Dalton, Georgia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Dalton, Georgia
City
City of Dalton
Downtown Dalton
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  Carpet Capital of the World
Location in Whitfield County and the state of Georgia
Dalton, Georgia Location in the United States
Country	United States
State	Georgia
County	Whitfield
Area
• City	21.16 sq mi (54.80 km2)
• Land	21.14 sq mi (54.76 km2)
• Water	0.02 sq mi (0.04 km2)
Elevation	761 ft (232 m)
Population  (2020)
• City	34,417
• Density	1,627.90/sq mi (628.52/km2)
• Urban	102,599
• Metro	142,227
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	30719-30722
Area code(s)	706/762
FIPS code	13-21380
HDI (2021)	0.861 – very high

Dalton is a city in Georgia, United States. It is the main city of Whitfield County. Dalton is also the center of the Dalton Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Murray and Whitfield counties.

In 2020, about 34,417 people lived in Dalton. The larger metro area had about 124,837 people. Dalton is located near Interstate 75. It sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in northwest Georgia. It is the second-largest city in this part of Georgia, after Rome.

Dalton is famous for its floor-covering factories. Many companies that make carpet, rugs, and vinyl flooring are located here. It is also home to the Dalton Convention Center. This center hosts many events and has the Georgia Athletic Coaches' Hall of Fame.

Exploring Dalton's Location

Dalton Convention Center

Dalton is located in northwest Georgia. It is found at coordinates 34.771088 latitude and -84.971553 longitude. The city covers a total area of about 19.8 square miles (51.3 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with a very small amount of water.

People and Population in Dalton

Dalton has grown quite a bit over the years. Here's how its population has changed:

Dalton's Diverse Community (2020)

In 2020, Dalton had 34,417 residents. There were 11,305 households and 7,470 families living in the city. Dalton is known for its diverse population.

Here's a look at the different groups living in Dalton in 2020:

Hispanic and Latino Residents

Many people from Mexico started moving to Dalton in the 1990s. They came to work in the carpet factories. By 2010, almost half of Dalton's residents (48%) were Hispanic or Latino. This made them the largest group in the city.

Carpet mills actively looked for Latino workers in the late 1980s. This was during a time when many workers were needed. Today, many students at Dalton High School are Hispanic. The city's churches, restaurants, and decorations show the mix of cultures.

Dalton's Weather and Climate

Dalton has a humid subtropical climate. This means it has hot, humid summers and mild to cool winters.

• The average temperature in January is about 41.0°F (5.0°C).
• The average temperature in July is about 79.1°F (26.2°C).
• On average, there are about 38 days a year when the temperature reaches 90°F (32°C) or higher.
• It rarely gets very cold, with only about 2 days a year when the high temperature stays below freezing.
• About 63 nights a year, the temperature drops to or below 32°F (0°C).

Dalton gets a good amount of rain throughout the year. Snowfall is usually light, with most of it falling in January and March.

Sports in Dalton

Soccer Teams

In 2018, Dalton got its own professional soccer team! The USL League Two gave a soccer team to the city. This team is called the Dalton Red Wolves SC. They started playing in 2019 and play their games at Lakeshore Park in Dalton.

Arts and Culture in Dalton

Dalton has a lively arts scene with many places to explore your creative side.

Creative Arts Guild

The Creative Arts Guild is the oldest community arts center in Georgia. It started in 1963 with a small group of local leaders. They wanted to offer art, music, dance, and theater classes. The Guild also held gallery shows. As more people joined, it moved to a bigger building in 1981. Today, it offers classes in visual art, dance, gymnastics, and music. It also has outreach programs, events, and concerts. It's a cultural hub for northwest Georgia and southeast Tennessee.

Artistic Civic Theatre

Artistic Civic Theatre has been putting on shows for over 20 years. They perform musicals, comedies, and dramas. They also have a children's group called ACT2. They work with local schools and offer theater classes with the Creative Arts Guild. They also host a Youth Theatre Camp every year. Their programs are supported by members and sponsors.

