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Georgia · Blue Ridge Mountains · #608
Towns County, Georgia
At Georgia's highest elevations where Brasstown Bald - the state's highest point at 4,784 feet - overlooks Lake Chatuge and the Tennessee Valley Authority reservoir, Towns County is mountain Georgia at its most literal: a small county with extraordinary scenery, a significant second-home economy, and a permanent population that has lived in these hollows for generations.
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Office: Towns County Sheriff’s Office – 48 River Street, Suite F, Hiawassee, GA 30546 | (706) 896-4444; Sheriff Anthony Coleman. Towns County sits in the Enotah Judicial Circuit, alongside Union and Lumpkin Counties.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-76 and SR-17/75 serve Hiawassee, the county seat, in the northeast Georgia mountains near the North Carolina line; Young Harris is the county’s largest city.
Notes: Towns County was created in 1856, named for George W. Towns, a former Georgia governor. Hiawassee, settled by white residents around 1820 after the Cherokee’s forced removal in the 1830s, was designated county seat in 1856, incorporated as a town in 1870, and as a city in 1916. A United States government fur trade factory, part of the federal fur trade system, was constructed in what is now Hiawassee between 1807 and 1811. President Jimmy Carter visited Hiawassee in July 1980, landing by helicopter to go trout fishing with friends – a well-documented local memory.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Towns County Courthouse – 48 River Street, Suite E, Hiawassee, GA | (706) 896-2130.
Notes: The historic Towns County Jail (Courthouse Square, Hiawassee, built 1935-36 by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, modified 1981, Bungalow/Craftsman style; National Register of Historic Places since 1985) is a two-story stone building in downtown Hiawassee.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Towns County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via townscountyga.org.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Towns County Public Library (Hiawassee) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Young Harris College, founded in 1886, anchors the county’s namesake city. The historic Towns County Jail is a notable heritage landmark, and the Towns County Historical Society (900 North Main Street, Hiawassee) preserves local history. The Berrong-Oakley House, one of Hiawassee’s oldest surviving homes, was purchased by the city in 2023 for preservation.
Notes: Confirm current parks and recreation facilities via townscountyga.org.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Towns County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via townscountyga.org.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Confirm current dedicated shelter contact via townscountyga.org; Towns County Sheriff’s Office for animal control arrangements.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Towns County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via townscountyga.org.
NOTES: Towns County is the one-hundred-and-forty-first county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. President Jimmy Carter’s memorable 1980 helicopter fishing trip to Hiawassee 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 Towns County
Towns County holds Brasstown Bald – Georgia’s highest peak at 4,784 feet, with a paved access road and a visitor center at the summit that draws thousands of visitors annually for its 360-degree views into four states on clear days. Lake Chatuge, a Tennessee Valley Authority reservoir on the Hiawassee River, spreads across the county’s southern reaches and into North Carolina, providing waterfront recreation and significant second-home property values. The combination of mountain elevation and lake access makes Towns County a premium retirement and second-home destination within driving distance of Atlanta.
Hiawassee, the county seat, hosts the Georgia Mountain Fair each August – one of the oldest and most authentic mountain fair traditions in Georgia, with music, crafts, and agricultural exhibits that reflect the Appalachian heritage of the county’s long-resident population. The Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds also hosts bluegrass and gospel music festivals throughout the year. Towns County’s permanent population of about 13,000 nearly doubles during summer with seasonal and part-time residents. The county’s economy blends tourism, second-home services, and the modest year-round commercial base that a small mountain county can sustain.
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
Towns County Probate Court: 48 River Street, Suite 108, Hiawassee, GA 30546 | (706) 896-2276. The Probate Court handles estate administration and guardianship. Towns County Clerk of Superior Court records all property instruments. For Towns County second-home owners with primary residences in other states, a Georgia trust or out-of-state estate plan that specifically addresses the Georgia property avoids ancillary probate at death. Lake Chatuge waterfront properties straddling the Georgia-North Carolina state line require attention to which state’s law governs each parcel.
Senior Services
Northeast Georgia Area Agency on Aging
305 Research Drive NE, Athens, GA 30605
Phone: (706) 369-5650
Senior transportation, Meals on Wheels, and long-term care counseling for Towns 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)
48 River St., Hiawassee, GA 30546
(706) 896-2130
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Towns County Probate Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Towns 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
Towns County Probate Court 48 River Street, Suite C, Hiawassee, GA 30546 Judge: Hon. Dwight David Rogers. Towns County is in the North Georgia mountains, near Lake Chatuge.
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 Towns 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
48 River St., Hiawassee, GA 30546
(706) 896-4225
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
48 River St., Hiawassee, GA 30546
(706) 896-2276
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
GA Dept of Public Health — Northeast
(706) 896-3535
GA DFCS — Towns
(706) 896-3535
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Union General Hospital (Blairsville)
uniongeneralhospital.com
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Towns County Health Department – confirm current contact via townscountyga.org.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Hiawassee
Population: 12,000
Area: 167 sq mi (one of Georgia's smallest counties by area)
Established: 1856
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Towns County facilities via Amazon.
