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Georgia · South Georgia · #663
Atkinson County, Georgia
On the Satilla River headwaters in the longleaf pine flatwoods of south Georgia, Atkinson County is timber country in the most fundamental sense - managed pine plantations and the papermill economy that built much of southeast Georgia's industrial infrastructure define the county's character.
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Office: Atkinson County Sheriff’s Office – 20 E. Smith Avenue, P.O. Box 157, Pearson, GA 31642 | (912) 422-3611; Sheriff David Moore, in office since January 2009. The office operates from the Courthouse Annex, providing court security, civil process service, warrant enforcement, and inmate/mental health transport in addition to routine patrol.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-441 and SR-31 serve Pearson, the county seat and largest city.
Notes: Atkinson County was established August 15, 1917, Georgia’s 153rd county, formed from portions of Coffee and Clinch Counties, and named for William Yates Atkinson, Georgia’s governor from 1894 to 1898. Pearson has served as the county seat since the county’s creation; the town itself was founded in 1875 as a depot on the Brunswick and Western Railroad, incorporated as a town in 1890 and as a city in 1916, and named for Benajah Pearson, a veteran of the Second Seminole War.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Atkinson County Courthouse – West Austin Avenue at South Main Street, Pearson, GA (built 1920, Classical Revival, architect J.J. Baldwin, builder Holly Construction Co.; National Register of Historic Places since 1980, remodeled in the 1980s).
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Atkinson County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via atkinsoncounty.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Atkinson County Public Library (Pearson) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Local recreation centers around the Alapaha River corridor and rural agricultural landscape; confirm current facilities via atkinsoncounty.org.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Atkinson County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via atkinsoncounty.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Confirm current dedicated shelter contact via atkinsoncounty.org; Atkinson County Sheriff’s Office for animal control arrangements.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Atkinson County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via atkinsoncounty.org.
NOTES: Atkinson County is the second county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. A small southeastern portion of the county lies within the Upper Suwannee River sub-basin. All contact information above was sourced via web search as of early August 2026 and should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit, deadline-sensitive filing, or emergency-adjacent decision.
About Atkinson County
Atkinson County is a small south Georgia timber county whose economy is organized around managed pine plantation forestry – the same longleaf pine flatwoods that extend across the Georgia coastal plain from the Okefenokee’s edge to the Atlantic shore. Pearson, the county seat, provides governmental services for a community whose primary economic activity is timber production and the associated trucking, harvesting, and processing operations. The Satilla River’s headwaters drain through the county, providing fishing. Conservation Use land enrollment is widespread in Atkinson County.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Georgia assesses property at 40% of fair market value. Property owners have 45 days from the notice of assessment to appeal. Georgia has no estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
Atkinson County Probate Court: 101 South Main Street, Pearson, GA 31642 | (912) 422-3343. The Probate Court handles estate administration and guardianship.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
CLERK OF SUPERIOR COURT (Records, Marriage Licenses)
21 S. Main Ave., Pearson, GA 31642
(912) 422-3391
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Probate Court of Atkinson County (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Atkinson County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Probate Court of Atkinson County P.O. Box 855, Pearson, GA 31642 (912) 422-3552
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Georgia is NOT a Uniform Probate Code state and doesn’t use a simple dollar-threshold “small estate affidavit” like many states. Instead it offers several distinct shortcuts, each suited to a different situation:
Banking Affidavit – for intestate estates with less than $15,000 in bank deposits and no other assets requiring administration. No court filing needed at all.
No Administration Necessary (Standard Form 9) – available when all heirs agree on how to divide the property and there are no debts (or all creditors consent). Can transfer real estate without full administration, but requires unanimous heir agreement – any disagreement forces the estate into formal probate.
Year’s Support (Standard Form 10, O.C.G.A. Chapter 53-3) – a distinctively Georgia protection: the surviving spouse and minor children can petition for property sufficient to maintain their standard of living for 12 months from the date of death. This takes priority over virtually all creditor claims and even most specific bequests in the will. Must be filed within 24 months of death. No bond, no inventory filing, no creditor claims period required – the fastest and simplest path when it applies.
Formal Administration – Petition to Probate Will (Common Form or Solemn Form) or Petition for Letters of Administration, when none of the above shortcuts fit.
COMMON FORM VS. SOLEMN FORM (a distinctively Georgia choice)
Common Form: the executor files the will with supporting evidence and the court admits it without notifying all heirs – faster and cheaper, but leaves a 4-year window during which interested parties can challenge the will.
Solemn Form (Standard Form 5): requires notice to all heirs; once granted, it’s final and binding much sooner, closing off future challenges.
If formal administration is needed
File the appropriate petition with the Atkinson County Probate Court – Petition to Probate Will (Common or Solemn Form) if there’s a will, or Petition for Letters of Administration if not.
The court issues a citation, published in the county’s legal organ once a week for four weeks (O.C.G.A. § 53-5-2), giving interested parties a chance to object.
After the publication period, attend the hearing for appointment as personal representative.
Once appointed, the court issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without one).
Send certified copies of the death certificate and Letters to all banks, brokerages, insurers, and retirement custodians; request date-of-death valuations and begin marshaling assets.
Obtain an EIN via IRS Form SS-4 and open an estate checking account.
Prepare an inventory of assets with date-of-death fair market values; the court may require this under O.C.G.A. § 53-7-30.
Pay debts and expenses in Georgia’s priority order (see below), then distribute remaining assets per the will or intestacy law.
What it costs
No Georgia state estate tax or inheritance tax.
Court filing fees typically range $100–$300 depending on the county.
Certified copies of Letters typically cost around $10 each.
Indigent petitioners may file an Affidavit of Indigency to request a fee waiver.
E-filing is available and encouraged statewide through platforms like PeachCourt or Odyssey eFileGA.
DEBT PRIORITY ORDER IF THE ESTATE CAN’T PAY EVERYTHING (O.C.G.A. §§ 53-3-1, 53-7-40)
Year’s Support for surviving spouse and minor children under 18.
Funeral expenses.
Costs of probate administration.
Expenses of the decedent’s last illness.
Taxes.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
21 S. Main Ave., Pearson, GA 31642
(912) 422-7141
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
21 S. Main Ave., Pearson, GA 31642
(912) 422-3391
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
GA Dept of Public Health — South Health District
(912) 422-7300
GA DFCS — Atkinson
(912) 422-7225
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Coffee Regional Medical Center (nearest)
coffeeregional.org (Douglas)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Atkinson County Health Department – confirm current contact via atkinsoncounty.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Pearson
Population: 8,400
Area: 338 sq mi
Established: 1917
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Atkinson County facilities via Amazon.