Dalton Little Theatre

Dalton Little Theatre has a long history, with its first show in 1869! It has had different names over the years. It became Dalton Little Theatre in 1955. The group has performed almost continuously, except during World War I and II. In 1981, they found a permanent home in an old firehouse built in 1888. This building is still their home today.

Other Fun Events

The Downtown Dalton Development Authority hosts many events all year. These include:

• The Downtown Dalton Farmers Market (May–August)
• A Downtown Sampler event
• An annual Beer Festival

The Dalton Area Convention & Visitors Bureau also helps host the Downtown Dalton Summer Concert Series. This series features local bands. Young professionals in the area also have a monthly social event to connect.

Dalton's Rich History

A view of Dalton in 1940

Early History

Long ago, the area where Dalton is now was home to Woodland Indians and the Creek Nation. The first European to visit was Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto in 1540. By the mid-1700s, the Cherokee people lived in the mountains of north Georgia. They called it their "Enchanted Land." They were later forced to leave in 1838.

Growth and Industry

After the Cherokee left, work began on a railroad. This railroad, called the Western and Atlantic Railroad (W&A), connected the Tennessee River to another railroad. In 1847, Dalton was officially created, centered around the Western and Atlantic Depot. The railroad was finished in 1850. Another railroad, the East Tennessee and Georgia, was completed in 1852.

Dalton became famous for its carpet industry. It started with a craft called candlewicking. A teenage girl named Catherine Evans Whitener made a special tufted bedspread in 1895. People loved it, and soon, many homes made these bedspreads. They would hang them on clotheslines along U.S. Highway 41 to sell them. This road became known as "Peacock Alley."

This bedspread business grew into a huge industry by the 1950s. Then, a new way to make carpet was invented. It used the same tufting method as the bedspreads. This changed how carpets were made in the U.S. Instead of woven wool carpets from the Northeast, tufted synthetic carpets from northwest Georgia became popular. Today, carpet factories are still a major part of Dalton's economy.

Dalton was named after Edward Dalton White.

Dalton in the Civil War

Dalton played a role in the American Civil War.

• The city saw action during the Great Locomotive Chase in 1862.
• Later, in 1863, large Union and Confederate armies fought nearby at the Battle of Chickamauga.
• In 1864, there were battles around Dalton. The First Battle of Dalton happened in February. Union forces tried to see if the Confederate army was weak, but they held their ground.
• The Atlanta campaign began with the Battle of Rocky Face Ridge in May 1864.
• The Second Battle of Dalton took place in August 1864.

Today, Dalton and Whitfield County have many Civil War artifacts still in place. The historic Western & Atlantic Railroad Station is also still standing. It has been restored to its original look.

Modern History Highlights

The A. D. Strickland Store is an old country store built around 1878. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In 1897, a group known as the Bohannon Gang was arrested in Dalton. They were accused of stealing from cargo trains for about ten years. Their trial was very public, even appearing in the New York Times.

Dalton: The Carpet Capital of the World

Dalton is known as the "Carpet Capital of the World." It has over 150 carpet factories. More than 30,000 people in the Whitfield County area work in this industry. Over 90% of the functional carpet made globally comes from within 65 miles of Dalton.

The carpet industry started from a simple wedding gift. In 1895, a girl named Catherine Evans Whitener made a special tufted bedspread for her brother. She sewed thick cotton yarn into fabric and then fluffed it up. People loved her bedspreads, and demand grew. By the 1930s, many local women would hand-tuft these spreads. Entire families worked on them, earning money that helped them during the Great Depression. These chenille bedspreads made Dalton known as the "Bedspread Capital of the World."

After World War II, machines were developed to make carpets using the same tufting method. Dalton became the center of this new industry. This was because the city had many skilled workers who knew how to tuft.

By the 1970s, factories learned to make patterned and sculpted carpets. Today's tufted carpets are strong, resist stains, and come in many colors. This has made them the top choice for most homes.

In the 1990s, carpet scraps became a big waste problem. A special landfill called the Carpet Landfill was created to hold baled carpet. It now stores over 500,000 tons of carpet.

From 2011 to 2012, Dalton lost many jobs as carpet mills changed or closed. However, the city's unemployment rate has since dropped significantly.

