Smithville, Georgia
Smithville is a city in Lee County, Georgia, United States. The population was 593 in 2020. It is part of the Albany, Georgia [Albany, Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia metropolitan area|metropolitan statistical area].
History
A post office was established at Smithville in 1871. The community was named after the local Smith family. The Georgia General Assembly incorporated Smithville as a town in 1863.The Morgan Farm is located near Smithville, and is a late-19th century historic, rural African American farmstead recognized as a Centennial Farm by the state of Georgia, and listed as on the National Register of Historic Places.
Geography
Smithville is located in northwestern Lee County at . It is bordered to the north by the Sumter County line.U.S. Route 19 runs through the west side of the city, leading south to Leesburg, the Lee county seat, and north to Americus. Georgia State Route 118 passes through the center of Smithville, leading east to Leslie and southwest to Dawson.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, all of it recorded as land. Muckaloochee Creek forms the northeast border of the city. The creek is a south-flowing tributary of Muckalee Creek and part of the Flint River watershed.
Demographics
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
| White | 163 | 27.49% |
| Black or African American | 403 | 67.96% |
| Native American | 2 | 0.34% |
| Asian | 5 | 0.84% |
| Other/Mixed | 8 | 1.35% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 12 | 2.02% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 593 people, 239 households, and 143 families residing in the city.
Education
Public schools are operated by the Lee County School District. Students are zoned to Lee County High School.Notable people
- Bessie Jones, gospel and folk singer
- Bill McAfee, baseball player and mayor
- Tampa Red, also known as Hudson Woodbridge, Chicago blues and hokum musician in Blues Hall of Fame
- William J. Sears, congressman, from Florida
- Ja'Lia Taylor first woman to run for mayor of Smithville, academia, social justice activist