Fulton County, Georgia facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Fulton County
County
Atlanta's Fulton County Courthouse in 2019
Flag Logo
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Founded	December 20, 1853; 172 years ago (1853)
Named for	Robert Fulton
Seat	Atlanta
Largest city	Atlanta
Area
• Total	534 sq mi (1,380 km2)
• Land	527 sq mi (1,360 km2)
• Water	7.7 sq mi (20 km2)  1.4%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	1,066,710
• Estimate  (2023)	1,079,105
• Density	1,997.6/sq mi (771.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts	5th, 6th, 11th, 13th

Fulton County is a county in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,066,710, making it the state's most populous county. Its county seat and most populous city is Atlanta, the state capital. About 90% of the city of Atlanta is within Fulton County; the remaining portion is in DeKalb County. Fulton County is the principal county of the Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell metropolitan statistical area.

History

Downtown Atlanta

Fulton County was created in 1853 from the western half of DeKalb County. It was named in honor of Hamilton Fulton, a surveyor for the Western and Atlantic Railroad; some sources had previously incorrectly claimed it was named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat. Organized as settlement increased in the Piedmont section of upland Georgia, Fulton County grew rapidly after the American Civil War as Atlanta was rebuilt, becoming a center of railroad shipping, industry and business.

At the beginning of 1932, as an austerity measure to save money during the Great Depression, Milton County to the north and Campbell County to the southwest were annexed by Fulton County. This gave the county its current long shape along 80 miles (130 km) of the Chattahoochee River. On May 9 of that year, neighboring Cobb County ceded to Fulton County the city of Roswell and lands lying east of Willeo Creek, in order that the latter county be more contiguous with the lands ceded from Milton County.

In the later 20th century, Atlanta and Fulton county became the location of numerous national and international headquarters for leading companies, attracting workers from around the country. As a result, the city and county became more cosmopolitan and diverse.

Geography

Garrett Lake, Mountain Park

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 534 square miles (1,380 km²), of which 527 square miles (1,360 km²) is land and 7.7 square miles (20 km²) (1.4%) is water. The shape of the county resembles a sword with its handle at the northeastern part, and the tip at the southwestern portion.

Going from north to south, the northernmost portion of Fulton County, encompassing Milton and northern Alpharetta, is located in the Etowah River sub-basin of the ACT River Basin (Coosa-Tallapoosa River Basin). The rest of north and central Fulton, to downtown Atlanta, is located in the Upper Chattahoochee River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin). The bulk of south Fulton County, from Atlanta to Palmetto, is located in the Middle Chattahoochee River-Lake Harding sub-basin of the larger ACF River Basin, with just the eastern edges of south Fulton, from Palmetto northeast through Union Hill to Hapeville, in the Upper Flint River sub-basin of the same larger ACF River Basin.

Adjacent counties

National protected areas

• Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (part)
• Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site

Communities

Cities

Unincorporated communities

Demographics

According to the 2020 United States census, there were 1,066,710 people, 439,578 households, and 238,444 families residing in the county, reflecting the county's historically positive population growth with exception to the 1980 U.S. census.

In 2020, the county had a racial and ethnic makeup of 42.07% Black or African Americans, 37.95% non-Hispanic whites, 0.15% American Indians and Alaska Natives, 7.56% Asian Americans, 0.04% Pacific Islander Americans, 0.60% some other race, 3.54% multiracial Americans, and 8.09% Hispanic or Latinos of any race. In 2010, its racial and ethnic makeup was 43.50% Black or African American, 40.85% non-Hispanic white, 0.17% American Indian and Alaska Native, 5.57% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.28% some other race, 1.71% multiracial, and 7.88% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

In 2010, the median income for a household in the county was $56,709 and the median income for a family was $75,579. Males had a median income of $56,439 versus $42,697 for females. The per capita income for the county was $37,211. About 12.0% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.0% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over. At the 2022 American Community Survey, its median household income grew to $90,346 with a per capita income of $59,689. Among its population, 53% earned from $50,000 to $200,000 annually, and 28% earned less than $50,000. Approximately 12.7% of the county lived at or below the poverty line.

