History..A Celebration" and include former schools:
- Moultrie High for Colored Youth
- Moultrie High for Negro Youth, and
- William Bryant High
Education
Colquitt County School District
Moultrie public schools are controlled by the Colquitt County Board of Education. The Colquitt County School District holds grades pre-school to grade twelve, that consists of ten elementary schools, a middle school, a junior high school, and one high school.[5] The district has 480 full-time teachers and over 8,342 students.[6]
Elementary Schools
- Cox Elementary School
- Doerun Elementary School
- Funston Elementary School
- Hamilton Elementary School
- Norman Park Elementary School
- Odom Elementary School
- Okapilco Elementary School
- Stringfellow Elementary School
- Sunset Elementary School
- Wright Elementary School
- Pre-K Program
Middle Schools
- Williams Middle School
Junior High School
- C. A. Gray Junior High School
High School
Higher Education
- Moultrie Technical College - Main Campus[7]
Industry
Industry for the Moultrie area grew considerably when Sanderson Farms opened a processing plant in 2006 that now currently employs over 1,000 workers, over 10 percent of the local workforce[citation needed]. The manufacturer of light, single-engined STOL aircraft, the Maule Air, is also located in Moultrie.
Telecommunications
There are several radio and television stations located in the Moultrie area.
- Radio
- WOBB-100.3FM Country
- WMGA-1130 AM Spanish
- WMTM-1300 AM Gospel music
- WHBS-1400 AM Religious
- WMTM-93.9 FM Oldies
- Television
Transportation
Moultrie is serviced by US 319, which connects to Interstate 75 and Interstate 10. State Road 37 and State Road 111 also run through Moultrie. The Chattahoochee and Gulf Railroad, and Greyhound are two transportation services provided in Moultrie. Moultrie also has two small airports, Moultrie Municipal Airport and Spence Airport.
Historic sites
Moultrie is also home to several buildings and homes that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[8]
Festivals
- Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition - October
- The Calico Arts & Crafts Shows - March and November
- Southern Wildlife & Outdoor Exposition - August
- Automotive Swap Meet - November
- Ram Roundup-July
Points of interest
- Museum of Colquitt County History
- Reed Bingham State Park
- The Ellen Payne Odom Genealogy Library
- Spence Field
References
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ^ Georgia Board of Education, Retrieved June 4, 2010.
- ^ School Stats, Retrieved June 4, 2010.
- ^ Moultrie Technical College, Retrieved July 3, 2010.
- ^ Colquitt County Historic Buildings
External links
Municipalities and communities of Colquitt County, Georgia County seat: MoultrieCities Doerun | Moultrie | Norman Park | Omega‡
Towns Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
Categories:- Cities in Georgia (U.S. state)
- Populated places in Colquitt County, Georgia
- Micropolitan areas of Georgia (U.S. state)
- County seats in Georgia (U.S. state)
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