County Information
"Some of the special events in Oconee County include the Annual Oconee Fall Festival and the Christmas Parade. "
Quality of Life is an expression that is often used to define the cultural, geographic, historical, educational and economic distinctives of a community. The best adjective to describe Oconee County's Quality of Life is abundance.
Are there serene countrysides, great shopping opportunities, a thriving artistic community, high-tech and successful legacy businesses, superior public and private educational opportunities from pre-K through graduate levels, public recreational emphases, historical landmarks, and the kind of caring people that make neighborhoods and subdivisions real homes? Absolutely yes, in abundance!
Best Rural Place to Live
Oconee County was named 2nd year in a row as one of the best places to live in rural America.
www.ProgressiveFarmer.com
Oconee County Wins!
Georgia of Excellence Award
Chairman Melvin Davis and Oconee County Board of Commissioners announced that Oconee County has been selectd by the Georgia Trend magazine and the ACCG as one of eight counties in Georgia to win the inaugural "Georgia County of Excellence Award".
Read more about it from the Oconee County Messenger Newsletter.
More about Oconee County
Oconee County spans 186 square miles in the Piedmont Plateau of Northeast Georgia. Bordered by Clarke, Oglethorpe, Morgan, Greene and Walton counties, Oconee County lies six miles south of Athens and 53 miles east of Atlanta and enjoys a strategic location between the major markets of Atlanta, Augusta, Macon, and Greenville, SC.
History of the County
The history of Oconee County, named for the river edging its eastern boundary, parallels the history of many places in the South. Oconee County is now and has always been affected by the cyclic rhythms and seasonal roots of agriculture. The Oconee County red clay soil has produced cotton, sprawling antebellum homes and a love and appreciation of things fine and simple, an attitude familiar to all small town southern folk. The county seat...Watkinsville...presumably named for Augusta attorney Robert Watkins, was established in 1801 as the county seat of Clarke County until Athens garnered that distinction in 1871. Outraged citizens of Watkinsville demanded a county of their own and a portion of Jackson County ceded by the Cherokee nation to the State of Georgia became Oconee County in 1875. The community initially was called "Big Springs".Watkinsville enjoyed growth in the early days due to its location along a main stagecoach route from Athens to Milledgeville, Georgia's first capital. The Central of Georgia Railroad ran through town and Tanyard Branch tannery, the main employer in town, produced leather from cowhide.
Fort Edwards, a settlement built to protect residents against Creek Indian raids, was remodeled as an inn and renamed The Eagle Tavern. The Tavern hosted many renowned guests, including George Walton, Robert Toombs, Governor Alexander Stephens, and poet Sidney Lanier. The Eagle Tavern is fabled to be responsible for the location of the University of Georgia in Athens instead of Watkinsville, since the tavern and dance halls would prove to be an evil influence and distraction to students.
Other towns and municipalities contained within Oconee County's borders are North High Shoals, Bogart and Bishop. Generations have enjoyed North High Shoals for its beaches, swimming, tubing and white water rapids. North High Shoals is located on the Apalachee River in western Oconee County and was once home to the High Shoals Manufacturing Company. This large cotton plant used about 4000 bales of cotton annually and employed approximately 250 people from 1846 until it burned in 1928.Originally called "Osceola," the name was changed to Bogart for a respected gentleman in the railroad agency since an Osceola already existed along the train route. The town was officially incorporated in 1905 and bustled during the 1900s with banks, hardware stores, two cotton gins, a textile machinery business and Benson's Old Home Fruitcake Company.
Bishop, the smallest incorporated community in the county, fielded an amateur baseball team during the Depression. Bishop, like Bogart, also bustled during the early 1900s with a depot, several stores, a dentist office, bank, blacksmith, cotton gins, hotels and other businesses.
Historically, the county has depended on the success of agricultural pursuits which now result in a total economic impact of $67 million annually. After the boll weevil invasion during the Great Depression years, cotton farming diversified into row cropping, peaches, cattle and swine production, and the profitable poultry industry. The county proudly looks forward to the twenty-first century and the continued legacy of a growing economy and cooperative community spirit.
