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Georgia · Blue Ridge Mountains · #609
Union County, Georgia
In the Blue Ridge highlands where the Appalachian Trail crosses Georgia before heading north to Maine, Union County's Blairsville is a genuine mountain town - not a resort reinvention but a community that has always lived in the mountains and has welcomed retirees and visitors without losing its character.
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Office: Union County Sheriff’s Office – 378 Beasley Street, Blairsville, GA 30512 | (706) 439-6066; Sheriff Shawn Dyer, first elected in 2024, who launched the office’s first annual Citizens Academy to give residents an inside look at Sheriff’s Office operations. A full-service, 24-hour agency with Uniform Patrol, Criminal Investigations, a S.E.R.T. team, Warrant Service, Civil Process, Courthouse Security, and an Animal Control function.
Notes: For an active emergency, call 911.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-19/129 and US-76 serve Blairsville, the county seat and largest city, nicknamed the “City of Mountains” with the motto “A Place for All Seasons,” on Georgia’s northern border.
Notes: Union County was created December 3, 1832, from Cherokee County, formerly core homeland of the Cherokee people. The county’s name has a genuinely charming origin: when John Thomas, the area’s chosen representative, was asked to suggest a name for the new county during a period of intense national debate over Union and states’ rights, he reportedly said, “Name it Union, for none but union-like men reside in it.” Blairsville, designated county seat in 1835, is named for Revolutionary War veteran James Blair. The 1820s gold rush drew settlers to the mountainous, once-remote region; while neighboring Dahlonega is known as the first U.S. gold discovery site, Blairsville-area gold from the Coosa Mines was renowned among Washington, D.C. assayers as the purest and “yellowest gold” submitted from anywhere in the northern Georgia mountains.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Old Union County Courthouse – Courthouse Square, Blairsville, GA (built 1899, Romanesque, architects Golucke & Stewart, builder M.B. McGinty; National Register of Historic Places since 1980), a hipped-roof building with intersecting gables, though its original clock tower and decorative turrets no longer survive.
Notes: The Old Union County Jail (Blue Ridge Road, Blairsville, built 1934; National Register of Historic Places since 1985), a two-story rock building with a front porch on square wood columns, served as the county jail until the 1970s, when a joint facility with neighboring Towns County was built; it later housed Blairsville City Hall and the Chamber of Commerce office.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
Office: Union County Veterans Services – confirm current contact via unioncountyga.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
Union County Public Library (Blairsville) – confirm current address/phone via the county library system.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: The historic Old Union County Courthouse and Jail are notable heritage landmarks in downtown Blairsville. The Blairsville Police Department partners with Union County Family Connections and the school system each December to take local teens on a Christmas shopping trip for their families.
Notes: Confirm current parks and recreation facilities via unioncountyga.gov.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
Appraisal/Parcel Search: Union County Tax Assessor – confirm current contact via unioncountyga.gov.
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Union County Sheriff’s Office operates an Animal Control function; confirm current dedicated shelter contact via unioncountyga.gov.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Office: Union County Solid Waste / Planning & Zoning – confirm current contact via unioncountyga.gov.
NOTES: Union County is the one-hundred-and-forty-sixth county completed in Georgia’s Round 3 v2 redo, under the A+ sourced standard established for this project. The county’s genuinely charming naming origin story and its historic reputation for producing the purest gold in the north Georgia mountains 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 Union County
Union County is the north Georgia mountain county that feels most like Appalachia in the best sense – a community with deep mountain roots, a functioning agricultural tradition in the valleys and coves, and a gentle welcome for the retirees and second-home owners who have arrived in large numbers over the past three decades. Blairsville has a genuine small-city downtown with independent businesses and a courthouse square that serves both the long-resident population and the significant retirement community that has made Union County one of Georgia’s fastest-growing rural counties by percentage in recent decades.
Vogel State Park, in the Blue Ridge foothills south of Blairsville, is one of Georgia’s oldest and most visited state parks – its lake, mountain backdrop, and well-maintained trail system make it a consistent draw from Atlanta. The Appalachian Trail passes through the county at Blood Mountain and connects to Springer Mountain (the trail’s southern terminus) via the Georgia section. Brasstown Valley Resort provides conference and recreation amenity infrastructure for the mountain tourism economy. The county’s agricultural history – livestock, orchards, some row crops in the valleys – persists alongside the retirement-driven residential economy.
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
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 Union County residents.
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 Union 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)
65 Courthouse St., Blairsville, GA 30512
(706) 745-2611
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Union County Probate Court (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Union 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
Union County Probate Court 65 Courthouse Street, Suite 8, Blairsville, GA 30512 (706) 439-6006
Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m. (closed 12:30–1:00 p.m.; walk-ins accepted until 4:00 p.m.). Judge Kristin Stephens Stanley. Union County was created December 3, 1832 from Cherokee County, named for the federal union of the states; it’s in the North Georgia mountains near Blood Mountain.
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 Union 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 (North Georgia News) 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.
Initial filing fees for petitions run approximately $200–$220 in Union County; publication fees are separate, paid to the North Georgia News.
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.
Uncontested estates typically take 6–9 months, largely due to the required creditor notice period; contested matters can take years.
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
65 Courthouse St., Blairsville, GA 30512
(706) 745-2931
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS / VOTER REGISTRATION
65 Courthouse St., Blairsville, GA 30512
(706) 745-2920
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) 745-6292
GA DFCS — Union
(706) 745-6292
GA Medicaid
(800) 869-1150
Union General Hospital
uniongeneralhospital.com (Blairsville)
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Union County Health Department – confirm current contact via unioncountyga.gov.
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Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Blairsville
Population: 23,000
Area: 324 sq mi
Established: 1832
Tier: 4
Inmate Services
Care Packages
Send care packages to inmates in Union County facilities via Amazon.