Economy

Centennial Tower

Companies headquartered in Fulton County include AFC Enterprises (Popeyes Chicken/Cinnabon), AT&T Mobility, Chick-fil-A, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Church's Texas Chicken, The Coca-Cola Company, Cox Enterprises, Delta Air Lines, Earthlink, Equifax, First Data, Georgia-Pacific, Global Payments, Inc., InterContinental Hotels Group, IBM Internet Security Systems, Mirant Corp., Newell Rubbermaid, Northside Hospital, Piedmont Healthcare, Porsche Cars North America, Saint Joseph's Hospital, Southern Company, United Parcel Service, are based in various cities throughout Fulton County.

Education

All portions of Fulton County outside of the city limits of Atlanta are served by the Fulton County School System. All portions within Atlanta are served by Atlanta Public Schools.

Libraries

History

The Atlanta-Fulton County Library system began in 1902 as the Carnegie Library of Atlanta, one of the first public libraries in the United States. In 1935, the city of Atlanta and the Fulton County Board of Commissioners signed a contract under which library service was extended to all of Fulton County. Then in 1982, Georgia voters passed a constitutional Amendment authorizing the transfer of responsibility for the Library system from the city of Atlanta to the county. On July 1, 1983, the transfer finally became official, and the system was renamed the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System.

Under the leadership of Ella Gaines Yates, who was the first African American director of the Library System, a new Central library was opened to the public in May 1988. The building was designed by Marcel Breuer, a participant in the innovative Bauhaus movement, working side by side with his associate Hamilton Smith. The Central Library was dedicated on May 25, 1980, and Breuer would die a year later on July, 1981 at the age of 81.

In 2002 after a hundred years of library service to the public, a major renovation of the Central Library was completed.

Transportation

South Fulton Parkway

Almost every major highway, and every major Interstate highway, in metro Atlanta passes through Fulton County. Outside Atlanta proper, Georgia 400 is the major highway through north Fulton, and Interstate 85 to the southwest.

Major highways

Interstate highways

U.S. highways

State routes

Secondary highways

Peachtree Street in Midtown Atlanta

• Abernathy Road
• East Wesley Road
• Freedom Parkway (Georgia 10)
• Glenridge Drive
• Hammond Drive
• Johnson Ferry Road
• Lindbergh Drive (Georgia 236)
• Memorial Drive (Georgia 154)
• Moreland Avenue (U.S. 23/Georgia 42)
• Mount Vernon Highway
• Peachtree Road (Georgia 141)
• Peachtree-Dunwoody Road
• Piedmont Road (Georgia 237)
• Ponce de Leon Avenue (U.S. 23/29/78/278/Georgia 8/10)
• Powers Ferry Road
• Roswell Road (U.S. 19/Georgia 9)
• Windsor Parkway

Mass transit

East Point MARTA station

MARTA serves most of the county, and along with Clayton and Dekalb County, Fulton pays a 1% sales tax to fund it. MARTA train service in Fulton is currently limited to the cities of Atlanta, Sandy Springs, East Point, and College Park, as well as the airport. Bus service covers most of the remainder, except the rural areas in the far southwest and Johns Creek. North Fulton residents have been asking for service, to extend the North Line ten miles (16 km) up the Georgia 400 corridor, from Perimeter Center to the fellow edge city of Alpharetta. However, as the only major transit system in the country that its state government will not fund, there is no money to expand the system. Sales taxes now go entirely to operating, maintaining, and refurbishing the system. Xpress GA/ RTA provides commuter bus service from the outer suburbs of Fulton County, the city of Sandy Springs to Midtown and Downtown Atlanta.

Recreational trails

• BeltLine (under construction)
• Big Creek Greenway (under construction)
• PATH400 (under construction)
• Peachtree Creek Greenway (under construction)

Airports

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport straddles the border with Clayton County to the south and is the busiest airport in the world. The Fulton County Airport, often called Charlie Brown Field after politician Charles M. Brown, is located just west-southwest of Atlanta's city limit. It is run by the county as a municipal or general aviation airport, serving business jets and private aircraft.

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Fulton (Georgia) para niños