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Georgia · Middle Georgia · #627
Butts County, Georgia
On the Ocmulgee River south of Atlanta, Butts County holds Indian Springs State Park - the oldest state park in the United States, established in 1825 on a site where Creek Nation leaders signed away millions of acres in a fraudulent treaty - in a county that knows its history and its place in the Atlanta metro's southern fringe.
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Office: Butts County Sheriff’s Office – 835 Ernest Biles Drive, Jackson, GA 30233 | Business Office (770) 775-8216 | Non-emergency (770) 775-8232; Sheriff Gary Long, in his fourth term (re-elected November 2024 with 9,775 votes), a 28-year law enforcement veteran who began his career as a jailer. Chief Deputy Arthur White, a retired Georgia State Patrol Deputy Commissioner. Divisions include Patrol, Investigations, Court Services, Detention Center, and Animal Control. The office offers a free public app for filing complaints, tracking crime, checking sex offender status, and viewing outstanding warrants. Butts County Public Safety Annex / Fire Headquarters / Homeland Security/EMA – 206 South Mulberry Street, Jackson, GA | (678) 774-8154.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: I-75 and SR-16 serve Jackson, the county seat and largest city.
Notes: Butts County was established in 1825, named by the Georgia General Assembly in honor of Samuel Butts, an officer killed in the Creek War in 1814. Jackson, created the following year as the county’s first city, became the county seat. Other towns followed: Indian Springs (1837), Flovilla (1883), Jenkinsburg (1889), and Pepperton (1897); Indian Springs later disincorporated and Pepperton merged with Jackson in 1966, leaving three incorporated cities in the county today.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Butts County Courthouse – 625 West Third Street, Jackson, GA (built 1898, High Victorian, architects Bruce & Morgan with builder J.H. McKenzie & Son; National Register of Historic Places since 1980). Superior Court Clerk (770) 775-8215; Superior Court Judge (770) 775-8205.
Notes: The 1910 construction of the Lloyd Shoals Dam created Lake Jackson, a significant local recreational and residential draw.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Butts County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via buttscountyga.com.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Butts County Public Library – 436 East College Street, Jackson, GA | (770) 775-7524.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Indian Springs, once disincorporated and now revived as a tourist destination, centered on the historic Indian Springs Hotel with shops and dining; Lake Jackson (created 1910 by the Lloyd Shoals Dam), for fishing and boating. Ernest Biles Youth Center, 4-H Extension Service, and the county Parks and Recreation Department – 576 Ernest Biles Drive, Jackson, GA | Extension (770) 775-8228, Parks and Rec (770) 775-8209.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Butts County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via buttscountyga.com.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Butts County Sheriff’s Office Animal Control – 835 Ernest Biles Drive, Jackson, GA | (770) 775-8216.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Butts County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via buttscountyga.com.
NOTES: Butts County is the eighteenth county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The revival of Indian Springs as a tourist destination centered on its historic hotel is among the standout local facts covered in this project. 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 Butts County
Butts County’s Indian Springs State Park carries a remarkable distinction: established in 1825, it is recognized as the oldest state park in the United States. The mineral springs at Indian Springs were a sacred gathering place for the Creek Nation and later a resort destination for early Georgians. The fraudulent Treaty of Indian Springs (1825), signed by Creek leader William McIntosh without tribal authority and denounced by the Creek National Council, ceded millions of acres of Creek land and led directly to McIntosh’s execution by his own people. The park today preserves the spring, a small museum, and lakeside recreation amenities.
Jackson, the county seat, serves as the commercial and governmental hub for a county that has absorbed some Atlanta suburban growth from Henry and Spalding counties to the north while retaining a rural Georgia character in its southern townships. The Jackson reservoir on the Ocmulgee River provides fishing and recreation. Butts County’s agricultural economy – timber, cattle, hay – is the rural foundation, with Conservation Use enrollment covering significant portions of the county’s productive land.
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 to the Board of Assessors. Georgia offers school tax exemptions for seniors 62 and older. Georgia has no estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
SENIOR SERVICES
Middle Georgia Area Agency on Aging
277 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Macon, GA 31201
Phone: (478) 751-6465
Senior Services
Middle Georgia Area Agency on Aging
277 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Macon, GA 31201
Phone: (478) 751-6465
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)
19 E. Mulberry St., Jackson, GA 30233
(770) 775-8214
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Probate Court of Butts County (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
East Georgia Genealogical Society – a regional society serving Butts County among other counties (see Barrow County file for full contact details).
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 Butts County P.O. Box 350, Jackson, GA 30233 (770) 775-8210
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 Butts 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
19 E. Mulberry St., Jackson, GA 30233
(770) 775-8220
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
19 E. Mulberry St., Jackson, GA 30233
(770) 775-8215
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
GA Dept of Public Health — Central
(770) 775-8251
GA DFCS — Butts
(770) 504-1070
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Piedmont Henry Hospital (nearby Stockbridge)
piedmont.org/henry
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Butts County Health Department (State of Georgia) – 463 Ernest Biles Drive, Jackson, GA | (770) 504-2230.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Jackson
Population: 25,000
Area: 187 sq mi
Established: 1825
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Butts County facilities via Amazon.
