Baker County, Georgia
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Baker County is a county in Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,876, making it the fifth-least populous county in Georgia. The county seat and only municipality is Newton. The county was created December 12, 1825, from the eastern portion of Early County by an act of the Georgia General Assembly and is named for Colonel John Baker, a hero of the American Revolutionary War.
Baker County is included in the Albany, GA metropolitan statistical area.
The Baker County Courthouse (Georgia) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Three other properties in Newton are also listed on the register: Notchaway Baptist Church and Cemetery, Pine Bloom Plantation, and Tarver Plantation.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 349 square miles (900 km2), of which 342 square miles (890 km2) is land and 7.2 square miles (19 km2) (2.1%) is water.
The eastern half of Baker County is located in the Lower Flint River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The western half of the county is located in the Ichawaynochaway Creek sub-basin of the same ACF River Basin.
Major highways
Adjacent counties
- Dougherty County, Georgia - northeast
- Mitchell County, Georgia - east
- Decatur County, Georgia - southwest
- Early County, Georgia - west
- Miller County, Georgia - west
- Calhoun County, Georgia - northwest
Communities
City
Unincorporated communities
Ghost towns
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1830 | 1,253 | — | |
| 1840 | 4,226 | 237.3% | |
| 1850 | 8,120 | 92.1% | |
| 1860 | 4,985 | −38.6% | |
| 1870 | 6,843 | 37.3% | |
| 1880 | 7,307 | 6.8% | |
| 1890 | 6,144 | −15.9% | |
| 1900 | 6,704 | 9.1% | |
| 1910 | 7,973 | 18.9% | |
| 1920 | 8,298 | 4.1% | |
| 1930 | 7,818 | −5.8% | |
| 1940 | 7,344 | −6.1% | |
| 1950 | 5,952 | −19.0% | |
| 1960 | 4,543 | −23.7% | |
| 1970 | 3,875 | −14.7% | |
| 1980 | 3,808 | −1.7% | |
| 1990 | 3,615 | −5.1% | |
| 2000 | 4,074 | 12.7% | |
| 2010 | 3,451 | −15.3% | |
| 2020 | 2,876 | −16.7% | |
| 2025 (est.) | 2,725 | −5.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1880 1890-1910 1920-1930 1930-1940 1940-1950 1960-1980 1980-2000 2010 2020 |
Racial and ethnic composition
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980 | Pop 1990 | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 1,897 | 1,745 | 1,889 | 1,642 | 1,514 | 49.82% | 48.27% | 46.37% | 47.58% | 52.64% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 1,859 | 1,846 | 2,038 | 1,600 | 1,128 | 48.82% | 51.07% | 50.02% | 46.36% | 39.22% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 10 | 1 | 9 | 9 | 1 | 0.26% | 0.03% | 0.22% | 0.26% | 0.03% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 18 | 0.05% | 0.06% | 0.00% | 0.70% | 0.63% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x | x | 1 | 2 | 0 | x | x | 0.02% | 0.06% | 0.00% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.05% | 0.03% | 0.07% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x | x | 24 | 28 | 70 | x | x | 0.59% | 0.81% | 2.43% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 40 | 21 | 111 | 145 | 143 | 1.05% | 0.58% | 2.72% | 4.20% | 4.97% |
| Total | 3,808 | 3,615 | 4,074 | 3,451 | 2,876 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 2,876 and 788 families residing there. Of the residents, 20.9% were under the age of 18 and 22.8% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 47.0 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.6 males. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas and 100.0% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 53.4% White, 39.3% Black or African American, 0.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.5% from some other race, and 4.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.0% of the population.
There were 1,187 households in the county, of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 33.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 1,447 housing units, of which 18.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 71.2% were owner-occupied and 28.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.0%.
Education
Baker County School System operates public schools, including Baker County High School.