Dalton's Growing Solar Industry

Dalton is becoming a leader in the solar industry. In 2019, Hanwha Qcells, a large solar panel maker, opened a huge factory in Dalton. It employed 750 people and made 1.7 gigawatts of solar panels. This factory is the biggest solar manufacturing site in the Western Hemisphere.

This factory brought many jobs to Dalton. Qcells has expanded even more since then. In October 2023, they added more production capacity. This increased the factory's total output to over 5.1 gigawatts and created 510 new jobs.

Today, Qcells' Dalton factory makes almost 30,000 solar panels every day. It is now the fourth-largest manufacturer in Dalton, after three big flooring companies.

This growth is supported by laws like the Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act. This law gives tax credits to American companies that make solar products. This helps strengthen Georgia's clean energy industry. It also creates local jobs and helps the U.S. move towards a greener economy.

The shift to solar energy helps Dalton's economy grow in new ways. It can create jobs in the clean energy sector for future generations.

Environmental Concerns

Dalton's carpet production uses a lot of water from the Conasauga River. In summer, it can use up to one-third of the river's flow. The river and the city's water supply have also been affected by chemicals. These chemicals, called perfluorinated compounds, are used to make carpets stain-resistant.

Dalton Utilities used a system that spread treated wastewater on over nine thousand acres of forest. This water was found to flow back into the river.

Education Opportunities

Dalton offers many educational options for students.

Public Schools

The Dalton City School District serves the entire city. It has schools from pre-school to twelfth grade. There are six elementary schools, a middle school, a junior high school, a high school, and an alternative school. The district has many teachers and thousands of students.

The Whitfield County School District serves areas just outside Dalton's city limits. Some schools in this district have Dalton addresses but are not part of the city school system. These include Coahulla Creek High School, Phoenix High School, and Southeast Whitfield High School.

Charter Schools

• Whitfield County Career Academy

Alternative Schools

• Fort Hill Complex (Crossroads Academy)

Independent Schools

• Christian Heritage School

Higher Education

Dalton also has colleges for students who want to continue their education.

Transportation and Infrastructure

Air Travel

Dalton Municipal Airport is a small airport southeast of the city. It is for general aviation and does not have scheduled commercial flights. For bigger flights, people use international airports in Chattanooga (to the north) or Atlanta (to the south).

Rail Connections

In the past, several passenger trains stopped in Dalton. The Southern Railway had trains like the Ponce de Leon and Royal Palm that connected Cincinnati to Florida. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad also had trains like the Dixie Flagler and Dixie Flyer that went from Chicago and St. Louis to Florida. The last passenger train service ended in 1971.

Roadways

Interstate 75 runs just west of Dalton. The modern U.S. Route 41 and U.S. Route 76 go around Dalton, but they used to run through the city. Georgia State Route 52 goes through downtown Dalton.

Famous People from Dalton

Many notable people have connections to Dalton, Georgia:

• Morris Almond, professional basketball player
• Jim Arnold, former NFL punter
• Mitchell Boggs, former professional baseball player
• William Ragsdale Cannon, Bishop and Dean at Emory University
• Lane Davies, American actor
• Susan Dennard, author of The Witchlands series
• Eddie Dwight, baseball player in the Negro leagues
• Jahmyr Gibbs, NFL running back for the Detroit Lions
• Bobby Gill, NASCAR driver
• Stephen E. Gordy, Virginia politician
• Andy Foster, California State Athletic Commissioner
• Will N. Harben, Author
• John Junkins, professor and former interim president of Texas A&M University
• Tammy Jo Kirk, NASCAR driver
• Robert Loveman, poet
• Marla Maples, actress and former wife of Donald Trump (from nearby Cohutta)
• Harlan Erwin Mitchell, United States representative from Georgia
• Deborah Norville, television anchor and journalist
• Steve Prohm, head men's basketball coach at Iowa State University
• Harry Leon "Suitcase" Simpson, African American major league baseball player
• Dale Singleton, motorcycle racer
• Linda Vaughn, Miss Hurst Shifter

Sister Cities

Dalton has a special connection with another city around the world:

• Dilbeek, Belgium

See also

In Spanish: Dalton (Georgia) para niños