Macon, Georgia

About Macon, Georgia

Macon is a city located in central Georgia, USA. It is among the largest metropolitan areas in Georgia, and the county seat of Bibb County. It lies near the geographic center of Georgia, approximately 85 miles (136 km) south of Atlanta, hence the city's nickname as the Heart of Georgia. As of the 2000 census, Macon had a population of 97,606; as of 2007, the Macon, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area had an estimated population of 229,846 and the Macon-Warner Robins-Fort Valley Combined Statistical Area had an estimated population of 386,534. Macon is the sixth-largest city (by population), fifth largest Metropolitan Statistical Area, and third-largest Combined Statistical Area in Georgia, behind Atlanta and Augusta. Macon-Warner Robins-Fort Valley, GA Combined Statistical Area (CSA) includes 13 Georgia counties.

Robins Air Force Base, a major employer, is south of the city in Warner Robins. The area is also home to several institutions of higher education, as well as numerous museums and tourism sites. The area is served by the Middle Georgia Regional Airport and the Herbert Smart Downtown Airport. The current mayor of Macon is Robert Reichert, a former Democratic member of the Georgia House of Representatives. Perhaps its most colorful mayor with national recognition was Ronnie Thompson, who served from 1967-1975 and was the first of thus far two Republicans to have held the position, the other being George Israel (1979-1987).

Macon lies on the site of the Ocmulgee Old Fields, which were home to Creek Indians and their predecessors for as long as 12,000 years before Europeans arrived. The fields and forests around Macon and what is now the Ocmulgee National Monument were cultivated by the Creeks, who built temple and funeral mounds that survive today.