Climate
Rainfall: 48.9" average annual
Temperature: 61.7 F annual average
Summer average: 72.4 F
Winter average; 50 F
Location
Strategically situated between the major markets of Atlanta, Augusta, Macon, and Greenville, South Carolina, Oconee County is easily accessible via several well-developd arteries. The extension and widening of Georgia Highway 316 places Oconee County within an hour's drive of Atlanta. Known as University Parkway, 316 provides a direct link between Georgia's premier research institutions: the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, and Emory University. This link further enhances Georgia's rising prominence as a leader in research and high-tech development.
Other important thoroughfares include US 29, 78, 129 and 441. Georgia highways 15 and 53 provide direct access to Interstate 20, a major east-west corridor, and Interstate 85, a vital norht-south artery. In addition to surface transportation, rail service is also available and provided by CSX and Norfolk Southern rallroads. Air service is available at Ben Epps Field, a regional airport in Athens capable of handling small-to-medium-sized aircraft. Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, slightly more than an hour's drive, connects us with the world through daily non-stop domestic and international flights.
Arts & Recreation
Recreation
Oconee County hosts many popular tourist attractions including the Apalachee and Oconee Rivers, Paradiso Falls, North High Shoals, and Oconee National Forest. The county also has many recreational facilities. Some of these include:
- Six lighted tennis courts
- Four golf courses
- Two driving range
- Nine baseball fields
- Numerous softball fields
- One soccer field
- One beach volleyball court
- Horseshoe Pits
- Batting cages
- Two football fields
- One gymnasium with weight room
- Nature and fitness trails
- Oconee Civic Center
Oconee's Prominent Arts Community Provides Entertainment For All
Oconee County is well-known throughout the region as a haven for talent. Artisans of pottery and blacksmithing, as well as paint, pen and other fine arts, find a tranquil environment from which to draw inspiration. Two very exciting events have occurred recently in support of this burgeoning arts community...the formation of the Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation Inc., and the opening of Oconee County Civic Center.
"Oconee County is well-known throughout the region as a haven for talent. "
The Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation Inc. (OCAF) is an arts council dedicated to developing and coordinating programs and activities for all citizens. OCAF works with the professional arts community through arts and crafts festivals, classes for children and adults, workshops and seminars for artists, and musical and theatrical performances.
The Oconee County Civic Center is located adjacent to the new Oconee County High School On Hog Mountain Road. This 28,000 square foot facility houses a 500 seat performing arts theatre with an orchestra pit, stage and excellent acoustics; a 500 seat banquet/multipurpose area with a central atrium lobby and catering facility. Opened in December 1993, it is used for school functions, concerts, plays, forums, meetings, trade shows, conferences, banquets, and wedding receptions.
Local artisans show and sell their wares at a number of shops throughout the county. One of the most widely known is Happy Valley Pottery. Located nine miles from Watkinsville, this 34-acre farm features a studio, workshop and craft shop run by local artists. Happy Valley holds Open House in November and December and sponsors a mini-fair in June.
Proximity to Athens and the University of Georgia (UGA) significanty broadens the cultural arts opportunities available to Oconee County residents. A case in point is the State Botanical Garden. This "living laboratory" encompasses 313 acres of gardens and nature trails for the study, research and enjoyment of plants and nature. Its focal point is the Visitors' Center/Conservatory exhibiting tropical and semi-tropical plants and original artwork year-round. Native plants and diverse ecosystems line the five miles of nature trails, some of which parallel the Oconee River, while others extend into hardwood forests. Eleven specialty gardens delight visitors with botanical beauty.
The University of Georgia's Visual Arts Department is one of the nation's finest. The Georgia Museum of Art...the official museum of the state...has become one of America's most prestigious galleries due to its diverse and significant collections. The museum features a permanent collection, as well as visiting exhibitions and displays.
The Dance Department at UGA presents several fine programs each year featuring many styles of dance ranging from classical ballet and tap to ancient Korean dances and modern dance. Talented students perform under the tutelage of expenenced faculty and visiting instructors from some of the best dance companies in the country.
The UGA School of Music offers excellent performances throughout the year, including presentations and recitals which are free and open to the public. Similarly, the UGA Drama Department brings well-known classics as well as contemporary productions to the stage through University Theatre Productions and the Georgia Repertory Theatre.
