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McDonough, Georgia

Coordinates: 33°26′42″N 84°8′57″W / 33.44500°N 84.14917°W / 33.44500; -84.14917
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McDonough, Georgia
City
Henry County Courthouse and Confederate monument
Henry County Courthouse and Confederate monument
Flag of McDonough, Georgia
Flag
Official seal of McDonough, Georgia
Seal
Nickname: 
The Geranium City
Map
Map
Map
Map
Coordinates: 33°26′42″N 84°8′57″W / 33.44500°N 84.14917°W / 33.44500; -84.14917
Country United States
StateGeorgia
CountyHenry
Named forThomas Macdonough
Area
[1]
 • Total
13.01 sq mi (33.71 km2)
 • Land12.85 sq mi (33.29 km2)
 • Water0.16 sq mi (0.42 km2)
Elevation
863 ft (263 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total
29,051
 • Density2,260.43/sq mi (872.72/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes
30252–30253
Area code(s)770/678/470
FIPS code13-48624[2]
GNIS feature ID0317901[3]
Websitewww.mcdonoughga.org

McDonough is a city in Henry County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. Its population was 29,051 in 2020. The city is the county seat of Henry County.[4] The unincorporated communities of Blacksville, Flippen, Kelleytown, and Ola are located near McDonough, and addresses in those communities have McDonough ZIP codes.

History

[edit]

The town was named for naval officer Commodore Thomas Macdonough[5] and founded in 1823 around a traditional town square design. The buildings surrounding the square are intact, although there are some vacancies. The county courthouse and historic jail building are on the north side near the Welcome Center in a historically maintained Standard Oil service station, built in 1920. The station also houses the Main Street Program Office.

One block east of the square, the town's original cotton warehouse has been replaced with the Henry County Judicial Center. In the same area the Henry County Courthouse Annex has an original oil on canvas "Cotton Gin" (4+1⁄2 by 11 feet) by artist Jean Charlot. He painted this oil in 1942 for the town post office. His works can be found all over the world in everything from children's books to large murals.

The town was a relay station on the New York City to New Orleans stagecoach line and was connected by other stage lines with Fayetteville and Decatur, and with Macon by way of Jackson.[6]

Geography

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McDonough is in central Henry County, 28 miles (45 km) southeast of downtown Atlanta. U.S. Route 23 passes through the center of the city, leading northwest 9 miles (14 km) to Stockbridge and south 7 miles (11 km) to Locust Grove. Interstate 75 passes through the southwestern arm of the city, with access from Exits 216, 218, and 221. I-75 leads northwest to Atlanta and southeast 56 miles (90 km) to Macon.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.9 square miles (33.4 km2), of which 12.7 square miles (32.9 km2) are land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km2), or 1.50%, are water.[7]

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1870320—
18803200.0%
189051560.9%
190068332.6%
191088229.1%
19201,26343.2%
19301,068−15.4%
19401,23215.4%
19501,63532.7%
19602,22436.0%
19702,67520.3%
19802,7783.9%
19902,9295.4%
20008,493190.0%
201022,084160.0%
202029,05131.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]
McDonough racial composition as of 2020[9]
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 4,998 17.2%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 20,092 69.16%
Native American 55 0.19%
Asian 610 2.1%
Pacific Islander 30 0.1%
Other/Mixed 1,306 4.5%
Hispanic or Latino 1,960 6.75%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 29,051 people, 8,543 households, and 5,778 families residing in the city.

Economy

[edit]

Snapper Inc. manufacturing residential and professional lawn care and snow removal equipment, was based in McDonough.[citation needed] The company began in 1894 as Southern Saw Works, and claims to have invented the first self-propelled rotary lawn mower.[10] The company was sold to Briggs and Stratton,[10] which operated the plant until its closure in 2015.[citation needed]

Goya Foods has its Atlanta offices in an unincorporated area near McDonough.[11][12]

Arts and culture

[edit]

Several individual buildings and two historic districts in the city are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the downtown McDonough Historic District.[13]

Events

[edit]

The city hosts a Geranium Festival each springtime on the third Saturday in May, celebrating the locally grown flowers and community.[14] The one-day festival serves as a showcase of local artistry and talent through the open-air craft markets and live musical performances. The festival is sponsored by the McDonough Lions Club, and held on the McDonough Square and surrounding areas.[14]

Sports

[edit]

