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Gwinnett County, Georgia facts for kids

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Gwinnett County
Gwinnett County Justice and Administrative Building
Gwinnett County Justice and Administrative Building
Map of Georgia highlighting Gwinnett County
Location within the U.S. state of Georgia
Map of the United States highlighting Georgia
Georgia's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Georgia
Founded December 15, 1813; 211 years ago (1813)
Named for Button Gwinnett
Seat Lawrenceville
Largest city Peachtree Corners
Area
 • Total 437 sq mi (1,130 km2)
 • Land 430 sq mi (1,100 km2)
 • Water 6.4 sq mi (17 km2)  1.5%%
Population
 • Estimate 
(2020)
942,627
 • Density 2,123/sq mi (820/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts 4th, 7th, 10th

Gwinnett County is a suburban county of Atlanta in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. In 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the second-most populous county in Georgia (after Fulton County). Its county seat is Lawrenceville. The county is named for Button Gwinnett, one of the signatories of the Declaration of Independence.

Gwinnett County is included in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located about 10 miles northeast of Atlanta's city limits.

History

Created in 1818 by an act of the Georgia General Assembly, Gwinnett County was formed from parts of Jackson County (formerly part of Franklin County) and from lands gained through the cession of Indian lands. Named for Button Gwinnett, one of the signatories of the Declaration of Independence, the first county court was held at the home of Elisha Winn, and the county seat was placed at Lawrenceville.

In 1861, all three of Gwinnett County’s representatives at the Georgia Constitutional Convention (1861) in Milledgeville voted against secession. Towards the end of the war, several skirmishes took place in Gwinnett County as part of the Atlanta Campaign.

The northeastern part of Gwinnett County was removed to form a part of the new Barrow County in 1914.

Geography

Elisha Winn House
The Elisha Winn House served as Gwinnett County's first courthouse

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 437 square miles (1,130 km2), of which 430 square miles (1,100 km2) is land and 6.4 square miles (17 km2) (1.5%) is water.

It is located along the Eastern Continental Divide. A portion of the county to the northwest is a part of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area chain.

The regional reservoir, Lake Lanier, at the extreme north of the county, is the central cause to the Tri-state water dispute.

The southern and central portions of Gwinnett County are located in the Upper Ocmulgee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. Most the county's northern edge, from south of Peachtree Corners to north of Buford, is located in the Upper Chattahoochee River sub-basin of the ACF River Basin (Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin), while the county's eastern edge, north and south of Dacula, is located in the Upper Oconee River sub-basin of the same Altamaha River basin.

Adjacent counties

Transportation

Airport

The county maintains a regional airport under the name Gwinnett County Airport, formerly Briscoe Field. The closest major airport serving the region is Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Major roads and expressways

  • I-85.svg Interstate 85
  • I-985.svg Interstate 985
  • US 23.svg U.S. Route 23
  • US 29.svg U.S. Route 29
  • US 78.svg U.S. Route 78
  • Georgia 8.svg State Route 8
  • Georgia 10.svg State Route 10
  • Georgia 13.svg State Route 13
  • Georgia 20.svg State Route 20
  • Georgia 84.svg State Route 84
  • Georgia 120.svg State Route 120
  • Georgia 124.svg State Route 124
  • Georgia 140.svg State Route 140
  • Georgia 141.svg State Route 141
  • Georgia 264.svg State Route 264
  • Georgia 316.svg State Route 316
  • Georgia 317.svg State Route 317
  • Georgia 324.svg State Route 324
  • Georgia 347.svg State Route 347
  • Georgia 365.svg State Route 365
  • Georgia 378.svg State Route 378
  • Georgia 403.svg State Route 403 (unsigned designation for I-85)
  • Georgia 419.svg State Route 419 (unsigned designation for I-985)

Transit systems

  • GRTA Xpress commuter buses and Gwinnett County Transit serve the county.
  • Norcross Greyhound Bus Terminal, 2105 Norcross Pkwy, Norcross, GA 30071
  • On April 12, 2018, Gwinnett County Officials updated the transit plans to connect to the rest of Metro Atlanta via heavy rail.

