Hancock County, Georgia

History

Before the Civil War, Hancock County was developed for cotton plantations, as international demand was high for the commodity. The land was developed and the cotton cultivated and processed by thousands of enslaved African Americans. This area is classified as part of the Black Belt of the United States, primarily due to its fertile soil. It was later also associated with the slave society. Enslaved persons made up 61% of the total county population in the 1850 Census. Unusually for such a plantation-dominated society, the county's representatives at the Georgia Secession Convention, who were overwhelmingly white and Democratic, voted against secession in 1861.

But the secession conventions were dominated by men who voted for separation, and Georgia soon seceded and entered the war.

After the war, the freed black population predominated by number in the county for decades. After emancipation and granting of citizenship and the franchise, most freedmen joined the Republican Party, which they credited with gaining their freedom. Conservative white Democrats resisted political domination by blacks, although they were outnumbered. In the later years of Reconstruction, whites used violence, intimidation and fraud to suppress black voting. In 1908 the white-dominated legislature passed an amendment that effectively disenfranchised most black voters and many poor whites ones.

Contemporary voting issues

According to the 2010 census estimate, the racial makeup of the county seat of Sparta was 84% African American, 15% White, 0.50% from two or more races, 0.30% Asian, and 0.10% Native American. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.70% of the population.

Since the late 20th century, most African Americans support the Democratic Party and conservative whites support the Republican Party.

In August 2015, the majority-white Hancock County Board of Elections initiated an effort to purge voters from the rolls. They directed deputy sheriffs to the homes of more than 180 black people residing in Sparta (these constituted some 20% of the city's total registered voters) to inform them they would lose their voting rights unless they appeared in court to prove their residency. A total of 53 voters were removed the voting rolls, but a federal judge overturned the Board's actions. It was asserted that these actions were racially based.

In 2021, the African-American elections superintendent for the City of Sparta was referred to the Georgia Secretary of State's Office for prosecution for allegedly imposing illegal requirements for candidates in the 2017 municipal election.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 479 sqmi, of which 472 sqmi is land and 6.8 sqmi (1.4%) is water.

The western portion of Hancock County, which is defined by a line running southeast from White Plains to the intersection of State Route 22 and Springfield Road, then running southwest along State Route 22, is located in the Upper Oconee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The southern portion of the county, defined by a triangle made of State Route 22 and State Route 15, with Sparta at its apex, is located in the Lower Oconee River sub-basin of the same Altamaha River basin. The northeastern portion of Hancock County is located in the Upper Ogeechee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin.

Major highways

No Interstate Highway

• [[File:Georgia 248.svg|20px]] State Route 248
• [[File:Georgia 15.svg|20px]] State Route 15
• [[File:Georgia 16.svg|20px]] State Route 16
• [[File:Georgia 22.svg|20px]] State Route 22
• [[File:Georgia 77.svg|20px]] State Route 77

Adjacent counties

• Taliaferro County - north
• Warren County - northeast
• Glascock County - east
• Washington County - southeast
• Baldwin County - southwest
• Putnam County - west
• Greene County - northwest

Communities

City

• Sparta (county seat)

Unincorporated communities

• Culverton
• Devereux
• Jewell
• Mayfield

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790-1880 1890-1910 1920-1930 1930-1940 1940-1950 1960-1980 1980-2000 2010 2020

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 8,735, 3,298 households, and 1,755 families. The median age was 48.0 years. 14.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 121.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 125.7 males age 18 and over. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 27.7% White, 69.0% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.3% from some other race, and 2.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 0.7% of the population.

Of those households, 22.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 35.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 4,896 housing units, of which 32.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 75.4% were owner-occupied and 24.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.6%.

Politics

Hancock County has been one of the most consistently Democratic counties in the entire nation since the Civil War. But the composition of the party voters and policies they support have undergone major changes since the late twentieth century, switching from whites to African Americans.

The majority of county voters have voted for the Democratic presidential nominee in every election since 1852 except that of 1972, when George McGovern lost every county in Georgia. McGovern did perform better here than elsewhere in the state, losing by only 93 votes. Apart from Richard Nixon in that election, Barry Goldwater in 1964 was one of only two Republicans since at least 1912 to gain 30 percent of the county's vote. That year, most of the county's African-American majority was still largely disenfranchised and could not vote at all. The conservative white minority favored Goldwater because its traditional Democratic loyalties had frayed. In 2024, Donald Trump also managed to break 30% of the vote, the strongest showing for a Republican since 1972.

In 1980 Hancock County gave "favorite son" candidate Jimmy Carter his second highest vote share in the nation. In 1984 it supported Walter Mondale, who won more than 76.6 percent of Hancock County ballots, making it his fourth-best county outside the District of Columbia. He was otherwise within 3,819 votes of losing all fifty states.

For elections to the United States House of Representatives, Hancock County is part of Georgia's 10th congressional district, currently represented by Mike Collins. For elections to the Georgia State Senate, Hancock County is part of District 26. For elections to the Georgia House of Representatives, Hancock County is part of District 128.

Notable people

• James Abercrombie, former United States Representative from Alabama
• Amanda America Dickson, noted African-American heiress and socialite
• Harvey Grant, professional basketball player
• Horace Grant, professional basketball player
• William Henry Harrison, Georgia state legislator
• Tommy "Hurricane" Jackson, professional boxer
• Biddy Mason, nurse and entrepreneur, co-founder of First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles
• Hiram Runnels, former Governor of Mississippi
• William Terrell, former United States Representative

References

References

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