The Athens "music scene" has become internationally famous thanks to the success of rock groups such as R.E.M. and the B-52's. Additionally, there are numerous theatre groups, symphony orchestras, chamber music groups, brass bands, blue grass bands and an assortment of venues in which to enjoy them.
From fine arts to fine entertainment, appreciation of fine things is apparent in the vast activities available to Oconee County citizens.
Business & Industry
The Land of Business Opportunity
Business opportunities are plentiful in Oconee County. Our county is literally the place for opportunity with all the attributes needed to locat or expand your present and future business or industry.
Oconee County's industrial park is vitally important to the local economy. Business and industry expansions are visible while additional locations are being planned and constructed for future customers. Oconee County's location within the Atlanta/Athens transportation corridor, our pro-business climate, excellent secondary schools, and proximity to the University of Georgia contribute to our rapid growth rate...13th among 159 counties.
Existing Industry
Companies making their home in Oconee County will find a well-balanced, diverse mix of existing businesses and industries. A sampling of corporate neighbors include:
American Linen Supply Company, commercial uniform rentals
Benson's Old Home Kitchens, commercial bakers
Southwire, insulated wire, cable and copper products
Ameripride / Executive workwear / Uniform Company
Century Petroleum, Golden Pantry, Engineered Fabrications, Inc., Athens Sign Company, Oconee Well Drillers, Inc. also operate facilities here.
Agribusiness
Additionally, Oconee County benefits from its relationship to nearby University of Georgia through mutual agricultural interest. There are three USDA and University of Georgia Experiment Stations located in the county, and the influence of these facilities is apparent through the environmental concerns of an educated populace.
Agribusiness is an integral part of the local economy with poultry, beef cattle, dairy, swine, row crops, peaches, nursery farms, and pick-your-own fruit and vegetable farms contributing to the viability of our economy.
Infrastructure
Availability of reliable power sources is also ensured. Providing electric service directly to Oconee County are two companies: investor-owned Gcorgia Power Company, and member-owned Oglethorpe Corporation which supplies Walton Electric Membership Corporation. Through Georgia's Integrated Transmission System (ITS), a third supplier, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG), may also enter the picture and compete through bid for a 900kw or higher connected load.
Natural gas is provided to much of the county through Georgia Natural Gas Company. Water and sanitiary needs are served by the Oconee County Utility Department with expansion of the systems into potential growth areas of the county underway.
Labor Market
Although the unemployment rate for Oconee County is relatively low, the labor market for the seven county MSA provides an extensive pool of trained, educated workers ready to meet the demands of new and expanding operations.
Several respected institutions support the job training needs of the area. Gainesville College is a two-year institution which operates a satellite campus in the heart of Oconee County. The University of Georgia is within minutes of the county and offers unparalled educational and research opportunities. Athens Technical College (ATC) provides a vital link between the area's labor force and the workplace. A wide selection of business and technical courses is available to the individual who receives hands-on training in a chosen field. In addition, Athens Tech also offers ongoing job training programs for specific industries.
Athens Tech is also the local administrator of Quick Start, Georgia's internationally renowed training program designed to assist new and expanding industries. Working closely with industry officials, Quick Start will customize a training program specifically for your operation at no cost to you. Your employees will be trained and ready to begin work the day your facility opens for business. As it names implies, Quick Start can save you time...and money.
Business Climate
A location in Oconee County will net many advantages, but perhaps none as important as business environment. The visionaries of this community have assembled an optimum mix of amenities, infrastructure and incentives to ensure the success of your business or industry.
The Chamber of Commerce, the Development Authority, county officials, and the School Board are all dedicated to the smooth and timely selection of a location for your facility. A number of exisiting office, business and industrial sites are available. In addition, the Development Authority can assist in the acquistion of other sites and help arrange financing and construction.
Community leaders have ensured a competitive tax structure conducive to business, including a 40% Freeport Tax Exemption on all categories of inventory. Property taxes and other taxes affecting business are among the most attractive in Georgia.
Opportunity. According to Webster, opportunity means "a favorable time or occasion for a certain purpose". Over the past decade, the leaders of Oconee County have worked diligently to create an atmosphere favorable to economic growth. Hard work has paid off. The time is here. Opportunity awaits you in Oconee County.
