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Georgia · Atlanta Metro Northwest · #571
Paulding County, Georgia
Northwest of Atlanta in the Georgia Piedmont foothills, Paulding County has been one of the fastest-growing counties in the United States for most of the past two decades - a county that has essentially built itself from scratch as Atlanta's suburban fringe pushed northwest along the US 278 and GA-120 corridors.
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Office: Paulding County Sheriff’s Office – 180 Constitution Boulevard, Dallas, GA 30132 | (770) 443-3010 | Fax (770) 443-3014; Sheriff Ashley Henson, who succeeded longtime Sheriff Gary Gulledge upon his retirement December 31, 2024, after 16 years in office (tied for the longest tenure in county history) and a 34-year career with the office beginning as a jailer in 1990. The office moved into a new Sheriff’s Office and Jail complex at its current address in May 2020 and is now the 10th-largest full-service sheriff’s office in Georgia, with over 335 employees.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-278 and SR-92 serve Dallas, the county seat and largest city, one of the largest and fastest-growing counties in Georgia.
Notes: Paulding County was created from Cherokee County on December 3, 1832, later contributing land to help form Polk County (1851) and seeing other portions annexed to Campbell, Carroll, Cobb, Douglas, and Haralson Counties between 1832 and 1874. The county is named for John Paulding, a Revolutionary War militiaman famous for helping capture British Major John André in 1780 – André was caught carrying secret papers from turncoat General Benedict Arnold, an event that exposed Arnold’s plot to surrender West Point to the British.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Old Paulding County Courthouse – Courthouse Square, Dallas, GA (built 1892, Queen Anne, architects Bruce & Morgan, with a later annex; National Register of Historic Places since 1980). The Paulding County Courthouse relocated to the Watson Government Complex, 280 Constitution Boulevard, Dallas, GA, in March 2009.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Paulding County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via paulding.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Paulding County Public Library System (Dallas) – confirm current addresses/phones via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The historic 1892 Old Paulding County Courthouse anchors downtown Dallas as the county’s premier heritage attraction.
Notes: Confirm current parks and recreation facilities via paulding.gov.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Paulding County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via paulding.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Confirm current dedicated shelter contact via paulding.gov; Paulding County Sheriff’s Office for animal control arrangements.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Paulding County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via paulding.gov.
NOTES: Paulding County is the one-hundred-and-twelfth county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The county’s genuine Revolutionary War namesake connection to the capture of Major André and the exposure of Benedict Arnold’s plot 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 Paulding County
Paulding County’s growth is one of the more striking suburban expansion stories in the Atlanta metro. The county had fewer than 50,000 residents in 2000; by 2025 it approaches 180,000 – more than tripling in a quarter century, driven entirely by residential development that offered lower prices than Cobb County to the east. The county has no direct interstate access – there is no I-anything running through Paulding County – which makes its growth even more remarkable, as commuters navigate US 278, GA-120, and surface roads to reach Cobb County’s I-75/I-285 interchange.
Dallas, the county seat, has remained a small city even as the surrounding communities have grown. The county’s commercial development has concentrated at key intersections and along the primary roads, without the I-75 or I-20 corridor density that makes commercial development more visible in neighboring counties. Paulding County has built significant school infrastructure to keep pace with enrollment, and its school system’s performance has been a primary driver of residential choice. The Silver Comet Trail – a rails-to-trails conversion running from Smyrna through Paulding County toward Alabama – is a major recreational asset that attracts cyclists and walkers.
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, then to the Board of Equalization. Georgia offers school tax exemptions for seniors 62 and older and full exemptions for qualifying seniors 65 and older. Georgia has no estate or inheritance tax.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
SENIOR SERVICES
Northwest Georgia Area Agency on Aging
1 Jackson Hill Drive NE, Rome, GA 30165
Phone: (706) 295-6485
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, and long-term care counseling for Paulding County residents.
Senior Services
Northwest Georgia Area Agency on Aging
1 Jackson Hill Drive NE, Rome, GA 30165
Phone: (706) 295-6485
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, caregiver support, and long-term care counseling for Paulding County residents.
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)
280 Constitution Blvd., Dallas, GA 30132
(770) 443-7527
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Probate Court of Paulding County (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
Paulding County Historical Society, Dallas, GA.
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 Paulding County 280 Constitution Blvd, Dallas, GA 30132
Paulding County is part of the Atlanta metro area, one of Georgia’s fastest-growing counties in recent decades.
Given Paulding’s population is above the 96,000 threshold, its Probate Court likely operates under O.C.G.A. Title 15, Chapter 9, Article 6 (expanded jurisdiction, attorney-judge requirement, concurrent jurisdiction with Superior Court) – confirm current status with the court.
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 Paulding 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
950 Bob Collier Rd., Dallas, GA 30132
(770) 443-3010
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
240 Constitution Blvd., Dallas, GA 30132
(770) 443-7528
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
GA Dept of Public Health — West Metro
(770) 445-2216
GA DFCS — Paulding
(770) 445-7890
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Wellstar Paulding Hospital
wellstar.org/paulding (Hiram)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Paulding County Health Department – confirm current contact via paulding.gov.
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Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Dallas
Population: 175,000
Area: 314 sq mi
Established: 1832
Tier: 2
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Paulding County facilities via Amazon.
