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Duluth, Georgia

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Duluth, Georgia
City
Location in Gwinnett County and the state of Georgia
Location in Gwinnett County and the state of Georgia
CountryUnited States
StateGeorgia
CountyGwinnett
Area
 • Total8.9 sq mi (23.1 km2)
 • Land8.8 sq mi (22.8 km2)
 • Water0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2)
Elevation
1,096 ft (334 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total22,122
 • Density2,485.6/sq mi (957.7/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
30026, 30029, 30095-30099
Area code470/678/770
FIPS code13-24600Template:GR
GNIS feature ID0331596Template:GR
File:Duluth Fall Festival.jpg
A picture from the annual Duluth Fall Festival

Duluth is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, and a suburb of Atlanta located in the Metro Atlanta area. Unincorporated portions of Forsyth County also have Duluth as a mailing address, though this area is outside city limits. A portion of the City of Johns Creek (incorporated Dec. 1, 2006) is served by the Duluth post office, causing much confusion since that area is in Johns Creek, not Duluth.

The population of Duluth was 22,122 at the 2000 census, making it the second most populous city in Gwinnett County, behind Lawrenceville. As of 2006, the population is estimated to be 25,838.

Duluth is a popular and rapidly developing suburb of Atlanta, close to Interstate 85, which allows for a quick commute to Atlanta. It is home to Gwinnett Place Mall, Gwinnett Civic and Cultural Center, Arena at Gwinnett Center, Hudgens Center for the Arts and Red Clay Theater. It is also home to Gwinnett Medical Center - Duluth, an 81-bed hospital constructed in 2006, as well as GMC's Glancy Campus, a 30-bed facility located near downtown. Nearby attractions include Stone Mountain and Lake Lanier.

The Gwinnett Gladiators of the ECHL, a professional minor league ice hockey team, plays in the Arena at Gwinnett Center, which opened in 2003 in an unincorporated area of Gwinnett County (the stadium has a Duluth zip code). At the Sugarloaf Country Club golf course, the AT&T Classic tournament was played until 2008. Atlanta Athletic Club is in Johns Creek (with a Duluth zip code), which hosted the 1976 U.S. Open Golf Tournament and the 1981 and 2001 PGA Championship Golf Tournaments, as well as being home to the trophies of famous Atlanta golfer Bobby Jones. Unincorporated Gwinnett County/Duluth Zip Code is also home to the St. Ives Country Club, Berkely Hills Golf Club, Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, Partnership Gwinnett and the 1818 Club, a private dining club.

The 30097 ZIP code serves Duluth and parts of Johns Creek, and is one of the wealthiest zip codes in Georgia. Several of the most expensive neighborhoods in the Metro Atlanta area have Duluth mailing addresses, including Sugarloaf Country Club, Sweet Bottom Plantation, St. Marlo Country Club, and St. Ives Country Club.

Duluth has an annual Fall Festival celebrating the season of autumn, now held in their newly-built town center, where several buildings of traditional architecture are located, along with a pavilion, a fountain, and City Hall.

Government

The City of Duluth is governed by a mayor and five city council members, who together appoint the city administrator and city clerk. Elections are held every two years, in the odd numbered years, and the mayor and council members are elected for staggered four year terms.

The mayor of Duluth is Nancy Harris, the former principal of B.B. Harris Elementary School, and the city administrator is Phil McLemore.

Geography

Duluth is located at 34°0′11″N 84°8′44″W / 34.00306°N 84.14556°W / 34.00306; -84.14556Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function (34.003100, -84.145498)Template:GR.

History

Duluth's roots as a community stretch back to the early 1800s, when it was primarily forest land occupied by Cherokee Indians. An Indian trail, called Old Peachtree Road by the settlers, was extended through the area during the War of 1812 to connect Fort Peachtree in present day Atlanta with Fort Daniel near present day Lawrenceville. With the creation of Gwinnett County, Georgia in 1818, white settlement of the area accelerated.

