Hiawassee is the county seat of Towns County, Georgia, United States.[5] The population was 981 at the 2020 census.[3] Its name is derived from the Cherokee—or perhaps Creek—word Ayuhwasi, which means meadow,[6] (A variant spelling, "Hiwassee," is used for the local river and some other Appalachian place names.) Hiawassee is also known in the novel "Restart" by Gordon Korman.
Settled by whites circa 1820, Hiawassee was designated seat of the newly formed Towns County in 1856. It was incorporated as a town in 1870 and as a city in 1916,[10] after settlers violently removed the Cherokee communities living there prior in a night of massacre in 1776. Hiawassee was originally inhabited by predominantly Cherokee-people’s. The name of Hiawassee was originally derived from the Native American word ayuhwasi, meaning river and or valley. Hiawassee’s name is nature-based, as mentioned above.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.077 square miles (5.38 km2), of which, 1.629 square miles (4.22 km2) is land and 0.448 square miles (1.16 km2) is water.[1]
Hiawassee is approximately 1969 feet (600 meter) above sea level.[2]
Hiawassee, Georgia – Racial Composition[12] (NH = Non-Hispanic) Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
As of the 2010 census, there were 880 people, 456 households, and _ families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 96.8% White, 0.3% Black, 0.1% Native American, 1.2% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.9% Other Races, and 0.6% from two or more races. 2.7% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
2000 census
As of the 2000 census, there were 808 people, 355 households, and 203 families living in the city. The population density was 479.5 inhabitants per square mile (185.1/km2). There were 527 housing units at an average density of 312.7 per square mile (120.7/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 97.40% White, 0.25% African American, 0.12% Native American, 1.73% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 0.12% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.61% of the population.
There were 355 households, out of which 14.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.6% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.8% were non-families. 40.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.86 and the average family size was 2.39.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 10.0% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 13.1% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 46.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 62 years. For every 100 females, there were 70.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 65.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $26,615, and the median income for a family was $31,458. Males had a median income of $28,929 versus $22,917 for females. The per capita income for the town was $19,957. About 12.6% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.3% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Hiawassee has a mayor and city council in a strong mayor form of government. The current mayor, Liz Ordiales, is the first female mayor of Cuban descent in the State of Georgia. The city council consists of five elected officials.[15]
Education
Towns County schools share a unified campus east of Hiawassee
Towns County School District
The Towns County School District holds grades pre-school to grade twelve, and consists of one elementary school, a middle school and a high school.[16] The district has 144 full-time teachers and over 2,408 students.[17]