Pedestrians and cycling

  • Beaver Ruin Creek Greenway (Proposed)
  • Camp Creek Greenway
  • Cedar Creek Trail Loop
  • Harbins Greenway (Proposed)
  • Ivy Creek Greenway (Under construction)
  • Ivy Creek-Snellville Trail (Proposed)
  • Norcross-Lilburn Trail (Proposed)
  • Piedmont Pathway (Proposed)
  • Sugar Hill Greenway (Under construction)
  • Suwanee Creek Greenway (Under construction)
  • The Loop Trail (Proposed)
  • Western Gwinnett Bikeway (Under construction)

In 2016, Suwanee unveiled the first Bike Share program in Gwinnett County.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1820 4,589
1830 13,289 189.6%
1840 10,804 −18.7%
1850 11,257 4.2%
1860 12,940 15.0%
1870 12,431 −3.9%
1880 19,531 57.1%
1890 19,899 1.9%
1900 25,585 28.6%
1910 28,824 12.7%
1920 30,327 5.2%
1930 27,853 −8.2%
1940 29,087 4.4%
1950 32,320 11.1%
1960 43,541 34.7%
1970 72,349 66.2%
1980 166,903 130.7%
1990 352,910 111.4%
2000 588,448 66.7%
2010 805,321 36.9%
2020 957,062 18.8%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2010-2013

Gwinnett County is often cited as one of the counties in the US that has demographically changed the most rapidly. As recently as 1990, over 90% of Gwinnett County's population was white. By 2007, the county was considered majority-minority.

2020 census

Gwinnett County racial composition
Race Num. Perc.
White (non-Hispanic) 310,583 32.45%
Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 257,124 26.87%
Native American 1,532 0.16%
Asian 126,526 13.22%
Pacific Islander 387 0.04%
Other/Mixed 40,450 4.23%
Hispanic or Latino 220,460 23.04%

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 957,062 people, 301,471 households, and 230,960 families residing in the county.

2019 ACS Estimates

2019 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates: Gwinnett County, Georgia
Population
Group Estimate Percent
Total Population 936,250
Population by Sex
Group Estimate Percent
Male 456,837 48.8%
Female 479,413 51.2%
Sex ratio (males per 100 females) 95.3
Population by Age
Group Estimate Percent
Under 5 years 60,884 6.5%
5 to 9 years 68,247 7.3%
10 to 14 years 74,117 7.9%
15 to 19 years 71,193 7.6%
20 to 24 years 60,524 6.5%
25 to 29 years 62,371 6.7%
30 to 34 years 61,208 6.5%
35 to 39 years 69,566 7.4%
40 to 44 years 63,611 6.8%
45 to 49 years 70,172 7.5%
50 to 54 years 65,628 7.0%
55 to 59 years 66,672 7.1%
60 to 64 years 43,613 4.7%
65 to 69 years 36,838 3.9%
70 to 74 years 27,310 2.9%
75 to 79 years 15,123 1.6%
80 to 84 years 9,205 1.0%
85 years and over 9,968 1.1%
Median age (years) 35.8
Population by Race and Ethnicity
Group Estimate Percent
White 429,774 45.9%
--- White, not Hispanic or Latino 329,100 35.2%
Black or African American 266,298 28.4%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 203,623 21.7%
--- Mexican 97,109 10.4%
Asian 126,556 13.5%
--- Vietnamese 28,265 3.0%
--- Korean 25,875 2.8%
--- Asian Indian 23,737 2.5%
Some other race 95,124 10.2%
Two or more races 34,067 3.6%
American Indian or Alaska Native 4,271 0.5%
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander 161 0.0%
Population by Nativity and Citizenship Status
Group Estimate Percent
Native (born in the United States) 680,767 72.7%
--- Born in Georgia 350,911 37.5%
--- Born in other U.S. state 313,875 33.5%
------ Southern state 143,144 15.3%
------ Midwestern state 72,186 7.7%
------ Northeastern state 69,682 7.4%
------ Western state 28,863 3.1%
--- Native born outside U.S. states 15,981 1.7%
Foreign Born 255,483 27.3%
--- Not a U.S. citizen 133,667 14.3%
--- Naturalized U.S. citizen 121,816 13.0%

2010 Census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 805,321 people, 268,519 households, and 203,238 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,872.8 inhabitants per square mile (723.1/km2). There were 291,547 housing units at an average density of 678.0 per square mile (261.8/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 53.3% White (44.0% Non-Hispanic White), 23.6% black or African American, 10.6% Asian, 0.5% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 8.8% from other races, 3.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 20.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 8.3% were German, 7.8% were Irish, 7.7% were English, and 5.8% were American.