Education & Health Care
Education...Oconee County Schools Expect Success
Community leaders seem to unite through the schools their children attend. The education system in Oconee County is strenglhened by cooperation and support between the schools and the community resulting in one of the county's most important assets a well-educated community.
An active Partners In Education program has paired over 70 businesses with individual schools to explore areas of mutual assistance and benefits. School system personnel are an integral part of the community, actively serving on community councils and committees with community and business volunteers reciprocating for schools.
The Oconee County Public School System enrolls more than 5597 students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Oconee County schools 'Expect Success." Residents of Oconee County, as well as nearby counties, boast about the quality of education available.
"Residents of Oconee County, as well as nearby counties, boast about the quality of education available."The administrative staff at each school includes a principal and one or more assistant principal. The Oconee County School System's instructional approach takes into account the multiple needs of each individual. Basic academic programs are enhanced by art, music and physical education taught by fully certified specialists in each school. All grade levels provide guidance and counseling services, programs for the gifted, and services for students with special education needs. A school nurse, a school social worker, a school psychologist and an attendance officer serve throughout the school system. A professional staff of over 409 teachers is complemented by a support and service staff of over 424.
Oconee County Elementary Schools
The Elementary Program includes kindergarten through fifth grade curriculum which allows students to continually progress while learning the basics. Students at grade levels four and five are assigned to teaching teams which utilize blocks of time for integrated subjects. The elementary curriculum consists of reading, Ianguage arts, mathematics, science and health, social studies, physical education, music and art.
Oconee County Middle Schools
The middle school teachers are organized into teams for English, math, reading, science and social studies. Students take exploratory courses in the fields of technology, vocational studies, foreign language and fine arts. Lifelong learning is enhanced and emphasized through America 2000 and Adult Literacy Programs.
Oconee County High Schools
Oconee County School System's high school program offers students curricula in college preparatory and vocational studies. The comprehensive high school offers an honors program in English and mathematics, as well as advanced placement courses for college credit in English, mathematics, social studies and art. Students learn writing skills using word processors in computer labs. College joint enrollment, foreign languages, fine and performing arts are available in addition to a wide range of vocational courses. The high school also offers a full array of extra-curricular activities, ranging from athletics to acaademic honor societies. Students have consistently demonstrated their leadership with many awards and much recognition in both state and national competitions.
Athens Academy
Athens Academy is an independent, non-proflt, college preparatory co-educational day school located in Oconee County. Students are transported or drive to Athens Academy from all over Northeast Georgia. The Academy, a small school with small classes and a low teacher-pupil ratio, is known for its family atmosphere. At Athens Academy it's perfectly all right to like what you're studying. An attitude of doing one's best is obvious in the classroom, on stage, or on the playing field. Beginning with three year olds and going through twelfth grade, over 700 students study in a multicultural environment on a wooded, 107-acre campus. Enrollment is open to people of all races, religions and national origins.
"Excellence with Honor," the motto of Athens Academy, has provided the primary focus of thc Academy for more than a quarter century to provide students with a superior liberal arts education that prepares them for higher education and for life in the 21st century. Graduates regularly earn admission to prestigious colleges and universities, compile outstanding records in earning college credit through Advanced Placement, and score high on nationally normed examinations. For a faculty member, teaching at Athens Academy is a way of life. An Athens Academy education is distinctive in large part because of the school's exceptional faculty.
National attention focused on Athens Academy in thc spring of 1994 with the opening of a state-of-the-art media and learning complex which involves students in the critical use of all forms of media. Athens Academy's media education project prepares students to think critically in an information age by teaching them to "read" and interpret all forms of media. A partnership with international businessman Reinhard Mohn and the Bertelsmann Foundation has made the program possible.
Westminster Christian Academy
Westminster Christian Academy, begun in 1989, continues to grow its pre-K3 through 12th grade college-preparatory co-educational Christian school. In 1998, WCA opened its 30-acre campus complete with athletic fields, classroom and administrative buildings, and gymnasium-auditorium and graduated its first senior class with students headed to Vanderbilt and the University of Georgia.
Colleges
Located in nearby Athens, the University of Georgia offers students a comprehensive choice of degrees in a historical university setting. Extensive continuing education series are also an important aepect provided by the university.
In addition, Athens Area Technical College offers courses for associate degrees or diploma programs in vocational and technical subjects to assist in creating a skilled work force prepared for progress.