The city's semi-professional soccer team Georgia Revolution FC plays in the National Premier Soccer League at the Warhawk Stadium.[15]

WWE developmental territory Deep South Wrestling was based in McDonough.[citation needed]

Education

[edit]

Henry County School District

[edit]

The Henry County School District holds grades pre-school to grade twelve. The district has twenty eight elementary schools, nine middle schools, and ten high schools.[16] The district has 1,543 full-time teachers and over 40,000 students.[17]

Henry County Public Schools

[edit]

Elementary schools

[edit]
  • Cotton Indian Elementary School
  • Dutchtown Elementary School
  • East Lake Elementary School
  • Flippen Elementary School
  • Hickory Flat Elementary School
  • McDonough Elementary School
  • New Hope Elementary School
  • Oakland Elementary School
  • Ola Elementary School
  • Pleasant Grove Elementary School
  • Rock Spring Elementary School
  • Timber Ridge Elementary School
  • Tussahaw Elementary School
  • Unity Grove Elementary School
  • Walnut Creek Elementary School
  • Wesley Lakes Elementary School

Middle schools

[edit]
  • Eagle's Landing Middle School
  • Dutchtown Middle School
  • Henry County Middle School
  • Ola Middle School
  • Woodland Middle School
  • Union Grove Middle School

High schools

[edit]

Private schools

[edit]

Higher education

[edit]
  • Gordon State College has a satellite center in McDonough.[22]
  • Mercer University opened a campus in McDonough in 2003, and offers teacher education, criminal justice, and general studies.[23]
  • Grace Biblical Seminary opened in 2004, and offers theological and ministries degrees.{18}
  • Atlanta Bible College is located in McDonough.[citation needed]

Media

[edit]

WKKP is the local radio station, broadcasting on 100.9 FM and 1410 AM; it has a classic country format.[24]

The Henry Herald is the local county news print media.[25]

Film

[edit]

Infrastructure

[edit]

Transportation

[edit]

Xpress GA provides local bus service.

McDonough is served by the following highways:

Until the mid-1960s the Southern Railway operated the Cincinnati to Miami Ponce de Leon, which made stops in McDonough.[29]

Notable people

[edit]
[edit]

"The McDonough Road" is mentioned by Rhett Butler in the 1939 film, Gone with the Wind.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  2. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  5. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 193.
  6. ^ "History of Henry County". www.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved April 24, 2009.[title missing]
  7. ^ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): McDonough city, Georgia". American Factfinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved May 18, 2017.[dead link‍]
  8. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  9. ^ "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  10. ^ a b "About Snapper". Snapper. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  11. ^ "Contact Us." Goya Foods. Retrieved on March 26, 2016. "Goya Atlanta 4005 Haworth Parkway McDonough, GA 30253"
  12. ^ Maps of McDonough." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on April 19, 2016.
  13. ^ "Georgia - Henry County". National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "ABOUT US". THE GERANIUM FESTIVAL. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  15. ^ "MCDONOUGH'S SOCCER CLUB". Georgia Revolution FC. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
  16. ^ Georgia Board of Education[permanent dead link‍], Retrieved June 19, 2010.
  17. ^ School Stats, Retrieved June 19, 2010.
  18. ^ Eagle's Landing Christian Academy, Retrieved June 19, 2010.
  19. ^ New Creation Center, Retrieved June 19, 2010.
  20. ^ Creekside Christian Academy, Retrieved August 8, 2010.
  21. ^ "Daycare in McDonough, Georgia - Sunbrook Academy at Luella".
  22. ^ "Gordon State College at McDonough". www.gordonstate.edu. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
  23. ^ "Mercer University". www.mercer.edu.
  24. ^ "WJGA-FM, WKKP AM-FM". Georgia Association of Broadcasters. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  25. ^ "About The Henry herald. (McDonough, Henry County, Ga.) 1987-1998". Library of Congress. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  26. ^ "GET IN THE SPIRIT WITH THESE HOLIDAY MOVIES MADE IN GEORGIA". Explore Georgia. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  27. ^ "Glory". Movie-Locations.com. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  28. ^ "Smokey and the Bandit Filming Locations: A 40-Year Now and Then Look Back". Horsepower Memories. June 16, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  29. ^ Southern Railway timetable, May 1, 1965, Table 3
  30. ^ Reinhard, Beth (May 20, 2011). "Home is Where the Votes Are". National Journal. Retrieved May 21, 2011.
  31. ^ "John Lunsford's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
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