Politics
As of the 2020s, Baker County is a Republican stronghold, voting 60% for Donald Trump in 2024. Like most Deep South counties, Baker County was historically Democratic voting. Starting in 1964, the county began to see a realignment, with Barry Goldwater and Richard Nixon carrying it in 1964 and 1972, and American Independent candidate George Wallace winning the county in 1968 as a third-party candidate. In 1956, Adlai Stevenson received over 96 percent of the county's vote. The county voted Democratic consistently from 1976 until 2012, but by closer margins than in 1956, and the county shifted more to the right throughout the early 2000s. In 2008 Barack Obama won with just 50.1 percent to John McCain's 49.1 percent, while Donald Trump won the county by almost ten percent in 2016, despite declining on Mitt Romney’s performance statewide. Brian Kemp repeated this feat by double digits in the 2018 gubernatorial race, and in 2020, Trump won Baker County by nearly sixteen percentage points.
For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Baker County is part of Georgia's 2nd congressional district, currently represented by Sanford Bishop. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Baker County is part of District 12. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Baker County is part of District 154.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 5 | 2.66% | 183 | 97.34% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1916 | 94 | 17.77% | 435 | 82.23% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1920 | 80 | 36.20% | 141 | 63.80% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1924 | 21 | 7.69% | 245 | 89.74% | 7 | 2.56% |
| 1928 | 99 | 17.65% | 462 | 82.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 2 | 0.31% | 647 | 99.23% | 3 | 0.46% |
| 1936 | 13 | 2.12% | 599 | 97.72% | 1 | 0.16% |
| 1940 | 30 | 5.10% | 557 | 94.73% | 1 | 0.17% |
| 1944 | 31 | 6.09% | 478 | 93.91% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 7 | 2.47% | 218 | 77.03% | 58 | 20.49% |
| 1952 | 155 | 13.36% | 1,005 | 86.64% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 32 | 3.93% | 783 | 96.07% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 66 | 8.40% | 720 | 91.60% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 914 | 60.33% | 600 | 39.60% | 1 | 0.07% |
| 1968 | 99 | 5.78% | 548 | 31.97% | 1,067 | 62.25% |
| 1972 | 965 | 73.66% | 345 | 26.34% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1976 | 305 | 20.79% | 1,162 | 79.21% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1980 | 510 | 32.61% | 1,035 | 66.18% | 19 | 1.21% |
| 1984 | 675 | 49.41% | 691 | 50.59% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1988 | 629 | 46.66% | 707 | 52.45% | 12 | 0.89% |
| 1992 | 391 | 26.63% | 864 | 58.86% | 213 | 14.51% |
| 1996 | 408 | 27.66% | 955 | 64.75% | 112 | 7.59% |
| 2000 | 615 | 40.49% | 893 | 58.79% | 11 | 0.72% |
| 2004 | 821 | 46.52% | 936 | 53.03% | 8 | 0.45% |
| 2008 | 828 | 49.02% | 846 | 50.09% | 15 | 0.89% |
| 2012 | 785 | 49.34% | 794 | 49.91% | 12 | 0.75% |
| 2016 | 775 | 53.82% | 650 | 45.14% | 15 | 1.04% |
| 2020 | 897 | 57.68% | 652 | 41.93% | 6 | 0.39% |
| 2024 | 883 | 59.82% | 590 | 39.97% | 3 | 0.20% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 873 | 56.91% | 648 | 42.24% | 13 | 0.85% |
| 2020 | 809 | 56.22% | 630 | 43.78% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2020 | 413 | 27.28% | 457 | 30.18% | 644 | 42.54% |
| 2020 | 815 | 56.60% | 625 | 43.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2022 | 711 | 56.93% | 526 | 42.11% | 12 | 0.96% |
| 2022 | 651 | 57.51% | 481 | 42.49% | 0 | 0.00% |
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 2022 | 755 | 60.02% | 500 | 39.75% | 3 | 0.24% |
See also
Further reading
- John P. Campbell, ed. (1854). . Southern Business Directory. Charleston, SC: Press of Walker & James – via HathiTrust.
- Adiel Sherwood (1860), , A Gazetteer of Georgia (4th ed.), Georgia – via HathiTrust
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Allen D. Candler; Clement A. Evans, eds. (1906). . Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons Arranged in Cyclopedic Form. Vol. 1. Atlanta: State Historical Association. p. 114 – via HathiTrust.
External links
- historical marker
- , New Georgia Encyclopedia, Georgia Humanities Council
- Digital Public Library of America. Assorted items related to
31°20′N 84°27′W/31.33°N 84.45°W/ 31.33; -84.45