Gainesville College, part of the University System of Georgia, has set up an Oconee Campus at 1202 Bishop Parkway in Watkinsville providing additional educational opportunities in the area.
Health Care in Oconee County
The quality and availability of healthcare contribute greatly to making a desirable place to live. Fortunately for Oconee County residents, excellent healthcare from two outstanding hospitals is only ten miles away in nearby Athens.
Athens Regional Medical Center
"State-of-the-Art treatment commands first class care in Oconee County."Athens Regional Medical Center (ARMC) is a +/-300-bed facility that serves 14 counties in Northeast Georgia. Thc facility features a vast array of specialized programs such as emergency services, a MRI unit, heart catheterization lab, a linear accelerator for radiation therapy, an open heart surgery center, an inpatient and outpatient drug and alcohol abuse unit, an outpatient surgery center and an outpatient radiology facility.
As a public, not-for-profit institution, ARMC's mission is to provide medical care to everyone who enters its doors, regardless of ability to pay.
Regional First Care is Oconee County's walk-in medical center. Services include occupational health (including ADA exams and immediate post injury workers' compensation cases), treatment of minor illnesses and injuries, gynecological procedures, pediatrics, vaccinations and many family practice procedures. A medical doctor is on duty at all times.
St. Mary's Hospital
St. Mary's Hospital is owned and operated by St. Mary's Health Care System, Inc. The system is a progressive care-provider for all stages of a person's life and, includes Wellness Works, Home Health Care Services, Long Term Care Facility and Hospice. The Hospital is a 196-bed high-tech, acute-care facility which includes both adult aud neonatal intensive care facilities, a 24-hour emergency center, a perinatal center and a full scope of outpatient and inpatient diagnostic treatment. For fast response to the area's emergency medical needs, St. Mary's has an ambulance service based in Oconee County.
St. Mary's Oconee County Women's Resource Center is one of nine branch offices or outreach centers that is located throughout Northeast Georgia. The center, located at 1586 Mars Hill Road, is Oconee County's convenient connection to all of St. Mary's services.
Other Health Care Services
Also available are public health facilities, neighborhood health centers and private physician groups to provide every medical specialty.
Locally, Oconee County residents are served by physicians providing family practice care, general/internal medicine, gynecology and pediatrics. Other medical services offered include optometry, dental, orthodontal and periodontal.
Ten veterinarians are located in the county to provide medical care for small and large animals.
Family Life Enrichment Centers, Inc. is a skilled nursing facility which provides healthcare to the elderly in a family-centered spiritual atmosphere in the picturesque rural setting at High Shoals. Comprehensive patient care is provided through planned and coordinated services and programs from Family Life Campus.
Magnolia Estates Assisted Living on Mars Hill Road is a retirement center with a comfortable home-like astmosphere with creative living for ambulatory adults.
Many healthcare needs can be addressed by the Oconee County Health Department. Services include family planning, maternal health, child health services, immunizations, blood pressure monitoring, food service inspection, rabies investigation, and home inspection for foster care. Other facilities serving Oconee County include the Northeast Georgia Mental Health Center, Mental Retardation Center and Substance Abuse Center in Athens.
The First Responders Program, operated through the EMS office, allows residents to receive first aid before the ambulance arrives. Many of the First Responders are certified Emergency Medical Technicians.
Religion
Oconee County's religious community plays an active role in serving the physical well as the spiritual needs of its people. Area Churches Together Serving, the umbrella organization for all churches in Oconee County, performs charitable functions such as collecting food, clothing and money for distribution to the needy. Almost every denomination and faith is represented in the Oconee area. We encourage you to worship in a manner befitting your personal beliefs.
Faiths represented include:
- African Methodist Episcopal
- Anglican
- Apostolic
- Assembly of God
- Baptist
- Catholic
- Charismatic
- Christian
- Christian Science
- Church of Christ
- Church of God
- Episcopal
- Evangelical
- Friends
- Greek Orthodox
- Holiness
- Interdenominational
- Jehovah's Witness
- Jewish
- Latter-day Saints
- Lutheran
- Methodist
- Pentecostal
- Presbyterian
- Seven Day Adventist
- Unitarian Universalist
- Word of Faith