Washington County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,988. The county seat is Sandersville. The county was established on February 25, 1784. It was named for Revolutionary War general and President of the United States George Washington.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 684 sqmi, of which 678 sqmi is land and 5.9 sqmi (0.9%) is water. The western portion of Washington County, west of a north-to-south line running through Sandersville, is located in the Lower Oconee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin. The northeastern portion of the county, north of Riddleville, is located in the Upper Ogeechee River sub-basin of the Ogeechee River basin, while the southeastern portion, centered on Harrison, is located in the Ohoopee River sub-basin of the Altamaha River basin.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Demographics

2020 Census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 19,988 people, 7,503 households, and 5,315 families residing in the county.

Education

The county is served by the Washington County School District, which includes: The county is also the location of one privately run school:

In popular culture

The 1933 short story "The People's Choice" by Erskine Caldwell is set in Washington County, where the story's protagonist is a popular local politician elected again and again as the county's tax assessor. In 1992, the Pig Monument was erected in the county, near Oconee off of Georgia State Route 272. The monument commemorates a 1933 event where several residents of the county gathered together to help a local farmer rescue a pig that had fallen down a dry well. The biography of one of the main characters (Grant Alexander) in the 2011 console game X-Men: Destiny states that they were born in Sandersville, Georgia.

Politics

Like most other majority-minority counties in the South, Washington County has primarily backed Democratic Party candidates for most of its history. Democratic margins of victory in presidential elections were far greater prior to 1964, but the county has only failed to back a Democratic presidential candidate five times in its history. However, no candidate of any party since Bill Clinton in 1996 has managed to win the county by a margin of 1,000 votes or greater.