Atlanta

I

Introduction

Atlanta, capital city of Georgia, located in the northern part of the state. The seat of Fulton County, Atlanta also occupies portions of De Kalb County. Atlanta is located on the Piedmont Plateau, a rolling upland region on the eastern slope of the Appalachian Mountains. The city’s high mean elevation—323 m (1,059 ft) above sea level—distinguishes Atlanta from most other southern cities and gives it a more temperate climate than urban areas located further south. The city itself is relatively small in land area at 340.8 sq km (131.6 sq mi), but the metropolitan region is one of the largest in the southeastern United States, encompassing 15,867 sq km (6,126 sq mi), occupying 20 counties, and containing a number of smaller established municipalities such as Decatur, Marietta, Douglasville, and Roswell.

II

Population

The population of the city of Atlanta declined from 425,022 in 1980 to 394,017 in 1990, as residents moved to suburban portions of the metropolitan region. During the 1990s, however, the city increased in population. By the 2000 census, Atlanta had 416,474 inhabitants. In 2005, the population was estimated at 470,688. Atlanta dropped from the rank of 29th-largest city in the United States in 1980 to 48th-largest in 2000.

Urban renewal and interstate highway construction projects in the 1960s wiped out areas of black, low-income housing in the inner city. Subsequently, blacks moved into areas of the city previously inhabited mainly by whites, while thousands of whites departed Atlanta for the suburbs. As a result, in 1970 Atlanta had a black majority for the first time in its history. According to the 2000 census, blacks represented 61.4 percent of the city’s population; whites, 33.2 percent; Asians, 1.9 percent; Native Americans, 0.2 percent; and those of mixed heritage or not reporting race, 3.2 percent. Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders numbered 173 at the time of the census. Hispanics, who may be of any race, constituted 4.5 percent of the population.

The population of the Atlanta metropolitan area increased at a rapid rate in recent decades. In 1980 it had a population of 2,233,000; in 2004 it had 4,708,300 inhabitants. In the metropolitan area, whites were the largest group. The suburbs and collar counties attracted residents from outside the state as well as from Atlanta itself, pushing the Atlanta metropolitan area from 16th to 11th in national rank.

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III

Economy

The Atlanta region’s recent growth in population has been matched by rapid economic growth. The undisputed business capital of the Southeast, Atlanta houses the headquarters of some of the largest and best-known companies in the United States, including Coca-Cola, United Parcel Service, Georgia-Pacific Corporation, Home Depot, and Delta Air Lines, Inc. In addition, more than four-fifths of the nation’s largest businesses maintain branch offices in the metropolitan area. The city is also gaining a reputation as an international business center.

Other important components of Atlanta’s economic mix are government agencies and activities, transportation facilities and industries, and the convention trade. Municipal, county, state, and federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, employ a large number of Atlanta area residents. Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, one of the largest and busiest air terminals in the United States, has established the city as a leader in air transport and commerce. The city is also served by three interstate highways, as well as freight and passenger railroads. The hospitality and convention industries also contribute to Atlanta’s economy, with three large trade facilities within the downtown area: the World Congress Center, the Merchandise Mart, and the Apparel Mart. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the city’s largest newspaper.

IV

The Urban Landscape

Atlanta is sometimes described as a “horizontal city.” With few natural barriers to contain or restrict its growth, the city has developed in a sprawling, dispersed fashion. The city’s low population density levels contrast sharply with those of older, more densely packed northern cities such as New York, Boston, or Chicago. The tallest and most closely grouped buildings are found in downtown Atlanta around an intersection called Five Points, and in the area immediately north. This is the business and historic heart of the city. Further north of this area are Midtown and Buckhead, the location of many of the city’s cultural institutions, Piedmont Park (Atlanta’s largest public park), and a number of older, traditionally white residential communities. To the immediate east of downtown is the Auburn Avenue community, the historic center of the city’s black business, religious, and entertainment life. Also in the east are Inman Park (Atlanta’s first planned suburb), and Georgia’s Stone Mountain Park, featuring the largest granite outcropping in the world and a massive relief carving of Confederate leaders from the American Civil War (1861-1865); the park also contains historic houses, a museum, recreational facilities, and a campground.

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