Summary History of Douglas County
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Note:  I am not a historian, but I have great interest in these areas where I sell homes.
The following information is culled from a variety of sources.
Although I can not guarantee accuracy within those sources,
I took care to write the following with as much accuracy as I could achieve.
 
Douglas County
  
       Douglas County was created on October 17, 1870 after the Civil War, during the Reconstruction Period.  This was the 133rd county in Georgia (some say it was the 131st county), and it was carved out of Carroll and Campbell Counties, plus a small section of the original Cherokee County.  It was first named for the African-American Abolitionist Frederick Douglas, due to the Republican and Military control of the Georgia General Assembly.  After the Union/Republican Party Reconstruction control ended, the new Georgia Assembly changed this.  They declared that the county was named in honor of Stephen A. Douglas, the Democrat Illinois Senator who opposed the Republican Abraham Lincoln for the Presidency.
  
       Prior to white settlers moving into this area, it was inhabited by various Native Americans; .. first by Mississippian Indians who were builders of ceremonial mounds, and then primarily by Creek and Cherokee Indians.  Some of what is now Douglas County became part of a “non-aggression zone/no man’s land” between the Creek and Cherokee Nations, with Creek Indians to the south of that ten mile wide band and Cherokee Indians to the north.  In 1835 Mr. and Mrs. W. G. Black came to this area from North Carolina, and settled within this “non-aggression/no man’s land.”  They established a trading post.  According to some records, the first official settlers in what became Douglas County were three Vansant brothers (Reuben, Abe, and Young, in 1848.
  
       When the state Assembly created Douglas County, they called for an election the following month (November 1870) to elect county officials and also select the site for the county seat.  In that election, the community that received the most votes was not named as the county seat.  Because so many different votes were cast with spelling that somewhat resembled the name Skinned Chestnut, officials declared Skinned Chestnut the winner.  Skinned, or “Skint” Chestnut was a small community that derived its name from a chestnut tree that Indians had used as a marker.  (By the way, Skinned Chestnut was the original name for Douglasville!)  People in the county felt the election results were not accurate, and brought a suit to court which lasted for four years.  The citizens won, and the decision on selecting Skinned Chestnut was overruled.  However, both sides agreed to postpone the decision about a county seat until the route of the new (soon to be built) Georgia Western Railroad was determined.  The Georgia General Assembly enacted legislation directing a new election, but with the provision that the site of a county seat would have to be on that rail line.  In this election voters selected Douglasville after all, since the new railroad was going to go through that community.
  
       In 1881 the Georgia Western Railroad began construction of a rail line stretching between Atlanta and Birmingham, Alabama.  This railroad, as mentioned above, went through Douglas County and was completed in 1883.  Douglasville was on this line, and with its selection as the county seat plus its position on the new railroad, it grew to become the dominant community in the county.
  
       In 1880 construction began on a new courthouse in Douglasville.  But according to records, due to faulty baking of the bricks and poor mortar the building quickly began crumbling, and it was abandoned in 1884.  In 1896 a two-story brick building with clock tower was constructed on the site of the prior courthouse, and this structure served well until it was destroyed by fire in 1956.  Another courthouse was built.  And now the latest Douglas County Government complex opened in 1998, a short distance from the original downtown site.
  
       Although Douglas County was not affected by the Civil War to the degree found in some other parts of Georgia, it did suffer from several battles and from the Union Army march to Atlanta and to the sea.  For example, the entire town of New Manchester was burned by Sherman’s forces in July 1864, including mills and the New Manchester Manufacturing Company’s cotton factory.  Mill employees were taken prison.
  
       Over the years Douglas County has grown.  Lithia Springs attracted many wealthy people to the area for its therapeutic mineral waters.  However the resort hotel there was destroyed by fire in 1912.  But the county’s position on a major east-west railroad helped spur development.  And with the advent of the Interstate system, Interstate 20 brought even more commerce to the area, plus it enabled people who worked in Atlanta to live in this newly reachable suburban area.  Relatively easy access from this county to Hartsfield/Jackson Airport is also a major plus.

     From The U.S. Census Bureau
 

ESTIMATED 2006 Population:
  
2000 Population:
  
Population change (April 1, 2000 to
July 1, 2006):
  
Median Household Income 2004:
  
Housing Units 2005:
  
Home Ownership Rate 2000:
  
Households 2000:
  
Persons per Household 2000:
  
2000 Land Area (sq miles):
  
2000 Persons per Sq Mile:
   		119,557
 
92,174
 
29.6%
 
 
49,964
 
44,733
 
74.8%
 
32,822
 
2.78
 
199.30
 
463.2

 
     Resources for constructing this summary included:
  
Genealogy Inc website, Douglas County History and Information page:   http://www.mygeorgiagenealogy.com/ga_county/dgs.htm

The New Georgia Encyclopedia website, Douglas County page:   http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2325&sug=y

Carl Vinson Institute of Government website, Douglas County Courthouse page:   http://www.cviog.uga.edu/Projects/gainfo/courthouses/douglasCH.htm

Georgia County Snapshots website, Douglas County page:   http://www.dca.state.ga.us/CountySnapshotsNet/countysnapshot.aspx?cicoid=1048048

Douglas County Georgia website, the About Us page:   http://www.celebratedouglascounty.com/about/index.html

U.S. Census Bureau website, Douglas County, Georgia page:   http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13/13097.html

  
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