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Albany is a city in and the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, United States, in the southwestern part of the state.[4] It is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area. The population was 76,939 at the 2000 census.
[edit] GeographyAlbany is located at (31.582273, -84.165557)[5]. The total area is 0.59% water. Albany lies in a belt of rich farmland in the East Gulf coastal plain on the banks of the Flint River. [edit] Demographics[edit] MSAAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the Albany, Georgia Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) had an estimated population of 164,069 and ranked #234 in the U.S. in 2007[6]. The MSA consisists of Dougherty, Terrell, Lee, Mitchell, Worth, and Baker Counties. [edit] CityAs of the census[2] of 2000, there were 76,939 people, 28,620 households, and 18,889 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,385.5 people per square mile (535.0/km²). There were 32,062 housing units at an average density of 577.3/sq mi (222.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 64.80% African American and Black, 33.21% White, 0.21% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.45% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.23% of the population. There were 28,620 households out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.6% were married couples living together, 25.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.14. In the city the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 13.0% from 18 to 24, 27.7% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 85.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $28,639, and the median income for a family was $33,843. Males had a median income of $30,204 versus $22,268 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,485. About 21.5% of families and 27.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.7% of those under age 18 and 18.9% of those age 65 or over. [edit] HistoryThe area where Albany is located was formerly inhabited by the Creek Indians. They called it something like Thronateeska - after their word for "flint" - because of the mineral flint that was found near the river there. The Creeks used this flintstone to make tools and also weapons like arrowheads. A businessman named Nelson Tift from Connecticut settled along the Flint River in October, 1836, and he named his new town Albany, after New York's state capital city because they both sat at the navigable heads of rivers. The town of Albany was laid out by Alexander Shotwell in 1836. It was incorporated as a city by an act of the General Assembly of Georgia on December 27, 1838[1]. Surrounded by a prosperous farming region which produced large amounts of cotton, Albany was in a prime location for transportation of cotton by steamboats on the river, over which Tift had Horace King, a former slave, build a toll bridge in 1858. Albany later became a railroad hub and there is an exhibit on trains at the Thronateeska Heritage Center, which is located at the old railroad station. In 1841, the Flint River flooded the town. On April 11, 1906, the Carnegie Library was opened up downtown. It functioned as a library through 1985. In 1992, the building was reopened as the headquarters of the Albany Area Arts Council. In 1912, the downtown U.S. Post Office and Courthouse building opened up. In 1925, the Flint River again flooded the city. In 1937, Chehaw Park was established as a part of a New Deal program. On February 10, 1940, a severe tornado hit Albany, and it killed eighteen people and caused widescale damage. In the summer of 1940, a Major Peacock of the U.S. Army approached the Albany Chamber of Commerce about the possibility of locating an U.S. Army Air Corps training base near Albany. Construction of the base and of the airfield by the Army Corps of Engineers began March 25, 1941. The airfield was temporarily deactivated between August 15, 1946, and September 1, 1947, but after the beginning of the Cold War, and the establisment of the U.S. Air Force in late 1947, the airfield was reactivated and upgraded with strongly-paved runways for a U.S. Air Force base that was called the Turner Air Force Base. The Air Force used this base for very heavy jet bombers, such as the B-52 Stratofortress A number of other Air Force units were also housed at this Air Force Base. [7] as the base was renamed. Among them were the 1370th Photomapping Group [8], and refueling and maintenance functions. The Turner Air Force Base was abandoned by the Air Force, and it was transferred to the usage of the U.S. Navy in 1967. This naval base was permanently deactivated and relinquished to civilian control in 1974 . In 1979, the Miller Brewing Company purchased part of the old naval base's property to build a new brewing plant. [9] In 1951, the U.S. Marine Corps established a logistics base on the eastern outskirts of Albany. In 1960, the population of Albany reached 50,000 people. During the early 1960s, Albany played a prominent role in the Civil Rights Movement (see the Albany Movement). In 1994, there was another severe flood by the Flint River, which was caused by rainfall