History

Long County’s History

On Aug. 14, 1920, the General Assembly proposed a constitutional amendment to create Long County from Liberty County (Ga. Laws 1920, p. 48). In that year's general election, Georgia voters ratified the proposed amendment on Nov. 2, 1920, which marks the date of Long County's creation (although a state historical marker on the Long County courthouse grounds incorrectly cites the county's creation as the day the legislative act proposing the constitutional amendment was approved).

About Long County

Located in southeast Georgia, Long County occupies 400 square miles of the Atlantic Coast Flatwoods. The county is bordered by Liberty, McIntosh, Tattnall, and Wayne counties, and its entire southwestern boundary runs along the Altamaha River.

Long County, designated in 1920 from lands in Liberty County, honors Dr. Crawford W. Long, a Georgian who introduced anesthesia for surgery. Ludowici is named for a German tile manufacturer who settled there and made red clay roofing tiles that became popular through south Georgia.

Long County, historically and currently, is a rural, agricultural area. The principal farm crop was once cotton, but by the 1970s it had been replaced by tobacco, corn, soybeans, and cattle. The pine forests of the region have always played an important role in the economy. CSX railroad runs through the center of the county with a double track. The railroad played an important role in the early development of Ludowici.

Frontiersmen settling along the Altamaha River fastened logs together to form rafts that were floated downstream to the port of Darien for export, a practice that continued through the nineteenth century. During the twentieth century, five large paper mills opened within a fifty-mile radius of Ludowici, and Long County's economy was dramatically improved by new employment opportunities and a new demand for timber lands.

The northern tip of the county is occupied by Fort Stewart, the largest military installation east of the Mississippi River. Covering 280,000 acres (spread over several counties), the post, which includes forest lands and hunting preserves, provides many civil service jobs to local residents. Altamaha Technical College, which offers workforce training, operates a satellite campus in Ludowici.

About City of Ludowici

Ludowici (pronounced "Loo'duh-wee'-see") is the Long County seat. Incorporated on August 23, 1905. Ludowici is named for a German tile manufacturer who settled there and made red clay roofing tiles that became popular through south Georgia. William Ludowici, a German immigrant, contributed substantially to the establishment of the City, and also constructed a high school for the County’s youth. The Ludowici Brick and Tile Company employed hundreds of people in the early 20th century. The company produced the Ludowici tile, a distinctive clay roofing material that was popular among contractors in Florida at that time. A number of homes in the city still feature these distinctive roofs.

The Long County courthouse in Ludowici, constructed in 1926, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Also on the National Registry is the Ludowici Well Pavilion. Built in 1907, the well provided public drinking water for many years.

According to the 1920 constitutional amendment, Long County's boundaries were defined as: “Beginning at a point on the Altamaha River where the same is intersected by the county line between Liberty and McIntosh Counties; thence northeast and north along the aforesaid county line between McIntosh and Liberty to intersection thereof with South Newport River; and to the northwest corner of McIntosh County, at the point where said Liberty and McIntosh line is nearest the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad's main line; thence a straight line northwestward to the main line of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad at a point one-half mile southwest of said railroad's depot at Lambert, Georgia (Post Office) and Walthourville Station; thence due north a straight line to the Walthourville and Smiley public road, north of Lambert, Georgia; thence northwestward a straight line to a point in the Ludowici and Hinesville public road three hundred (300) yards north of the residence of W. H. Devereaux in the 1756th G. M. District of Liberty County; thence northwestward a straight line to a point on the Roderick and Hinesville public road where same is intersected by the Walthourville public road from the southeast; thence west along the center of said Roderick and Hinesville public road a short distance to where the Walthourville public road leaves same towards the northwest; thence northwestwards along the center of said Walthourville public road past Gum Branch Post Office, old site to intersection thereof, with the Savannah public road or Beards Bluff public road about one and one-eighth (1 1-8) miles east of the Cross Roads School House; thence west along the center of said Savannah public road or Beards Bluff public road to where said Walthourville public road leaves same going northwest; thence along the center of said Walthourville public road to intersection of same with the Moody Bridge public road; thence northwards along the center of said Moody Bridge public road to the point where same crosses the Savannah and Southern Railroad right of way at Strain on said railroad and to the north line of said right of way; thence westward along the north line of the Savannah and Southern Railroad right of way to the first public road crossing at Lida depot on said railroad; thence westward along center of public road from Lida past Bear Branch School House to forks of said public road; and thence along the center of the northwest fork thereof, in a northwesterly direction to where said public road crosses the Liberty and Tattnall County line nearby and east of Hampton School House; thence southwards and south along the county line between Liberty and Tattnall to the Altamaha River and to the line between Liberty and Wayne Counties; thence southeast along the channel of said Altamaha River and along the county line between Liberty and Wayne to point of beginning.”