Of the 268,519 households, 45.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 24.3% were non-families, and 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.98 and the average family size was 3.40. The median age was 33.7 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $63,219 and the median income for a family was $70,767. Males had a median income of $48,671 versus $39,540 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,901. About 8.7% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

  • Mountain Park

Unincorporated communities

People

The rap group Migos hails from Gwinnett County. Migos won the 2015 YouTube Music Award, as well as several other notable entertainment television awards. Net worth in 2015 was reported to be 4.2 million (USD).

Strange Music artist Rittz also hails from Gwinnett County.

Economy

  • AGCO is headquartered in Duluth.
  • American Megatrends is headquartered in unincorporated Gwinnett County near Norcross.
  • ASHRAE's world headquarters is in Peachtree Corners.
  • Comcast Corporation, the American global telecommunications conglomerate and owner of Xfinity and NBCUniversal, has its Southeast Headquarters in Peachtree Corners.
  • Canon has its southeast region headquarters in Norcross.
  • Fortune 500 companies CarMax and Mass Mutual as well as Honeywell, Sprint Corporation, Siemens Industry Automation, Fleetcor, ACI Worldwide, and CMD Group are among the businesses in Peachtree Corners.
  • Hapag-Lloyd’s North American Headquarters is in Peachtree Corners.
  • The Harlem Globetrotters are headquartered in Peachtree Corners.
  • Primerica is headquartered in unincorporated Gwinnett County, near Duluth.
  • Scientific Atlanta in Lawrenceville.
  • United States Tennis Association (USTA)‘s headquarters for the Southern Section is in Peachtree Corners.
  • Waffle House is headquartered in unincorporated Gwinnett County, near Norcross.
  • Yerkes National Primate Research Center, the CDC's primate research center located on the campus of Emory University in Atlanta, maintains its high security Yerkes Field Station, which houses most of its primates, near Lawrenceville.

Sports

Minor-league affiliates of the NHL Boston Bruins and the MLB Atlanta Braves play home games and talent scout in the area.

In 2016, the Georgia Swarm of the National Lacrosse League relocated from Minnesota and began playing games at Infinite Energy Arena. The team won the league championship in 2017.

Georgia Force of Arena Football League had also played at Arena at Gwinnett Center before the team folded in 2012.

Club Sport League Venue Founded Titles
Atlanta Gladiators Ice hockey ECHL Infinite Energy Arena 1995 0
Atlanta United FC Soccer MLS Mercedes-Benz Stadium 2017 1
Gwinnett Stripers Baseball International League Coolray Field 2009 0
Georgia Swarm Lacrosse National Lacrosse League Infinite Energy Arena 2004 1

Gwinnett also hosts the Gwinnett Lions Rugby Football Club, a Division 3 Men's Rugby Team competing in the Georgia Rugby Union.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Gwinnett County Public Schools operates the public schools for residents in Gwinnett County, with the exception of residents inside the Buford city limits, which are served by the Buford City School District. There are 143 schools in the district—21 high schools, 29 middle schools, 80 elementary schools and 13 specialty schools, making it the largest school district in Georgia.

Private education

  • Greater Atlanta Christian School, the second-largest independent school in Georgia, is located in Norcross.
  • Hebron Christian Academy is located in Dacula.
  • Providence Christian Academy is located in Lilburn
  • Seigakuin Atlanta International School, a private Japanese education system elementary and middle school, was located in Peachtree Corners. The school moved from property at Oglethorpe University to its current address, former property of the Romanian First Baptist Church, in 2003.
  • Wesleyan School is located in Peachtree Corners.

Colleges and universities

  • Georgia Gwinnett College is located in Lawrenceville.
  • Gwinnett Technical College is also located in Lawrenceville.
  • Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine is located in Suwanee.
  • Trevecca Nazarene University has an adult education site in Duluth.
  • University of Georgia has a satellite campus in Lawrenceville.

Notable people

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Gwinnett para niños

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