County History: Lowndes County was created from Irwin County on Dec. 23, 1825 by an act of the General Assembly (Ga. Laws 1825, p. 54). Georgia's 68th county was named for South Carolina lawyer, planter, U.S. representative, and vice presidential candidate William Lowndes (1782-1822). Lowndes was a ardent supporter of the War of 1812 and was a well-respected member of Congress. Three years after his death, the Georgia General Assembly named a new county in his honor. Subsequently, Alabama and Mississippi also named counties for Lowndes. 

County Seat: In 1826, the legislature passed an act appointing commissioners to select a site for a county seat for newly created Lowndes County. They selected a settlement known as Franklinville, and in 1828 the legislature officially designated the site as county seat. In 1833, lawmakers moved the county seat to Lowndesville. In March 1837, the name of Lowndesville was changed to Troupville in honor of former governor and U.S. senator George Troup. In Dec.1837, the legislature incorporated Troupville. Finally, in 1859, the legislature designated the railroad settlement of Valdosta [named for former governor George Troup's Val D'Osta plantation, which he had named for a valley in the Italian Alps with the same name] as county seat. On Dec. 7, 1860, the legislature incorporated Valdosta as a town.

County Courthouse: This is the seventh courthouse in the history of Lowndes County. The first was a log structure built in Franklinville in 1828. When Lowndesville was named county seat in 1833, the wooden courthouse was moved from Franklinville. The next year, a new courthouse was built in Lowndesville, which in 1837 was renamed Troupville. Here, Lowndes County's third courthouse was built in 1842. This courthouse burned in 1858. The next year, the legislature moved the county seat from Troupville to Valdosta. Here, the county's fourth courthouse was built -- but it burned in 1869. A new courthouse was built on the city's public square in 1871. This structure was replaced in 1875 by a two-story red brick courthouse . After serving thirty years, this structure was torn down in 1904, with the current courthouse completed the following year. The Lowndes County courthouse is widely acknowledged as one of the most beautiful county courthouses in Georgia.

 

County History: Brooks County was created by an act of the General Assembly approved on Dec. 11, 1858 (Ga. Laws 1858, p. 353). Created from portions of Lowndes and Thomas counties, Georgia's 131st county was named for South Carolina congressman Preston Brooks, an ardent supporter of states' rights.

County Seat: Quitman. The act creating Brooks County directed the judges of the inferior court to select a site within four miles of the center of the new county for erection of public buildings. The act further directed that the new county seat be named Quitman. The name honored Gen. John Quitman, former governor of Mississippi, American hero in the Mexican War, and Mississippi congressman at the time of his death in July 1858. Inferior court judges picked a site on the railroad connecting southwestern Georgia with Savannah. Quitman was incorporated by an act of the General Assembly approved Dec. 19, 1859.

County Courthouse:Location: Quitman

Date Built: 1859-1864, extensively remodeled 1892

Architectural Style: Renaissance Revival/Romanesque Revival

Designer: John Wind (1859) and Bruce & Morgan (1892)

Other Information: In Jan. 1859, a month after the creation of Brooks County, the home of Thomas Folsom in Quitman was used as the county's first court room. Subsequently, a temporary courthouse was built. Later in 1859, work began on a permanent courthouse. With the outbreak of the Civil War, work preceded slowly, especially after the contractor died in 1862. The courthouse was not finished until 1864. In 1892, the courthouse underwent extensive renovation.

County History: In an act of Aug. 11, 1919, the General Assembly proposed a constitutional amendment to create Lanier County from Berrien, Clinch, and Lowndes counties (Ga. Laws 1919, p. 68). An act of Aug. 7, 1920 amended the constitutional amendment to redefine the boundaries of the new county (Ga. Laws 1920, p. 45). Georgia voters approved the constitutional amendment on Nov. 2, 1920, which marks the official date of Lanier County's creation (although a state historical marker on the courthouse grounds incorrectly lists Aug. 11, 1919 [the day the legislative act proposing the constitutional amendment was approved] and Aug. 7, 1920 [the day that act was amended] as the dates Lanier County was created).

According to the constitutional amendment as amended, Lanier County's legal boundaries were defined as:

Beginning at the northwest corner of land Lot 312, in the 10th land district of Berrien County, thence running south along the west line of Lots 312, 333, 358, 379, 404, 425 and 450 to the southwest corner of said Lot 450, thence westward along the north lines of Lots 470 and 469 to the northwest corner of Lot 469, thence south along the west lines of Lots 469, 498 and 515 to the southwest corner of Lot 515, thence east along the south lines of Lots 515 and 516 to the northwest corner of Lot 231, all of said lots being in the 10th District of Berrien County; thence south along the west lines of Lots 231, 232, 233, 234, 235 and 236 to the southwest corner of said Lot 236, all of said lots being in the 11th District of Lowndes County; thence east along the south lines of Lots 236, 271, 282, 317, 328, 363, 374, 409, 420 to the run of Alapaha River in Lowndes County, all of said lots in the 11th District of Lowndes County, and thence down the run of said Alapaha River in a southerly and southeasterly direction to where said run of said river crosses the present line between the Counties of Clinch and Echols, said line being the run of Cow Creek at said point, thence easterly and northeasterly along the run of said Cow Creek to a point where said creek leaves the present line between Clinch and Echols Counties, thence easterly and southeasterly along the present line between the Counties of Clinch and Echols to the southeast portion of lot of land 519 that lies in the present County of Clinch, and in the 11th District of said county; thence north along the east lines of lots of land 519, 518, 517, 516, 515, 514, 513, 512, 511, 510, 509, 508, 507 in the 11th District, and 529, 484, 483, 438, 437, 392, 391, 346, 345, 300, 299, 254, 253 to the northeast corner of said Lot 253, in the 10th District, all in the County of Clinch; thence westward along the north lines of Lots 253, 252, 251, 250 and 249 to the run of Alapaha River in a southerly direction to where the run of said river crosses the north line of Lot 304 in the 10th District of Berrien County; thence westward along the north lines of Lots 304, 305, 306, 307, 308, 309, 310, 311 and 312, in the 10th District of Berrien County, to the northwest corner of said Lot 312, the starting point.

Why was Lanier County created by constitutional amendment instead of an act of the General Assembly? In 1904, Georgia voters had approved a constitutional amendment limiting the number of counties in the state to 145. The next year, the General Assembly created eight new counties, bringing the total number to 145 -- the constitutional limit. Nevertheless, there was continuing pressure to create more counties. Beginning in 1906, lawmakers got around the 145-county limitation by creating new counties through constitutional amendments that were not subject to the limitation.

Lanier County was created from portions of Berrien, Clinch, and Lowndes counties (see legal description of boundaries). Georgia's 157th county was named for Georgia poet Sidney Lanier.

County Seat: The legislation proposing a constitutional amendment to create Lanier County designated Milltown, then located in Berrien County, as county seat (Ga. Laws 1919, p. 68).The date of Milltown's initial settlement is not clear, but on Dec. 17, 1901, the legislature incorporated the community as a town (Ga. Laws 1901, p. 535). On Aug. 11, 1925, the legislature changed the name of Milltown to Lakeland (Ga. Laws 1925, p. 1217).

County Courthouse:

Location: Lakeland

Date Built: 1973

Architectural Style: Modern

Designer: Thomas Sanders

Other Information: Lanier County's first courthouse was built in 1921 -- the year after the county's creation. It was replaced by the present courthouse in 1973.