# Moultrie, Georgia

Moultrie is the county seat and largest city of Colquitt County, Georgia, United States. It is the third largest city in Southwest Georgia, behind Thomasville and Albany. As of the 2020 census, Moultrie's population was 14,638. It was originally known as Ochlockoney until it was incorporated by the Georgia General Assembly in 1859. Moultrie is an agricultural community set in the Southern Rivers part of Georgia.
Downtown Moultrie contains the Moultrie Commercial Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The district includes the Colquitt Theatre.
It is well known for its boutiques and farming industry. Moultrie is the home of former US Senator Saxby Chambliss.

## History

The city was named after Gen. William Moultrie, the Revolutionary War hero after whom Fort Moultrie was named following the successful defense of Charleston, South Carolina, against the British under Peter Parker, an anniversary subsequently celebrated as Carolina Day.
Colquitt County became the 115th county in Georgia by an act of the Legislature on February 25, 1856. It was named after Walter Terry Colquitt, a minister, statesman and lawyer who was a military leader in the mid-1800s. In 1879, a charter was adopted and 50 acres (0.20 km$^2$) in the center of the county was declared the county seat.
Founders of naval stores started harvesting timber in the late 1890s. They set up turpentine stills and built tram roads, allowing for the railroad to come into the territory. The Boston & Albany line, which later became the Georgia Northern Railway, was the first through town, bringing with it growth and prosperity for the county. Practically every train brought new residents interested in supplying naval stores or working in the sawmills.
By 1900, through the work of businessmen, bankers and speculators, the county was becoming a farmer's paradise.
Land was cleared and development companies began dividing the forested area into farm tracts. Experienced farmers from north Georgia and the Carolinas were invited to come and develop the land. The county's agriculture industry thrives today.

## Geography

Located in southwest Georgia, Moultrie is in the center of Colquitt County, 24 miles (39 km) west of Interstate 75, and about 200 miles (300 km) south of Atlanta and 60 miles (100 km) northeast of Tallahassee, Florida. The city is located between Albany to the northwest, Tifton to the northeast, Thomasville to the southwest, and Valdosta to the southeast.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 16.5 square miles (42.8 km$^2$), of which 16.3 square miles (42.3 km$^2$) is land and 0.19 square miles (0.5 km$^2$), or 1.15%, is water. Moultrie is located at 31°10′13″N 83°47′1″W﻿ / ﻿31.17028°N 83.78361°W﻿ / 31.17028; -83.78361 (31.170188, -83.783601).

## Demographics

Moultrie racial composition as of 2020 :
| Race | Num. | Perc. |
| White | 5,476 | 37.41% |
| Black or African American | 6,644 | 45.39% |
| Native American | 23 | 0.16% |
| Asian | 130 | 0.89% |
| Pacific Islander | 4 | 0.03% |
| Other/mixed | 398 | 2.72% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 1,963 | 13.41% |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 14,638 people, 4,945 households, and 2,988 families residing in the city.

## Education
### Colquitt County School District

Moultrie public schools are controlled by the Colquitt County Board of Education. The Colquitt County School District holds grades pre-school to grade twelve, consisting of ten elementary schools, a middle school, a junior high school, and one high school. As of November 27, 2020, the district had more than 9,100 students and 1,351 staff, which includes both certified and classified staff.
Elementary schools
* Cox Elementary School
* Doerun Elementary School
* Funston Elementary School
* G.E.A.R. Gifted Center
* Hamilton Elementary School
* Norman Park Elementary School
* Odom Elementary School
* Okapilco Elementary School
* Stringfellow Elementary School
* Sunset Elementary School
* Wright Elementary School
* Pre-K Program
Middle schools
* Williams Middle School
Junior high schools
* C. A. Gray Junior High School
High schools
* Colquitt County High School
Alternative schools
* Colquitt County Achievement Center

### Private schools

Colquitt County also has a small, private Christian School, Colquitt Christian Academy, which is located at Calvary Baptist Church.

### Higher education

* Southern Regional Technical College – Main Campus
* Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College – Moultrie Campus
* Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine – South Georgia Campus. PCOM South Georgia opened in August 2019, offering a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree, and added a Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences in the fall of 2020.

## Industry

Industry in the Moultrie area grew considerably when Sanderson Farms opened a processing plant in 2006 that now employs over 1,000 workers, over 10 percent of the local workforce. The manufacturer of light, single-engined STOL aircraft, the Maule Air, is also located in Moultrie.

## Telecommunications

There are three radio channels and three television stations located in Moultrie.
* Radio
** WMTM-1300 AM News/Talk
** WMTM-93.9 FM Oldies Cruisin' 94
** WWGW-LP 102.5 FM
* Television
** WSWG CBS TV'
** CW44 CW TV
** WSWG2 My Network TV

## Historic sites

Moultrie is home to several sites on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Colquitt County, Georgia of the National Register of Historic Places.

## Points of interest

* Museum of Colquitt County History
* Reed Bingham State Park – offers camping, hiking, fishing, birding, and boating on a 375-acre lake. Wildlife includes bald eagles, alligators, and gopher tortoises.
* Ellen Payne Odom Genealogy Library
* Spence Field
* Colquitt County Arts Center – home to permanent collections, theatre groups, concerts, art education, and the Fall Quilt Exhibition
* Tom White Linear Park – a 7.5 mile "Rails to Trails" project, for walkers and cycle enthusiasts
* St. Mark's Anglican Church

## Transportation

Moultrie is served by US 319, which connects to Interstate 75 and Interstate 10. State Road 37 and State Road 111 also run through Moultrie. Moultrie has two public airports used primarily for general aviation, Moultrie Municipal Airport and Spence Airport.