Bryan County, Georgia
Encyclopedia
Bryan County is a county located in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

. As of 2000, the population was 23,417. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 30,132. The county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....

 is Pembroke
Pembroke, Georgia
Pembroke is a small city in Bryan County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,379 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Bryan County.Pembroke is part of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

.

Bryan County is part of the Savannah
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

 Metropolitan Statistical Area
Savannah metropolitan area
The Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in Georgia, anchored by the city of Savannah. As of the 2010 census, the Savannah MSA had a population of 347,611, an 18.6 percent increase from the 2000 population of ...

.

History

Bryan County was created on December 19, 1793, named after Jonathan Bryan (1708–1788), an American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

 partisan.

South Bryan County is home to the earthen Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 installation Ft. McAllister (now Fort McAllister Historic Park
Fort McAllister Historic Park
Fort McAllister Historic Park is a Georgia state park located near Keller and Richmond Hill in South Bryan County, Georgia and on the south bank of the Ogeechee River . The park is home to the best preserved earthwork fortification of the Confederacy...

) which Gen. William Sherman captured on his March to the Sea
Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman's March to the Sea is the name commonly given to the Savannah Campaign conducted around Georgia from November 15, 1864 to December 21, 1864 by Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army in the American Civil War...

.

The first county seat was in Hardwick
Hardwick, Georgia
Hardwick or Hardwicke is a place in Bryan County, Georgia. The town was laid out in 1755. Harwick was the county seat of Bryan County from 1793 through 1797....

. In 1860 the seat was moved to Eden. By 1901 it was in Clyde
Clyde, Georgia
Clyde was a place in Bryan County, Georgia, United States. It was formerly a town.Clyde was named after Sir Colin Campbell, Lord Clyde.The history of the town is uncertain, in part due to destruction of records in a fire. The Bryan county seat was in a town called Eden since at least 1860; some...

, which may have been the same location formerly known as Eden. Clyde served as the seat to 1935; in 1937 Pembroke took on that role. The only remaining sign of Clyde is a cemetery on the Fort Stewart military reservation.

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 454.49 square miles (1,177.1 km²), of which 441.71 square miles (1,144 km²) (or 97.19%) is land and 12.78 square miles (33.1 km²) (or 2.81%) is water.

Bryan County is unique in that it is totally divided by the military installation at Ft. Stewart. Pembroke is in more rural north Bryan, while Richmond Hill in south Bryan county is a suburb of Savannah. To travel between the two on public roads, it is necessary to leave the county.

Major highways

  • Interstate 16
    Interstate 16
    Interstate 16 , also known as Jim Gillis Historic Savannah Parkway or State Route 404 , is an intrastate Interstate Highway located entirely within the state of Georgia, United States...

  • Interstate 95
    Interstate 95 in Georgia
    Interstate 95, the main Interstate Highway on the east coast of the United States, serves the Atlantic coast of Georgia. It begins at the St. Marys River at the Florida state line north of Jacksonville and heads north past the border of South Carolina at the Savannah River...

  • U.S. Highway 17
  • U.S. Highway 80
  • U.S. Highway 280
  • Georgia State Route 26
    Georgia State Route 26
    State Route 26 is a west–east state route located in the central part of the U.S. state of Georgia. The route travels from U.S. 27/U.S. 280/S.R. 1/S.R. 520 in Fort Benning east to Tybee Island.-Route description:...

  • Georgia State Route 30
    Georgia State Route 30
    State Route 30 is an east–west route located in the U.S. state of Georgia. The route runs from SR 41 in Marion County east to SR 25 in Port Wentworth. The route is cosigned with U.S. Route 280 for a majority of its length....

  • Georgia State Route 144
    Georgia State Route 144
    State Route 144 is an east–west highway in southern Georgia, USA. It begins near the Atlantic coast southeast of Keller in south Bryan County, where a spur leads to Fort McAllister Historic Park...


  • Adjacent counties

    • Effingham County, Georgia
      Effingham County, Georgia
      Effingham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. In the United States Census of 2000, the population was 37,535. The Census Bureau's 2008 estimate estimates that this figure has grown to 52,060. The seat of Effingham County is Springfield....

