Thomasville, Georgia

Thomasville, Georgia
City


Location in Thomas County and the state of Georgia
Coordinates: 30°50′11″N 83°58′42″W / 30.83639°N 83.97833°W / 30.83639; -83.97833Coordinates: 30°50′11″N 83°58′42″W / 30.83639°N 83.97833°W / 30.83639; -83.97833
Country United States
State Georgia
County Thomas
Area
 • Total 15 sq mi (38.7 km2)
 • Land 14.9 sq mi (38.5 km2)
 • Water 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation 279 ft (85 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 18,413
 • Density 1,210.8/sq mi (469.3/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes 31700-31799
Area code(s) 229
FIPS code 13-76224[1]
GNIS feature ID 0333216[2]
Website http://www.thomasvillega.com
https://thomasville.org/

Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The city is the second largest in Southwest Georgia after Albany.

The city deems itself the City of Roses and holds an annual Rose Festival. The city features plantations open to the public, a historic downtown, a large farmer's market, and a 320-year-old oak tree at the corner of Monroe and Crawford streets. The population was 18,413 at the 2010 census.[3]

In 2016, Thomasville was featured as the second best historic small town on USA Today's 10 Best List Reader's Choice after Bisbee (Arizona) but ahead of Abingdon (Virginia), Mackinac Island (Michigan), and Astoria (Oregon).

History

Thomasville was founded in 1825 as seat of the newly formed Thomas County. It was incorporated as a town in 1831 and as a city in 1889. The community was named for Jett Thomas, a general in the War of 1812.[4]

Rose Festival

Thomasville plants and maintains more than 1,000 roses located throughout the city, as do a number of residents who have their own rose gardens. During the last week of April, rose growers from all over the world display their prize roses for a panel of judges. The Thomasville Rose Garden at Cherokee Lake Park is the largest of 85 rose beds maintained by the city, and is host to the annual rose festival.[5]

Culture

Thomasville is home to several historic and cultural organizations, including the Thomas County Historical Society and Museum of History, Thomasville Landmarks, Inc.[6] the Thomasville Center for the Arts, Jack Hadley's Black History Museum, and Pebble Hill Plantation. Daily tours and research hours are available at each institution.

Geography

Thomasville is located at 30°50′11″N 83°58′42″W / 30.83639°N 83.97833°W / 30.83639; -83.97833 (30.836444, -83.978199).[7]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.9 square miles (39 km2), of which, 14.9 square miles (39 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (0.40%) is water. It is the second largest city in Southwest Georgia after Albany. The city has 3 U.S. Route highways: U.S. Route 19, U.S. Route 84,and U.S. Route 319. It is located 34 miles northeast of Tallahassee, Florida, 28 miles southwest of Moultrie, 43 miles west of Valdosta, 95 miles east of Dothan, Alabama, 59 miles south of Albany and 22 miles north of Monticello, Florida.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Thomasville has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[8]

Climate data for Thomasville, Georgia
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 86
(30)		 86
(30)		 96
(36)		 96
(36)		 102
(39)		 104
(40)		 106
(41)		 104
(40)		 106
(41)		 97
(36)		 89
(32)		 85
(29)		 106
(41)
Average high °F (°C) 63
(17)		 68
(20)		 73
(23)		 79
(26)		 86
(30)		 90
(32)		 92
(33)		 91
(33)		 87
(31)		 81
(27)		 73
(23)		 65
(18)		 79
(26.1)
Average low °F (°C) 39
(4)		 42
(6)		 47
(8)		 53
(12)		 61
(16)		 69
(21)		 71
(22)		 71
(22)		 67
(19)		 57
(14)		 49
(9)		 41
(5)		 55.6
(13.2)
Record low °F (°C) 5
(−15)		 11
(−12)		 19
(−7)		 30
(−1)		 41
(5)		 48
(9)		 56
(13)		 53
(12)		 37
(3)		 26
(−3)		 11
(−12)		 8
(−13)		 5
(−15)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 4.80
(121.9)		 4.88
(124)		 5.67
(144)		 3.08
(78.2)		 3.00
(76.2)		 5.84
(148.3)		 5.68
(144.3)		 5.72
(145.3)		 4.52
(114.8)		 3.02
(76.7)		 3.44
(87.4)		 3.65
(92.7)		 53.3
(1,353.8)
Source: The Weather Channel [9]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
18701,651—
18802,55554.8%
18905,514115.8%
19005,322−3.5%
19106,72726.4%
19208,19621.8%
193011,73343.2%
194012,6838.1%
195014,42413.7%
196018,24626.5%
197018,155−0.5%
198018,4631.7%
199017,457−5.4%
200018,1624.0%
201018,4131.4%
Est. 201518,742[10]1.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[11]

