Ware County, Georgia

Ware County, Georgia
Location in the state of Georgia
Georgia's location in the U.S.
Founded	December 15, 1824
Seat	Waycross
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	906.31 sq mi (2,347 km²) 902.29 sq mi (2,337 km²) 4.02 sq mi (10 km²), 33%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	36,312 41/sq mi (16/km²)
Congressional district	1st
Website	www.warecounty.com

Ware County is a county located in the southeast of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2010, the population was 36,312. The county seat is Waycross.

By geographic area, Ware County is the largest Georgia county. There's a local saying that the county seat of Waycross is "the largest city in the largest county in the largest state, east of the Mississippi". The county is part of the Waycross Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Ware County, Georgia's 60th county, was created on December 15, 1824, by an act of the Georgia General Assembly from land that was originally part of Appling County.

The county is named for Nicholas Ware, the mayor of Augusta, Georgia from (1819–1821) and United States Senator who represented Georgia from 1821 until his death in 1824.

Several counties were later created from parts of the original Ware County borders:

• Bacon County (from portions of Appling, Pierce, and Ware counties in 1917)
• Charlton County (from portions of Camden and Ware county)
• Clinch County (from portions of Lowndes and Ware counties in 1850)
• Coffee County (from portions of Clinch, Irwin, Telfair, and Ware counties in 1854)
• Pierce County (from portions of Appling and Ware counties in 1857)

Geography

Ware County has a total area of 903 square miles (2,339 km²) and is the largest geographically in Georgia. 597 square miles (1,546 km²) of it is land and 306 square miles (793 km²) of it is water. A large portion of the county lies within the Okefenokee Swamp and its federally protected areas.

Major highways

U.S. highways

• U.S. Route 1
• 
  U.S. Route 1 Business
• U.S. Route 23
• 
  U.S. Route 23 Business
• U.S. Route 82
• U.S. Route 84

State routes

• State Route 4
• State Route 4 Business
• State Route 38
• State Route 122
• State Route 158
• State Route 177
• State Route 520

Adjacent counties

• Bacon County, Georgia - north
• Pierce County, Georgia - east
• Brantley County, Georgia - east
• Charlton County, Georgia - southeast
• Baker County, Florida - south
• Clinch County, Georgia - west
• Atkinson County, Georgia - west
• Coffee County, Georgia - northwest

See also: List of counties bordering eight or more counties

National protected area

• Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

As of the census of 2007, there were 35,073 people, 13,475 households, and 9,297 families residing in the county. The population density was 39 people per square mile (15/km²). There were 15,831 housing units at an average density of 18 per square mile (7/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 69.65% White, 28.01% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.99% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. 1.94% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

According to the census of 2000, the largest ancestry groups in Ware County were English 46.13%, African 28.01%, Scots-Irish 12.29%, Scottish 4.3%, Irish 2.21% and Welsh 1.9%.

There were 13,475 households out of which 30.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.30% were married couples living together, 14.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.00% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.80% under the age of 18, 9.10% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 22.60% from 45 to 64, and 15.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $28,360, and the median income for a family was $34,372. Males had a median income of $26,910 versus $20,424 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,384. About 15.90% of families and 20.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.10% of those under age 18 and 16.70% of those age 65 or over.

Schools

High Schools

• Ware County High School, Waycross

Middle Schools

• Ware County Middle School, Waycross
• Waycross Middle School, Waycross

Elementary Schools

• Wacona Elementary School, Waycross
• Center Elementary School, Waycross
• Williams Heights Elementary School, Waycross
• Memorial Drive Elementary School, Waycross
• Ruskin Elementary School, Waycross
• Waresboro Elementary School, Waycross

Preschools

• DAFFODIL Preschool, Waycross

Higher Education

• Waycross College, Waycross
• Okefenokee Technical College, Waycross

Cities and communities

• Deenwood
• Manor
• Sunnyside
• Waycross
• Ruskin
• Dixie Union
• Millwood
• Waresboro
• Bickley

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Ware County, Georgia

External links

• Official Ware County website
• Ware County Community Website & Community Calendar
• Georgia GenWeb Ware County site
• Okefenokee Swamp Park homepage
• Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service