On July 14, 1914, the General Assembly proposed a constitutional amendment to create Candler County from portions of Bulloch, Emanuel, and Tattnall counties (Ga. Laws 1914, p. 29). In that year’s general election, Georgia voters ratified the proposed amendment on Nov. 3, 1914, which marks the official date of the Candler County’s creation (although a state historical marker on the courthouse grounds incorrectly cites the county’s creation as the day the legislative act proposing the constitutional amendment was approved).

According to the boundaries spelled out in the 1914 constitutional amendment, Candler County was created . Georgia’s 150th county was named for former governor Allen D. Candler (1834-1910), who had died four years earlier.

Why was Candler 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. By 1924, Georgia had 161 counties—16 of which had been created by constitutional amendment. On Jan. 1, 1932, Milton and Campbell counties merged with Fulton, leaving 159 counties. In 1945, Georgia voters ratified a new constitution—one which provided an absolute limit of 159 counties, with an additional provision that no new country could be created except through consolidation of existing counties.

As an interesting note, Candler is one of 25 Georgia counties that today retain their original boundaries from the time of creation.