Winder is a city and the county seat of Barrow County, Georgia, United States. It is located east of Atlanta and is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. The population was 18,338 at the 2020 census.

History

Creek people first inhabited the area. The Georgia General Assembly incorporated Winder in 1893. The community was named after John H. Winder, a railroad builder, and not the John H. Winder who served as a General in the Confederate Army. Before Winder was named Winder it was originally named Jug Tavern. The first hotel of the Jameson Inn chain opened in Winder in 1987. The first Doctors’ Day observance was March 28, 1933, in Winder. This first observance included the mailing of cards to the physicians and their wives, flowers placed on graves of deceased doctors, including Dr. Crawford Long (who in 1842 performed the first surgery under general anesthesia), and a formal dinner in the home of Dr. and Mrs. William T. Randolph. After the Barrow County Alliance adopted Mrs. Eudora Brown Almond's resolution to pay tribute to the doctors, the plan was presented to the Georgia State Medical Alliance in 1933 by Mrs. E. R. Harris of Winder, president of the Barrow County Alliance. On May 10, 1934, the resolution was adopted at the annual state meeting in Augusta, Georgia. The resolution was introduced to the Women's Alliance of the Southern Medical Association at its 29th annual meeting held in St. Louis, Missouri, November 19–22, 1935, by the Alliance president, Mrs. J. Bonar White. Since then, Doctors' Day has become an integral part of and synonymous with, the Southern Medical Association Alliance.

Geography

Winder is located in central Barrow County at 33.99639°N, -83.72083°W (33.996495, -83.720873). It is 20 mi west of Athens and 50 mi northeast of downtown Atlanta. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 33.5 km2, of which 32.2 km2 is land and 1.3 km2, or 3.97%, is water.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 18,338 people, 5,799 households, and 3,885 families residing in the city.

Arts and culture

National Register of Historic Places

The Barrow County Courthouse in Winder was built in 1920, and is listed under the National Register of Historic Places.

Barrow County Museum

The Barrow County Museum holds artifacts of Barrow County. It is the home of the Barrow County Historical Society. The museum located in the old Barrow County Jail.

Education

Public schools

Public schools are part of the Barrow County School District. The district consists of eight elementary schools, four middle schools, and two high schools. The district has 610 full-time teachers and over 9,362 students. Northern portions of Winder are assigned to Winder-Barrow High School, while southern portions are zoned to Apalachee High School. The majority of AHS-zoned parts of Winder are in the zones of Kennedy Elementary School and Westside Middle School, with one section in the zones of Bethlehem Elementary School and Haymon-Morris Middle School. Elementary schools with attendance boundaries covering the WBHS part include Winder Elementary School, County Line Elementary School, and Holsenbeck Elementary School. Richard B. Russell Middle School is in Winder, in the Winder-Barrow feeder zone. The Arts and Innovation Magnet Program is in Wilder. The following is a list of schools featured in the Winder area. Former schools

Private schools

Colleges and universities

Transportation

Major roads

Pedestrians and cycling

There are limited walkability options available currently. However, neighboring Clarke, Gwinnett and Hall counties have accessible trails available.