Treutlen County, Georgia
Treutlen County is a county located in the southern portion and Magnolia midlands portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,406. The county seat is Soperton. Treutlen County is host to the Million Pines Arts and Crafts Festival which takes place during the first weekend in November.
History
Before colonization, the area was home to the Muscogee. Following the American Revolution, the location's wiregrass attracted settlers, and a timber industry began to develop around the area's longleaf pine forests, supporting occupations from cabinetmaking and milling to turpentine and other naval stores production.The area's landscape made it difficult to build roads, resulting in a sparse population until after the Civil War when railroads arrived. In 1902, the Macon, Dublin and Savannah Railroad completed its extension from Macon to Vidalia and constructed a railroad depot near Lothair. The newly incorporated town of Soperton quickly outgrew Lothair due to the new rail link.
An official process to create Treutlen County was spearheaded by Neil L. Gillis, known as the "father of Treutlen County" due to his efforts. The state constitutional amendment to create Treutlen County was proposed by the Georgia General Assembly on August21, 1917, and ratified November5, 1918, officially making it Georgia's 154th county. The county is made up of former sections of Emanuel and Montgomery counties, and is named for John A. Treutlen, Georgia's first state governor following adoption of the state Constitution of 1777. By this time, as Soperton had become larger than Lothair, it was the clear choice for county seat.
During the 1920s, a local cotton farmer named James Fowler planted over 7million pine trees across 10,000 acres of land. Fowler worked together with scientist Charles Herty, who developed a process to use pine pulp to create paper.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. Approximately 90% of the county is forested.The western portion of Treutlen County, west of Soperton, is located in the Lower Oconee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The eastern portion of the county is located in the Ohoopee River sub-basin of the larger Altamaha River basin.
Major highways
Adjacent counties
- Emanuel County
- Montgomery County
- Wheeler County
- Laurens County
- Johnson County
Communities
City
- Soperton
Unincorporated communities
- Lothair
- Orland
Demographics
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
| White | 4,065 | 63.46% |
| Black or African American | 1,999 | 31.21% |
| Native American | 19 | 0.3% |
| Asian | 7 | 0.11% |
| Other/Mixed | 146 | 2.28% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 170 | 2.65% |
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, there were 6,406 people, 2,449 households, and 1,654 families residing in the county. The median age was 40.5 years, 23.0% of residents were under the age of 18, 18.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older, for every 100 females there were 102.6 males, and 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas while 100.0% lived in rural areas.The racial makeup of the county was 64.1% White, 31.6% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.0% from some other race, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 2.7% of the population.
There were 2,449 households in the county, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 33.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 2,868 housing units, of which 14.6% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 67.7% were owner-occupied and 32.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.0%.