from Tropical Storm Alberto, killing 14 people and displacing 22,000. In 1998, the Flint River crested at 35 feet above its bed, once again flooding parts of Albany. In 2002, Sherwood Pictures began producing Christian films in Albany, including "Flywheel" (2003), "Facing the Giants" (2006), and "Fireproof" (2008), which reportedly became some of the highest grossing Christian films of all time. Brothers Alex and Stephen Kendrick wrote and produced each film as an outreach of the Sherwood Baptist Church. Soundtracks and novels of the movies followed. [edit] Albany in The Souls of Black FolkIn W. E. B. Du Bois's book, The Souls of Black Folk (1903), Albany was featured in several chapters as a typical African American populated rural (?) town (?) in the Deep South. In his book, Du Bois discussed the culture, agribusiness, and economy of the region. Du Bois described Albany as a small (?) town (?) where local sharecroppers (?) lived. Much of the soil had been depleted of nutrients because of intensivee cotton cultivation. Once a bustling small city full of cotton gins and toiling slaves, Albany had declined steadily in the late 1800s as the Civil War and the Emancipation Proclamation drastically altered the demographics and economy of Albany. Du Bois wrote that Dougherty County had many decaying one-room slave cabins, and unfenced fields. Despite the problems, local folklore, customs, and the culture made Albany a notable small city in the South. [edit] GovernmentElected officials include a mayor and six city commissioners, all of whom serve four-year terms. The commissioners represent the wards from which they are elected. There is also an appointed city manager who acts as the chief administrative officer. The city has been governed by a city commission and city manager since January 14, 1924. [2]. [edit] Economy An M88 Recovery Vehicle at the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany undergoes depot maintenance in 2005. Although Albany has expanded considerably in the past few decades, it is still able to retain the population and environment of a Southern town. Today, although the city is still surrounded by pecan groves, pine trees, farms and plantations, almost none of the population is employed in agriculture. Health care, education and the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany are the largest employers. Manufacturing, transportation, and retail trade are also important foundations of Albany's economy and the city acts as a hub for commerce in southwest Georgia. On December 17, 2008, Cooper Tire and Rubber, one of Albany's largest employers, announced plans to close the local manufacturing facility. Approximately 1,400 employees at the plant will lose their jobs over the course of the next 12 months as Cooper completes the plant shut down. [edit] Top Nine Non-governmental Employers in Dougherty County(excludes the City of Albany, Dougherty County, and the Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany)
[edit] Other notable companies[edit] TransportationSouthwest Georgia Regional Airport (ABY) is serviced by Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a regional carrier for Delta. Both UPS and DHL use the airport as a sorting facility. Freight rail service is provided by Georgia Southwestern Railroad and Norfolk Southern Railway. Greyhound Lines offers intercity transportation to locations throughout the U.S., Canada, and Mexico Albany Transit System, operated by the city since 1974, provides fixed-route and paratransit services in Albany and Dougherty county, including service to the airport. The main transfer station is downtown. Albany is located on Georgia State Route 300 (Georgia-Florida Parkway). The intersection of Lonesome & Hardup was named the fourth wackiest street name according to a 2006 poll by Car Connection website.[10] [edit] EducationThe Dougherty County School System and several private schools provide primary and secondary education. Private schools include Far Horizons Montessori School, Deerfield-Windsor School, Sherwood Christian Academy, Darsey Private High School, Byne Memorial Baptist School, St. Teresa's Catholic School, Life Christian School and Young Unlimited Minds Institute (YUMI). Albany is location of both the historically black Albany State University, and Darton College. Both of these are part of the University System of Georgia. The state-run Albany Technical College [3] teaches post-secondary vocational & occupational training subjects. [edit] Health careAlbany is the home of a not-for-profit regional health system with a 26 county cachement area with Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital [4] at its hub. Palmyra Medical Centers [5] is a for-profit hospital. [edit] Sports
[edit] Local attractions[edit] Museums and the arts
[edit] Parks and monuments
[edit] Registered historic places
[edit] Notable AlbaniansMain category: People from Albany, Georgia
[edit] Local media[edit] Newspapers
[edit] Television stations
[edit] FM radio stations
[edit] AM radio stations
[edit] Miscellaneous
[edit] References
Albany, GA is the home of the Southwest, GA Radio & Music Conference [edit] External links
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