Brunswick

Brunswick is a city in and the county seat of Glynn County in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the second-largest urban area on the Georgia coastline after Savannah. The city is located on a harbor of the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 40 mi (60 km) north of Florida and 80 mi (130 km) south of South Carolina. It was named for the duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in Germany, the ancestral home of George III and the House of Hanover. The Port of Brunswick handles approximately 10 percent of all U.S. roll-on/roll-off tradethird in the United States, behind the ports of Los Angeles and Newark. Brunswick is bordered on the west by Oglethorpe Bay, the East River, and the Turtle River. On the south by the Brunswick River and on the east by the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in the Mackay River, which separates it from the Golden Isles. The headquarters of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center is located north of the central business district of the city and is adjacent to Brunswick Golden Isles Airport, which provides commercial air service to the area. It has a progressive economy largely based on tourism and logistics, with a metropolitan GDP of $3.9 billion as of 2013. In World War II, for example, it served as a strategic military location with an operational base for escort blimps and a shipbuilding facility for theU.S Maritime Commission.

History

The Mocama, a Timucua-speaking people, lived in and cultivated the lands in what is now Brunswick. The Spanish established missions in Timucuan villages beginning in 1568. When the Province of Carolina was founded in 1663, the British claimed all lands south to the 31st parallel north. The area's first European settler, Mark Carr, arrived in 1738. The Province of Georgia purchased Carr's fields in 1771 and laid out the town of Brunswick in the grid plan akin to that of Savannah. Brunswick was named for the duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in Germany, the ancestral home of George III and the House of Hanover. The first lot was granted on June 30, 1772; 179 lots were granted in the first three years. In 1797 the General Assembly transferred the seat of Glynn County from Frederica to Brunswick. In 1856 the town was officially incorporated as a city on February 22, 1856. The town was recognized as an official port of entry in 1789 by an act of the United States Congress. The city's name was changed to Brunswick in 1856 by the city's first mayor, Carey Wentworth Styles, to honor his late father, who was born in Brunswick and died in 1857. The name Brunswick is now used to refer to the city of Brunswick, Georgia, which was once part of the state of South Carolina. It is also the name of a town in South Carolina, where it was known as Brunswick.

Geography

The city of Brunswick is located in southeastern Georgia, approximately halfway between Jacksonville, Florida and Savannah. The city is the lowest in the U.S. state of Georgia, with an elevation of only 10 to 14 feet (3.0 to 4.3 m) above sea level. The Brunswick area has four Superfund sites, formerly home to heavily contaminated toxic waste sites: the LCP Chemicals site, Brunswick Wood Preserving, the Hercules 009 Landfill, and the Terry Creek Dredge Spoil Areas/Hercules Outfall. Research published in 2011 revealed that bottlenose dolphins that fed in the estuaries near these sites had the highest concentration of PCBs of any mammal in the world. The hottest temperature ever recorded in Brunswick was 106 °F (41 °C) in 1986. The wettest months are August and September, the peak of hurricane season. A major hurricane has not made landfall on the Georgia coast since 1898. The only hurricane that has hit the coast since then was Hurricane David in 1979. However, the city has experienced hurricane or near-hurricane conditions several times due to storms passing through Florida from the Gulf of Mexico and entering Georgia or passing to the north or south in the Atlantic and brushing the area. It is common for the temperature to reach over 90°F (32°C) during the summer months, but the humidity results in a heat index higher than the actual temperature. Scattered afternoon thunderstorms are common in the summer. Winters in Brunswick are fairly temperate, averaging about 49.6 inches (1,260 mm).

Demographics

In 2000, the city of Brunswick had 15,600 people, 6,085 households, and 3,681 families living in the city, down from the city's initial historic high of 21,703 in 1960. At the 2010 United States census, there were 15,383 people living within the city; experiencing population fluctuations since, the 2020 U.S. census reported a population of 15,210 people. By 2020, the median household income was $27,471 with a mean of $57,395. The median monthly costs for occupied-housing units and renter-owned units was $718 in 2020. For homeowners with a mortgage, the Median value of their single-family detached homes was $117,400 and the monthly costs were $1,068. Among the growing metropolitan statistical areas of Georgia, Brunswick has one of the lowest costs of living in contrast with Atlanta and its metropolitan region. The city has had a traditional population from a predominantly non-Hispanic white, Anglo American background. By 2000 its racial and ethnic makeup was 59.8% Black or African American, 33.1% White (non-Hispanic whites), 0.3% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, 0.1%. The top five ancestry groups were American (5.3%), English, Subsarahan African (4.1%), Irish (4,1%), and German (3.6%). Approximately 54.1 per cent of the population reported another ancestry.

Economy

The Port of Brunswick is the sixth-busiest automobile port in the United States. It is the primary export facility for two of the three U.S traditional automotive manufacturers: Ford and General Motors. The port serves as the central import facility for Hyundai, Jaguar, Kia, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Porsche, and Volvo. International Auto Processing is one of the town's largest employers. Tourism is the single largest industry in the city and the county. President George W. Bush hosted the G8 summit in 2004 on Sea Island. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) is headquartered in Glynco, north of the city. The Georgia-Pacific mill has the capability to produce over 800,000 metric tons of cellulose each year and is the largest single-site fluff production facility in the world. The city's beaches, resorts, shops, and historic sites annually attract visitors from around the world to its year-round resort community. A study conducted by Georgia Tech identified FLETC as the largest employer in Glynn County, with an annual localized economic impact in excess of $600 million. Other major employers in Brunswick include King & Prince Seafood, GSI Commerce, Pinova and Gulfstream Aerospace. The airport has a presence at the city's airport, as well as Hercules, a manufacturer, and marketer of chemical specialties operates a production facility on the north side of Brunswick. The town is home to the Southeast Georgia Health System, the largest private employer in Brunswick.

Culture

Brunswick lays claim to Brunswick stew, a tomato-based stew containing various types of lima beans, corn, okra, and other vegetables, and one or more types of meat. The Brunswick Rockin' Stewbilee, held annually in October, features a stew-tasting contest where visitors sample over 50 teams' stews. The city was once called "The Shrimp Capital of the World", but in recent times, production has been far below average. Apart from shrimping, the area is also the center of Georgia's crab and oyster industries. Along Union Street is a collection of 19th and early 20th-century Victorian mansions. Each December the Magnolia Garden Club tours select Union Street homes in addition to other areas in historic Brunswick as part of its Christmas Tour of Homes. The most significant professional performing-arts group is the Coastal Symphony of Georgia, in existence since 1982, which stages productions each year at Glynn Academy's Memorial Auditorium. The Gallery on Newcastle is home to a display of scenes from coastal Georgia's marshes. The Ritz Theatre hosts a range of performances and is the home to the Golden Isles Arts and Humanities Association, the coordinating arts council for Brunswick and Glynn County. Art Downtown is a cultural arts center featuring a fine art gallery, studio, and production company. It is home. to the Brunswick Actors' Theatre. The City of Brunswick hosts the Wild Georgia Shrimp & Grits Festival in September.

Sports

Brunswick is the gateway city to Jekyll and St. