Stewart County is a county in Georgia, United States, along the Chattahoochee River in the west-central part of the state. It had a population of 5,314 at the 2020 census and covers 459 square miles (1,190 km2) of land centred near 32°05′N 84°50′W.
Lumpkin is the county seat, and its postal code is 31815. The county has 2 incorporated cities and about 20 unincorporated communities, no civil townships (Georgia does not use them), and sits in the Eastern time zone.
Towns & Villages in Stewart County
Stewart County has two incorporated cities — Lumpkin, the county seat, and Richland, its largest city — plus roughly twenty unincorporated communities and historic place-name settlements scattered through the countryside. CDP = census-designated place; Unincorp. = unincorporated community without its own municipal government.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lumpkin | City · seat | 891 | 31815 |
| Richland | City | 1,370 | 31825 |
| Louvale | Unincorp. | — | 31815 |
| Louvale Station | Unincorp. | — | 31815 |
| Omaha | Unincorp. | — | 31821 |
| Florence | Unincorp. | — | 31825 |
| Sanford | Unincorp. | — | 31825 |
| Westville | Unincorp. | — | 31815 |
| Shady Grove | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Union | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Troutman | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Randall | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Coffinton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Brooklyn | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Beatrice | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Charles | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Childs Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Gillis Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Heard Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Perkins Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Power Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Upper Bradley Place | Unincorp. | — | — |
Westville is best known today as a living-history museum village of relocated 19th-century buildings just outside Lumpkin, not a residential settlement in its own right. Several of the smallest entries — Childs Place, Gillis Place, Heard Place, Perkins Place, Power Place and Upper Bradley Place — are historic rural place names tied to former plantation and farm sites rather than active population centres.
ZIP Codes
- 31815 — Lumpkin (also serves Louvale and Westville)
- 31825 — Richland (also serves Florence and Sanford)
- 31821 — Omaha
Most of the smaller unincorporated communities and historic place names in the county share the Lumpkin or Richland ZIP codes and have no separate postal designation.
Geography
Stewart County lies in the upper Gulf coastal plain of west-central Georgia, with rolling hills near the fall line and the Chattahoochee River forming its western boundary with Alabama. The county has 459 square miles of land and 4.9 square miles of water, most of it Walter F. George Lake (Lake Eufaula) backed up behind the Chattahoochee. Providence Canyon State Park, known as Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon,” sits in the northern part of the county, and Florence Marina State Park lies on the lake in the west.
Stewart County borders Chattahoochee County to the north, Webster County to the east, Randolph County to the south, Quitman County to the southwest, and Barbour and Russell counties in Alabama, across the Chattahoochee River, to the west and northwest.
Demographics
Stewart County had 5,314 residents at the 2020 census, down from earlier decades in part because the Stewart Detention Center’s population was excluded from 2020 census geography for Lumpkin. Richland, at 1,370 people, is the largest community, followed by the county seat, Lumpkin, at 891. Median household income in the county runs well below the Georgia median of $74,632, consistent with other rural counties along the lower Chattahoochee. Population density is roughly 11.6 people per square mile, one of the lowest in the state.
Economy & Local Life
Government and corrections work anchor the local economy: the Stewart Detention Center, a large private immigration-detention facility near Lumpkin, is among the county’s biggest employers. Agriculture and forestry remain significant, with row crops, cattle, and timber worked across the county’s farmland. Heritage tourism is a deliberate local strategy — Lumpkin was the first rural Georgia county seat to pursue historic preservation and Main Street redevelopment for tourism, centred on Westville living-history village and the courthouse square.
History
Stewart County was created on December 23, 1830, from land taken out of Randolph County, and organised the same year with Lumpkin as its seat. It is named for Brigadier General Daniel Stewart, a Revolutionary War veteran and great-grandfather of President Theodore Roosevelt. The county’s cotton-era prosperity gave Lumpkin’s courthouse square much of its 19th-century architecture, later preserved through Westville’s relocation of historic buildings and a long-running Main Street revitalisation program.
Getting There
US Routes 27 and 280 and State Routes 1, 27, 39 and 520 cross the county. Approximate distances from Lumpkin:
- Columbus, Georgia — 40 miles northeast
- Eufaula, Alabama — 20 miles west
- Americus, Georgia — 30 miles east
- Albany, Georgia — 55 miles southeast
The nearest commercial airport is Columbus Airport (CSG) in Columbus, Georgia.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Stewart County, Georgia?
It is in west-central Georgia along the Chattahoochee River, bordering Alabama, about 40 miles southwest of Columbus.
What is the population of Stewart County?
It had a population of 5,314 at the 2020 census.
How big is Stewart County?
It covers 459 square miles (1,190 km2) of land.
What is the county seat of Stewart County?
Lumpkin is the county seat.
How many towns are in Stewart County?
The county has two incorporated cities, Lumpkin and Richland, plus about twenty unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Stewart County?
The main ZIP codes are 31815 (Lumpkin), 31825 (Richland) and 31821 (Omaha).
What is Westville?
Westville is a living-history museum village of relocated 19th-century Georgia buildings located just outside Lumpkin.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Georgia.