Pickens County

Pickens County

Pickens County

County Formed: December 5, 1853
County Seat: Jasper
Incorporated Cities: Jasper, Nelson Talking Rock
Total Area: 232.1 square miles
Current Population Estimates (2009):1

  • Pickens County – 31,264
  • Jasper – 3,344
  • Nelson – 910
  • Talking Rock – 103

History:2

Pickens County was created in 1853 from parts of Cherokee and Gilmer counties. Georgia’s 100th county was named for General Andrew Pickens, a Revolutionary War soldier.

A railroad line built in 1883 from Atlanta, through the valleys and mountain passes of Pickens County to Tate and Nelson, made possible the development of large marble quarries. One of the largest marble veins in the world is in Pickens County, running at least four miles long. It is a half-mile deep and almost that wide in places. Over 60 percent of the monuments in Washington, D.C. are made from Pickens County marble.

Higher Education:

Appalachian Technical College

Annual Events:

Several special events take place in Pickens County. Two of the biggest festivals are held in October: the Marble Festival and Heritage Days Festival in Talking Rock.

Additional Resources:

  1. Source: Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau http://www.census.gov/popest.estimates.html; County Estimate Source: Table 1: Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties for Georgia: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2010 (CO-EST2009-01-13) Release Date: March 2010.  Incorporated Estimate Source: Table 4: Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places in Georgia: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2009 (SUB-EST2009-04-13) Release Date: September 2010. [↩]
  2. Georgia Department of Community Affairs [↩]