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Georgia · Southwest-Central Georgia · #666
Schley County, Georgia
In the red clay hills of southwest-central Georgia, Schley County's Ellaville is one of Georgia's smallest counties by population - a peanut and timber community where the courthouse serves a county that has maintained its rural character without drama or particular ambition to be otherwise.
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Office: Schley County Sheriff’s Office – 48 N. Pecan Street, P.O. Box 809, Ellaville, GA 31806 | Non-emergency (229) 937-2101 | Email: [email protected]; Sheriff Scott Nelson, who joined the office as a deputy in 2009 and became Sheriff in 2025.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-19 and SR-26 serve Ellaville, the county seat and largest city, part of the Americus Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Notes: Schley County was created December 22, 1857, from parts of Marion, Macon, and Sumter Counties, named for William Schley, a jurist who served in Congress (1833-35) and as Georgia Governor (1835-37). Ellaville is named for Ella Burton, daughter of Robert Burton, who sold the land for the town site; nearby Pond Town was settled as early as 1812.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Schley County Courthouse – 14 South Broad Street, P.O. Box 352, Ellaville, GA | (229) 937-2609 (built 1899, the county’s second courthouse, Romanesque Revival, architects Golucke & Stewart, contractor Algernon Blair; National Register of Historic Places since 1980), a brick building with stone and metal trim, capped clock towers, and an interior courtroom retaining much of its original pressed-metal ceiling.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Schley County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via schleycountyga.us.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Schley County Public Library (Ellaville) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The historic 1899 Schley County Courthouse anchors downtown Ellaville. The Ellaville-Schley County Historical Society and Schley County Preservation Society document and preserve local heritage, including efforts around courthouse restoration.
Notes: Confirm current parks and recreation facilities via schleycountyga.us.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Schley County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via schleycountyga.us.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Confirm current dedicated shelter contact via schleycountyga.us; Schley County Sheriff’s Office for animal control arrangements.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Schley County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via schleycountyga.us.
NOTES: Schley County is the one-hundred-and-twenty-fifth county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The genuine story behind Ellaville’s naming and the well-preserved 1899 courthouse are 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 Schley County
Schley County is one of Georgia’s least-populated counties – a small peanut, timber, and cattle community in the Flint River basin centered on Ellaville, a courthouse town providing basic governmental services for a dispersed rural population. The county’s agricultural economy is typical of southwest Georgia’s coastal plain: peanuts, cotton, some grain crops, and managed pine timber with Conservation Use enrollment covering significant acreage. Population has declined steadily from mid-century peaks without significant in-migration to offset the losses. The county is genuinely, uncomplicatedly rural, and its residents value that simplicity.
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
Schley County Probate Court: 1 South Broad Street, Ellaville, GA 31806 | (229) 937-2609.
Senior Services
Southwest Georgia Area Agency on Aging | (229) 522-3552
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)
12 S. Broad St., Ellaville, GA 31806
(229) 937-2511
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Schley County Probate Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Southwest Georgia Genealogical Society (Albany) serves Schley among 29 Southwest Georgia counties.
Local societies
Southwest Georgia Genealogical Society (see above) is the primary regional resource; no dedicated Schley-County-only 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
Schley County Probate Court P.O. Box 385, Ellaville, GA 31806 (229) 937-2905 Schley County is one of Georgia’s least populous counties.
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 Schley 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
12 S. Broad St., Ellaville, GA 31806
(229) 937-2415
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
12 S. Broad St., Ellaville, GA 31806
(229) 937-2511
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 Central
(229) 937-2511
GA DFCS — Schley
(229) 937-2511
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Navicent Health (Macon)
navicenthealth.org
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Schley County Health Department – confirm current contact via schleycountyga.us.
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Editorial Trust
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Ellaville
Population: 5,200
Area: 168 sq mi
Established: 1857
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Schley County facilities via Amazon.
