Leesburg, Georgia – Wikipedia

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City in Georgia, United States

Leesburg is a city in Lee County, Georgia, United States. The population was 3,480 at the 2020 census,[4] up from 2,896 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Lee County[5] and is part of the Albany, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History[edit]

Leesburg, originally known as “Wooten Station”, was founded in 1870 as the Central of Georgia Railway arrived in the area. In 1872, the town was renamed “Wooten”, and the seat was transferred from Starksville. In 1874, the town was incorporated and renamed again to its present form of Leesburg.[6]

Leesburg is the site of the Leesburg Stockade incident, in which a group of African-American teenage and pre-teen girls were arrested for protesting racial segregation in Americus, Georgia, and were imprisoned without charges for 45 days in poor conditions in the Lee County Public Works building.[7][8]

Geography[edit]

Leesburg is in south-central Lee County. U.S. Route 19 passes through the city, leading north 26 miles (42 km) to Americus and south 11 miles (18 km) to Albany. State Route 32 is Leesburg’s Main Street; it leads east 32 miles (51 km) to Ashburn and west 18 miles (29 km) to Dawson. State Route 195 leads northeast from Leesburg 17 miles (27 km) to Leslie.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Leesburg has a total area of 5.0 square miles (12.9 km2), of which 0.05 square miles (0.14 km2), or 1.06%, are water.[9]Kinchafoonee Creek flows through a western corner of the city; it leads south to the Flint River, part of the Apalachicola River watershed.

Demographics[edit]

2020 census[edit]

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 3,480 people, 884 households, and 666 families residing in the city.

2000 census[edit]

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 2,633 people, 796 households, and 612 families residing in the city. The population density was 557.2 inhabitants per square mile (215.1/km2). There were 851 housing units at an average density of 180.1 per square mile (69.5/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 61.56% White, 36.42% African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.08% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.84% of the population.

There were 796 households, out of which 49.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.1% were married couples living together, 26.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.1% were non-families. 20.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 30.1% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 16.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,958, and the median income for a family was $33,487. Males had a median income of $30,862 versus $18,710 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,690. About 16.8% of families and 20.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.4% of those under age 18 and 21.7% of those age 65 or over.[12][13][14][15][16]

Education[edit]

The Lee County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of two primary schools, two elementary schools, two middle schools, and a high school.[17] The district has 330 full-time teachers and over 5,350 students.[18]

  • Kinchafoonee Primary School
  • Lee County Elementary School
  • Lee County Primary School
  • Twin Oaks Elementary
  • Lee County Middle School East Campus
  • Lee County Middle School West Campus
  • Lee County High School
  • Lee County High School 9th Grade Campus

Notable people[edit]

  • Hal Breeden, former Major League Baseball player, former sheriff of Lee County
  • Luke Bryan, country music artist
  • Tic Forrester, congressman
  • Roy Hamilton, singer of R&B, soul, show tunes and rock ‘n’ roll music
  • Carly Mathis, Miss Georgia 2013
  • Marion Motley, Pro Football Hall of Fame running back
  • Phillip Phillips, American Idol season 11 winner
  • Buster Posey, 2012 NL MVP San Francisco Giants catcher
  • Merritt Ranew, former Major League Baseball player

References[edit]

  1. ^ “2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files”. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  2. ^ a b “U.S. Census website”. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ^ “US Board on Geographic Names”. United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  4. ^ “Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (DP-1), Leesburg city, Georgia”. American FactFinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  5. ^ “Find a County”. National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on 2012-07-12. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  6. ^ Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 236. ISBN 978-1135948597. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  7. ^ Stolen Girls remember 1963 in Leesburg, WALB, July 24, 2006, retrieved February 6, 2020.
  8. ^ George, Bradley; Blankenship, Grant (July 19, 2016), “The Girls Of The Leesburg Stockade”, GPB News, NPR, retrieved February 6, 2020.
  9. ^ “U.S. Gazetteer Files: 2019: Places: Georgia”. U.S. Census Bureau Geography Division. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  10. ^ “Census of Population and Housing”. Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  11. ^ “Explore Census Data”. data.census.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  12. ^ Leesburg, Georgia – City Information, Fast Facts, Schools, Colleges, and More
  13. ^ [1] Archived October 31, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ Lee County, Georgia – Life Works Well Here!
  15. ^ Leesburg | Georgia.gov
  16. ^ Leesburg, Georgia (GA 31763) profile: population, maps, real estate, averages, homes, statistics, relocation, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, moving, houses, news
  17. ^ Georgia Board of Education, Retrieved June 22, 2010.[dead link]
  18. ^ School Stats, Retrieved June 22, 2010.

External links[edit]