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 18,162 people, 7,021 households, and 4,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,221.4 people per square mile (471.6/km²). There were 7,788 housing units at an average density of 523.7 per square mile (202.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 55.39% African American, 42.83% White, 0.23% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.24% from other races, and 0.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.28% of the population.

There were 7,021 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.7% were married couples living together, 22.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% 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 3.06.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.9% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 83.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,926, and the median income for a family was $37,606. Males had a median income of $28,331 versus 12,312 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,910. About 15.1% of families and 19.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.1% of those under age 18 and 21.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Thomasville City School District

The Thomasville City School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of three elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school.[12] The district has 204 full-time teachers and over 3,107 students.[13]

"Scholars" Academy

The Thomasville Scholars Academy is a "school within a school" established at Thomasville High School in Thomasville, Georgia in 2006. The Academy provides enrichment courses including honors and AP courses to academically advanced students at the high school. It is also an International Baccalaureate School as of the 2013-2014 sessions.

Students must apply and be accepted into the Scholars Academy.

The Academy's facilities include a computer lab and two science labs. The Academy offers an online newspaper and an Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFJROTC). As Academy students are also Thomasville High School students, they may participate in all Thomasville High School sports teams.

The Academy offers classes for students in grades six through twelve. The current director of the Academy is Dr.Dale Graham.

Thomas County School District

The Thomas County School District holds pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of three elementary schools, a middle school, and two high schools, Thomas County Central and Bishop Hall Charter School.[14] The district has 329 full-time teachers and over 5,466 students.[15]

Private schools

Higher education

Economy

The bakery company Flowers Foods is based in Thomasville. Senior Life Insurance Company is based in Thomasville.

Municipal broadband network

The city has installed a fiber optic network, known as CNS, which provides affordable, high speed Internet access. The city's network has been in place since 1999. The city transfers excess revenues from CNS services and from its other utilities to the city's general fund to pay for police and fire protection, street maintenance, and other essential services. In 2012, because of these revenues, the city was able to eliminate property fire tax for its residents and businesses.[20]

Newspaper

Notable people

References

  1. 1 2 "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. ↑ "Thomasville (city) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau". Quickfacts.census.gov. Retrieved 2012-12-22.
  4. ↑ Hellmann, Paul T. (May 13, 2013). Historical Gazetteer of the United States. Routledge. p. 249. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
  5. ↑ Lotz, CJ (21 April 2016). "The South's Rose City Throws a Party". Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  6. ↑ http://www.thomasvillelandmarks.org
  7. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  8. ↑ Climate Summary for Thomasville, Georgia
  9. ↑ "Climate Statistics for Thomasville, Georgia". Retrieved May 23, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015". Retrieved July 2, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Schools in Thomasville City". Georgia Board of Education. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  13. ↑ "School data for Thomasville City". School-stats. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  14. ↑ "Schools in Thomas County". Georgia Board of Education. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  15. ↑ "School data for Thomas County". School-stats. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  16. ↑ "Brookwood School". Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  17. ↑ "Thomasville Christian School". Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  18. ↑ "Thomas University". Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  19. ↑ "Southwest Georgia Technical College". Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  20. ↑ http://timesenterprise.com/x325753402/City-fire-tax-extinguished
  21. ↑ "William L. Andrews". databaseFootball.com. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  22. ↑ "MIKE BOBO". tvillebulldogs.com. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  23. ↑ "Joe Frank Burns". databaseFootball.com. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  24. ↑ "BUTTERWORTH, Benjamin, (1837 - 1898)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  25. ↑ "Danny Lamar Copeland". databaseFootball.com. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  26. ↑ "Myron Guyton". databaseFootball.com. Retrieved December 21, 2012.
  27. ↑ Wilson, Earl (Nov 27, 1969). "Small Towns Have Produced Many Big Stars". The Milwaukee Sentinel. pp. A33. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
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