       - north
    • Chatham County, Georgia
      Chatham County, Georgia
      Chatham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. The county seat and largest city is Savannah. In the official US Census of 2010, Chatham County had a total population of 265,128 . Chatham is the most populous Georgia county outside the Atlanta metropolitan area...

       - northeast
    • Liberty County, Georgia
      Liberty County, Georgia
      Liberty County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 61,610. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 60,503...

       - south
    • Evans County, Georgia
      Evans County, Georgia
      Evans County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Georgia in an area known as the Magnolia Midlands within the Historic South region. A bill creating the county was passed in the Georgia General Assembly on August 11, 1914, and later, on November 3, 1914, an...

       - west
    • Bulloch County, Georgia
      Bulloch County, Georgia
      Bulloch County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on February 8, 1796. Bulloch County has undergone rapid growth in recent years. As of 2000, the population was 55,983. The 2009 Census Estimate showed a population of 69,213. The county seat is Statesboro.In...

       - northwest

    Demographics

    As of the census
    Census
    A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

    of 2000, there were 23,417 people, 8,089 households, and 6,511 families residing in the county. The population density
    Population density
    Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

     was 53 people per square mile (20/km²). There were 8,675 housing units at an average density of 20 per square mile (8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 82.79% White
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , 14.14% Black
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

     or African American
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , 0.32% Native American
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , 0.77% Asian
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , 0.07% Pacific Islander
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , 0.58% from other races
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

    , and 1.34% from two or more races. 1.99% of the population were Hispanic
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

     or Latino
    Race (United States Census)
    Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

     of any race.

    There were 8,089 households out of which 45.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.40% were married couples
    Marriage
    Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

     living together, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.50% were non-families. 16.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.22.

    In the county the population was spread out with 31.10% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 31.90% from 25 to 44, 21.60% from 45 to 64, and 7.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.10 males.

    The median income for a household in the county was $48,345, and the median income for a family was $53,680. Males had a median income of $39,606 versus $25,830 for females. The per capita income
    Per capita income
    Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

     for the county was $19,794. About 10.70% of families and 11.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.70% of those under age 18 and 12.60% of those age 65 or over.

    Cities and towns

    • Pembroke
      Pembroke, Georgia
      Pembroke is a small city in Bryan County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,379 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Bryan County.Pembroke is part of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

    • Richmond Hill
      Richmond Hill, Georgia
      Richmond Hill is a city in Bryan County, Georgia, United States. The population was 6,959 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Richmond Hill is located at ....

    • Keller
      Keller, Georgia
      Keller is a small unincorporated community located in southern Bryan County, Georgia, United States, east of Richmond Hill. Its boundaries are ill-defined, but the community could be said to be centered on the intersection of S.R. 144 and Belfast-Keller Road. Currently the area, like all of South...

    • Lanier
    • Black Creek
      Black Creek, Georgia
      Black Creek is an unincorporated community in Bryan County, Georgia, in the United States. It is located along U.S. Route 280, southwest of Interstate 16 and northeast of Pembroke....


    Notable residents

    • Gregg Allman
      Gregg Allman
      Gregory Lenoir Allman , known as Gregg Allman, is a rock and blues singer, keyboardist, guitarist and songwriter, and a founding member of The Allman Brothers Band. He was inducted with the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Georgia...

       - musician, Allman Brothers Band
    • Mattie Belle Davis
      Mattie Belle Davis
      Mattie Belle Davis was a judge and the first woman from Florida elected to the American Bar Foundation and the second woman to be elected in the US....

       - first woman judge of Metropolitan Court of Dade County, Florida
    • Justin Smiley
      Justin Smiley
      Justin Smiley is a former American football guard. He was originally drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the second round of the 2004 NFL Draft...

       - pro football player, All-American at University of Alabama
    • John Smoltz
      John Smoltz
      John Andrew Smoltz is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher and active sportscaster. He is best known for his prolific career of more than two decades with the Atlanta Braves, in which he garnered eight All-Star selections and received the Cy Young Award in 1996...

       - MLB pitcher, owned a summer home here while playing for the Atlanta Braves
      Atlanta Braves
      The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....


    See also


    External links

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