Macon County, Georgia

Macon County, Georgia
Macon County Courthouse in Oglethorpe, Georgia
Location in the U.S. state of Georgia
Georgia's location in the U.S.
Founded	December 14, 1837
Named for	Nathaniel Macon
Seat	Oglethorpe
Largest city	Montezuma
Area
• Total	406 sq mi (1,052 km2)
• Land	401 sq mi (1,039 km2)
• Water	5.4 sq mi (14 km2), 1.3%
Population
• (2010)	14,740
• Density	37/sq mi (14/km²)
Congressional district	2nd
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	Macon County government

Macon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,740. The county seat is Oglethorpe.

The Macon County Courthouse is located in Oglethorpe, Georgia.

Macon County was created in 1837 from parts of Houston ("house-ton") and Marion counties, effective December 14 of that year. The 91st county, it was named for the recently deceased General Nathaniel Macon of North Carolina, who served in the U.S. Congress for 37 years and ran for U.S. vice president. (The city of Macon, Georgia was also named for him, but is the seat of a different county.) The county was later reduced when parts were separated to organize Taylor and Peach counties, in 1852 and 1924, respectively.

The first county seat was not chosen until 1838, when the county's inferior court selected Lanier. The Georgia General Assembly (state legislature) designated it on December 29 of that year and incorporated it as a town.

In the 1850s, the Central of Georgia Railroad was built through Oglethorpe, changing county dynamics. As a result, the Georgia Assembly called for a referendum on moving the Macon County seat to Oglethorpe in February of both 1854 and 1856. Little is known about the first vote, but the second vote resulted in approval for a change to the county seat, and Oglethorpe was designated the following year in 1857.