City in Georgia, United States
| Sparta, Georgia | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Sparta Historic District | |
 Location in Hancock County and the state of Georgia | |
| Coordinates: 33°17′N 82°58′W / 33.283°N 82.967°W / 33.283; -82.967 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Georgia |
| County | Hancock |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1.82 sq mi (4.72 km) |
| • Land | 1.81 sq mi (4.69 km) |
| • Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.03 km) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 1,357 |
| • Density | 749.31/sq mi (289.27/km) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code | 31087 |
| Area code | 706 |
| FIPS code | 13-72584 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0323330 |
| Website | www |
Sparta is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Georgia, United States. It used to be part of the Milledgeville micropolitan statistical area until 2023. The city's population was 1,400 at the 2010 census.
History
Sparta was founded in 1795 in the newly formed Hancock County. The town was designated county seat in 1797. It was incorporated as a town in 1805 and as a city in 1893. The community was named after Sparta, a city-state in Ancient Greece.
In 1864, during Sherman's March to the Sea, the town remained completely unscathed, reportedly due to the efforts of Confederate Captain Henry Culver, the son-in-law of local industrialist William Fraley, who successfully diverted Union troops away from the area.
Geography
Sparta is located at 33°17′N 82°58′W / 33.283°N 82.967°W / 33.283; -82.967 (33.2773, -82.9715). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.8 square miles (4.7 km), all land.
Major highways
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 848 | — | |
| 1890 | 1,540 | 81.6% | |
| 1900 | 1,150 | −25.3% | |
| 1910 | 1,715 | 49.1% | |
| 1920 | 1,895 | 10.5% | |
| 1930 | 1,613 | −14.9% | |
| 1940 | 1,872 | 16.1% | |
| 1950 | 1,954 | 4.4% | |
| 1960 | 1,921 | −1.7% | |
| 1970 | 2,172 | 13.1% | |
| 1980 | 1,754 | −19.2% | |
| 1990 | 1,710 | −2.5% | |
| 2000 | 1,522 | −11.0% | |
| 2010 | 1,400 | −8.0% | |
| 2020 | 1,357 | −3.1% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
|---|---|---|
| White (non-Hispanic) | 189 | 13.93% |
| Black or African American (non-Hispanic) | 1,116 | 82.24% |
| Native American | 1 | 0.07% |
| Asian | 23 | 1.69% |
| Other/Mixed | 17 | 1.25% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 11 | 0.81% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,357 people, 669 households, and 419 families residing in the city.
Economy
Sparta is the site of Georgia's Hancock State Prison.
Education
Hancock County School District
The Hancock County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of one elementary school, a middle school, and a high school. The district has 103 full-time teachers and over 1,659 students.
- Lewis Elementary School
- Hancock Central Middle School
- Hancock Central High School
- John Hancock Academy
Notable people
- Thomas "Pee Wee" Butts – professional baseball player
- George Darden – United States Representative from Georgia who went to high school in Sparta
- Harvey Grant – professional basketball player
- Horace Grant – professional basketball player
- Tommy Hurricane Jackson – professional boxer
- Adella Hunt Logan – suffragist
- Jean Toomer – Harlem Renaissance writer and poet, once served as a principal in Sparta
- Angeria Paris VanMicheals – drag queen and finalist on season 14 of RuPaul's Drag Race and winner of ninth season
See also
- Central Savannah River Area
- Rossiter-Little House - Oldest house in Sparta
- DREAM Streets Sparta Facebook page
References
- "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
- "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 247. ISBN 978-1135948597. Retrieved November 30, 2013.
- Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (PDF). Macon, GA: Winship Press. p. 210. ISBN 0-915430-00-2.
- "William Fraley". www.friendsofcems.org. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
- "Sparta - Georgia Historical Society". www.georgiahistory.com/. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
- "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
- Georgia Board of Education, Retrieved June 11, 2010.
- School Stats, Retrieved June 11, 2010.
- "Thomas Butts". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
Further reading
- "History of Sparta, Georgia", Georgia Encyclopedia (John Rozier, Emory University), 12/5/2008
- Kent Anderson Leslie, Woman of Color, Daughter of Privilege: Amanda America Dickson, 1849-1893 (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1995).
- John Rozier, Black Boss: Political Revolution in a Georgia County (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1982).
- John Rozier, The Houses of Hancock, 1785-1865 (Decatur, Ga.: privately printed, 1996).
- John Rozier, ed., The Granite Farm Letters: The Civil War Correspondence of Edgeworth and Sallie Bird (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1988).
- Forrest Shivers, The Land Between: A History of Hancock County, Georgia, to 1940 (Spartanburg, S.C.: Reprint Co., 1990).
External links
- Sparta historical marker
- Sparta Cemetery historical marker
- Pierce Memorial Methodist Church historical marker
| Municipalities and communities of Hancock County, Georgia, United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| County seat: Sparta | ||
| City |  | |
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) | |
|---|---|
| Central Savannah River Area of Georgia and South Carolina | |
| County seats of Georgia | |
|---|---|
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