MOULTRIE, GEORGIA

'Moultrie', nicknamed 'The City Of Southern Living', is a city and the county seat of Colquitt County. Moultrie is an agricultural community set in the Southern Rivers part of the State of Georgia. It is well known for its many antique shops and has been styled "'The Antique Capitol of South Georgia'". Moultrie is a peaceful city of beautiful landscapes, huge sprawling oak trees and stately homes. Attractive vistas begin at the heart of Moultrie in the downtown square. In outlying areas of the county, there are vast farmlands and rolling area of both cotton and tobacco crops. Moultrie is also the home of US Senator Saxby Chambliss.

Contents

Geography

History

Demographics

Economics

Organizations

Education

Largest Industries

Religion

Churches in Moultrie

Telecommunications

Transportation

Utilities

Historic Sites

Festivals

Points of Interest

External links

Geography

Located in Southwest Georgia, Moultrie is in the center of Colquitt County, west of Interstate 75 - about south of Atlanta and north of Tallahassee, Florida. The city is geographically in the middle of Albany to the NW, Tifton to the NE, Thomasville to the SW, and Valdosta to the SE. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 36.9 km² (14.2 mi²).
Moultrie is located at (31.170188, -83.783601).

History

Colquitt County became the 115th county in Georgia by an act of the Legislature on February 25, 1856. It was named after Walter Terry Colquittt, a minister, statesman and lawyer who was a military leader in the mid 1860's. In 1879, a charter was adopted and in the center of the county was declared the county seat. It was named Moultrie, after Gen. William Moultrie, a Revolutionary War hero.
During the American Civil War Colquitt County raised several companies of Confederate troops, particularly Company H, 50th Georgia Volunteer Infantry. In all more than 100 citizens of Moultrie and Colquitt County have died in military service over the last 150 years.
Founders of naval stores started harvesting the timbers in the late 1890s. They set up turpentine stills and built tram roads, allowing for the railroad to come into the territory. The Boston & Albany line, which later became the Georgia Northern Railway, was the first through town, bringing with it growth and prosperity for the County. Practically every train brought new residents interested in supplying naval stores or working in the saw mills.
By 1900, through the work of businessmen, bankers and speculators, the county was becoming a farmer's paradise. Land was cleared and development companies began dividing the forested area into farm tracts. Experienced farmers from north Georgia and the Carolinas were invited to come and develop the land. The county's agriculture industry thrives today.

Demographics

As of the U.S. Census, 2000, there were 14,387 people, 5,663 households, and 3,505 families residing in the city. There were 5,663 households out of which 31.4% had children under 18 living with them, 34.0% were married couples living together, 23.5% were single mothers, 33.9% individuals, and 15.8% were people 65 years or older. The median income for a family was $28,406, with the per capita income for the city at $13,657. About 27.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.8% of those under age 18, and 24.1% of those age 65 or over. Since 2004 there has been a significant increase in the number of Asians and Hispanics to Moultrie. The 2005 estimated racial makeup of the city is:

★ 39% White

★ 40% African American

★ 15% Hispanic

★ 1% Native American

★ 2% Asian

★ 3% from other races.

Economics

Per capita income in 1997 was $18,061, compared to a Georgia average of $23,882 and a U.S. average of $25,288. Colquitt is heavily agricultural, ranking 10th among Georgia's 159 counties in farm income in 1997 ($486.6 million). Cotton, peanuts and tobacco are staples and the county is a regional leader in livestock production. Two local banks have $345 million in assets, and one branch bank has $265 million.

