HOW WE CAME TO BE

Gwinnett County was created on December 15, 1818, and named for Button Gwinnett, one of the three Georgia signers of the Declaration of Independence. The county was formed from the combination of land that was ceded to the state of Georgia by the Cherokee and Creek Indians and a portion of Jackson County. Its agrarian economy first centered on subsistence farming and livestock raising with cotton later became a predominant cash crop. Profitability was further enhanced for some through the introduction of enslaved labor.  By 1850, Lawrenceville was a city and the county seat.  The Civil War (1861-65) caused Lawrenceville to lose its cotton mill which was burnt down by Union troops.  Although the County, overall, was spared major structural damage due to the War, its economy was still greatly impacted.  

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The economy fortunately started to rebound after the War with the completion of the Southern Railroad (1871), and the Seaboard Air Line Railroad (1892) which both encouraged further settlement.  Small towns such as Duluth, Suwanee, Dacula, Lilburn formed along those lines.  Light industry made its appearance with saddlery, harnesses, and later shoes being made in Buford, and textiles in Lawrenceville.  Cotton growers however soon faced another economic hardship.  By 1900. the boll weevil, falling cotton prices, and a population boom in Atlanta, influenced a shift from cotton growing to dairy farming. 

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By the 1950s, highways and the hydroelectricity produced by the Buford Dam launched Gwinnett into the modern era.  Gwinnett’s great location and continued improvements in infrastructure made the county grow.  Today, Gwinnett’s proximity to Metro Atlanta and Athens now makes it an attractive area for technological investment and a premier choice for residence.  At present, it is one of the fastest growing and diverse counties in the United States.