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Other Information:
On Dec. 14, 1826, the legislature directed that Troup County
elections and court sessions be held in the house of Joseph Weaver.
The county's first inferior court was authorized to erect a courthouse,
but it is not known if a courthouse was built in 1827. In Dec.
1827, portions of Troup County were used to create two new counties
-- Meriwether and Harris. New elections were set for Feb. 1828,
after which the new inferior court was given the responsibility
of providing for a courthouse. Reportedly, a brick courthouse
was built in LaGrange in 1830. This structure was torn down in
1903 or 1904 and replaced by a new three-story brick courthouse
with clock tower, which was completed in 1904 (see
photo). This courthouse burned in 1936 (see
photo) and was replaced in 1939 with a new marble courthouse
(see
photo). The present courthouse--officially designated the
Troup County Government Center--was completed in 2005, with the
former courthouse becoming home for the Troup County Juvenile
Court.
County Courthouse Historical
Marker:
County History:
On Feb. 12, 1825, a group of Creek Indians led by William McIntosh
signed the Treaty
of Indian Springs, in which they ceded all of their remaining
lands in present-day Georgia. Subsequently, in an act of June
9, 1825 (see
text), the General Assembly provided that the land ceded
by the treaty be divided into five numbered sections, surveyed
into districts and land lots, and distributed by land lottery
(Ga. Laws 1825 Extra. Session., p. 3). [See
map of sections] On Dec. 14, 1826, the legislature redesignated
the five land sections as the counties of Lee, Muscogee, Troup,
Coweta, and Carroll and provided for their organization (Ga.
Laws 1826, p. 57). [See
map of five counties] [Click here
to see legal description of Troup County's original boundaries.]
Despite the fact that the five counties were not named until
Dec. 14, 1826, the date their respective boundaries were established
-- June 9, 1825 -- is generally accepted as the date of their
creation. Because the five counties were provided for in the
same act, their order of creation is based on the order they
were mentioned in the act -- Lee, Muscogee, Troup, Coweta, and
Carroll. Thus, Lee was Georgia's 61st county, while Troup was
63rd. Troup County was named for George M. Troup,
who was governor of Georgia at the time of the county's creation.
On Dec. 14, 1827, the legislature formed Meriwether County
from the eastern half of Troup County and Harris County from
portions of southern Troup County (Ga. Laws 1827, p. 69).
Click here for
more information on Troup County history.
County Seat:
The Dec. 14, 1826 act redesignating land sections as named counties
provided that Troup County's first election take place on the
first Monday in May 1827 at the house of Joseph Weaver. After
that election, the new inferior court was authorized to select
the county seat and erect a courthouse. However, on Dec. 14,
1827, the legislature divided Troup County into two counties
-- Troup and Meriwether. Ten days later, it passed an act organizing
the new and smaller Troup County and provided that election of
county officials take place on the first Monday of Feb. 1828
at the house of Nicholas Johnston (Ga. Laws 1827, p. 65). The
law also authorized the county's new inferior court to select
the county seat and provide for erection of a courthouse.
On Dec. 16, 1828, the legislature provided that the permanent
county seat of Troup County be located on lot 109 in the sixth
land district, which site was to be named LaGrange (Ga. Laws
1828, p. 152). The legislation also incorporated the new county
seat as a town. The town's name was in recognition of La Grange
(which means "the barn"), LaFayette's estate in France.
Maps
Size of County (Total
Area): 446.0 square miles
County Rank in Total
Area: 47th out of 159
Population:
Troup County
City of LaGrange
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