★ Southwest Georgia Bank

★ Ameris Bank Corp

★ South Georgia Banking Company

★ Bank of America

★ Colony Bank

★ Commercial Banking Company

★ Bank of Lenox

★ South Georgia Banks

★ Suntrust Bank Located inside Wal-Mart Supercenter

Organizations

★ Colquitt County School Board

★ Girl Scouts of Southwest Georgia

★ Boy Scouts of America - Suwannee River Area Council

★ Moultrie YMCA

★ Moultrie-Colquitt County Humane Society

★ Southwest Georgia Community Action Council

★ Georgia Baptist Conference Center

Education

★ Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College

★ Moultrie Technical College
'Secondary Schools'

★ Colquitt County High School

★ C.A. Gray Middle School

★ Willie J. Williams Middle School
'Primary Schools'

★ Cox Elementary

★ Doerun Elementary

★ Funston Elementary

★ Hamilton Elementary

★ Norman Park Elementary

★ J.M. Odom Elementary

★ Okapilco Elementary

★ Stringfellow Elementary

★ Sunset Elementary

★ R.B. Wright Elementary

★ Vereen School

Largest Industries

Industry for the Moultrie area grew considerably when in 2004 it was announced that Sanderson Farms was going to build a proccesing plant nearby. The plant officially opened in May of 2006, and currently employs over 1,000 workers, over ten-percent of the local workforce.
Here are some more local companies:

★ Riverside Manufacturing Company

★ Colquitt Regional Medical Center

★ Moultrie Post Form

★ Universal Forest Products

★ Hubbell Die Casting

★ Maule Air Inc.

Religion

The religious affiliations of the people of Moultrie are:

★ Christian – 98%

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★ Protestant – 87%

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★ Baptist – 55%

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★ Methodist – 5%

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★ Presbyterian – 5%

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★ Congregational – 2%

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★ Pentecostal – 5%

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★ Other Protestant – 15%

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★ Episcopal/Anglican – 2%

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★ Roman Catholic – 10%

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★ Other Christian – 1%

★ Other Religions – 2%
Also, a number of Moultrie residents are agnostics or atheists.

Churches in Moultrie

The Moultrie area has 27 churches of various Christian denominations. Here are websites for some of the most popular:

★ Trinity Baptist Church

★ First Baptist Church

★ First Presbyterian Church

★ First United Methodist Church

★ Heritage Church

★ Moultrie Church of God

★ Seventh-day Adventist

★ Immaculate Conception Catholic Church

★ St. Margaret of Scotland Episcopal Church

★ First Church of the Nazarene

★ Baptist Preachers Web Site

★ Calvary Baptist Church

★ Mother Easter Baptist Church

Telecommunications

There are several radio and television stations located in the Moultrie area.

★ 'Radio'

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★ WOBB-100.3FM Country

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★ WMGA-1130 AM Spanish

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★ WMTM-1300 AM Gospel Music

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★ WHBS-1400 AM Religious

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★ WMTM-93.9 FM Oldies

★ 'Television'

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★ WSWG 'CBS TV'

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★ WFXL 'Fox TV'

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★ WALB 'NBC TV'

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★ WTXL 'ABC TV'

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★ WSWG-DT 'MyNetwork TV'

Transportation

Moultrie is serviced by US 319, which connects to Interstate 75 and Interstate 10. State Road 37 and State Road 111 also run through Moultrie. The Chattahoochee and Gulf Railroad, and Greyhound are two transportation services provided in Moultrie. Moultrie also has two small airports, Moultrie Municipal Airport, and Moultrie Regional Industrial Park.

Utilities

Moultrie is serviced by the following munincipal utility companies:

★ Georgia Power

★ Colquitt Electric Membership Corporation

★ Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia

★ Municipal Gas Authority of Georgia

★ Community Network Services (CNS)

★ Mediacom

Historic Sites

Moultrie is also home to several buildings and homes that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

★ Colquitt County Historic Buildings

Festivals

★ Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition - October

★ The Calico Arts & Crafts Shows - March and November

★ Southern Wildlife & Outdoor Exposition - August

★ Automotive Swap Meet - November

Points of Interest

★ Museum of Colquitt County History

★ Reed Bingham State Park

★ Colquitt County Arts Center

★ Norman Park, Ga. Email Web Site

★ The Ellen Payne Odom Genealogy Library

★ Barber-Tucker House

★ Sunset Country Club

★ Moss Farm Diving Complex

★ Spence Field

External links

★ Moultrie Chamber of Commerce

★ Moultrie Official Website

★ The Moultrie Observer

★ Moultrie GA Visitors Guide

★ Colquitt County Board of Commissioners