Gordon County - Georgia

County Courthhouse

County Seat: Calhoun
Incorporated: February 13, 1850
Population: 44,104
Total Area: 355.2 Square miles

Gordon County was created in 1850 from parts of Floyd and Bartow counties. The 93rd county formed in the state was named after William Washington Gordon, who was president of what was then the Central Railroad and Banking Company and later became the Central of Georgia Railroad.

Calhoun was named for Senator John Calhoun. Originally, it was called Dawsonville. Calhoun was virtually wiped out by Sherman's troops little more than a decade after being incorporated in 1852 but was rebuilt after the war.

Gordon County is the home of New Echota, which was once the capital of the Cherokee Nation. It was the birthplace of the written Cherokee language and the newspaper, The Cherokee Phoenix.

The county has numerous outdoor recreation opportunities. The Chattahoochee National Forest makes up a large part of the western part of the county. The Coosawattee and Conasauga rivers join to form the Oostanaula River, and there is also the Salacoa Creek Park, a 343-acre park with a 126-acre lake.

Each year a reenactment of the Battle of Resaca, the first battle on Atlanta Campaign, is held on the third weekend of May.