Duluth's forefather, cotton merchant Evan Howell, constructed a road connecting his cotton gin at the Chattahoochee River with Old Peachtree Road, creating Howell's Cross Roads. The settlement later became known as Howell's Crossing. Evan Howell was the grandfather of Atlanta Mayor Evan P. Howell and great grandfather of Atlanta Constitution publisher Clark Howell. His descendants continue to live in the area, but only Howell Ferry Rd. in Duluth bears the name.

The town was renamed Duluth in 1871 after Congress approved funding for a north-south railroad connecting it with the better known Duluth, Minnesota, which is in turn named for Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut). Evan Howell was on hand for the renaming ceremony. Duluth's founding fathers apparently chose the name after a satirical speech, "The Untold Delights of Duluth," given by Congressman J. Proctor Knott of Kentucky during the debate over the railroad bill.

The railroad was an enormous boost to the Duluth economy. A school house was built in 1871 on the site of what is now The Monarch School (formerly Duluth Middle School). The first Methodist church was organized in 1871, and the first Baptist congregation formed in 1886. Both churches continue today at new locations along State Route 120. The Bank of Duluth was charted in 1904, followed by the Farmers and Merchants Bank in 1911. Neither survived the Depression, but the Bank of Duluth was re-chartered in 1945 at its original location.

In 1922, Duluth elected Georgia's first woman mayor, Alice Harrell Strickland, who promised to "Clean up Duluth and get rid of demon rum." She donated one acre of land for a "community forest" and began efforts to conserve land for public recreation.

Duluth grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s along with the rest of Gwinnett County. Georgia Governor George Busbee became a resident of Duluth in 1983 after leaving office, moving to the Sweet Bottom Plantation subdivision developed by Scott Hudgens. A major revitalization of the Duluth downtown area was undertaken in the early 2000s. Development along Sugarloaf Parkway has continued with construction of the Gwinnett Arena near the Gwinnett Convention Center.

In much of the 20th century, when Gwinnett County was still rural, Duluth was known in the area as being one of the few small towns with its own hospital, Joan Glancy Memorial Hospital. Consequently, many older residents of the area who call other towns home were actually born in Duluth. Joan Glancy was replaced with Gwinnett Medical Center - Duluth in 2006. The site of the old Joan Glancy hospital is now GMC's Glancy Campus, home to the Glancy Rehabilitation Center, the Duluth location of GMC's Diabetes & Nutrition Education Center and the Duluth location of GMC's Center for Sleep Disorders.

2005 National Headlines

The city made national headlines twice in 2005. In March, Fulton County Courthouse shooting suspect Brian Nichols was captured in a Duluth apartment after holding local resident Ashley Smith hostage. In April, local resident Jennifer Wilbanks was reported missing a few days before her planned wedding to John Mason. She was found a few days later in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she admitted to having lied about being kidnapped.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 22,122 people, 8,735 households, and 5,642 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,512.3 people per square mile (969.5/km²). There were 9,061 housing units at an average density of 1,029.0/sq mi (397.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.65% White, 11.86% African American, 0.33% Native American, 12.9% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.83% from other races, and 2.41% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.05% of the population.

There were 8,735 households out of which 35.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.4% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.10.

In age 18 and over, for every 100 females there were 94.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $60,088, and the median income for a family was $69,437. Males had a median income of $46,683 versus $34,334 for females. The per capita income for the city was $29,185. About 3.0% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.


Schools in Duluth

Gwinnett County Public Schools operates public schools serving the city.

Elementary Schools

  • B.B. Harris Elementary (Duluth)
  • Berkeley Lake Elementary (Duluth)
  • Berkmar/Meadowcreek Area Elementary (opening 8/10)
  • Chattahoochee Elementary (Duluth)
  • Charles Brant Chesney Elementary (Duluth)
  • M.H. Mason Elementary (Peachtree Ridge)

Middle Schools

  • Duluth Middle (Duluth)
  • Richard Hull Middle (Peachtree Ridge)
  • Louise Radloff Middle (Meadowcreek)

High Schools

Private Schools

  • Duluth Junior Academy (Duluth)
  • Duluth Montessori School (Duluth)
  • Notre Dame Academy (Duluth)

Notable residents of Duluth

Businesses in Duluth

References

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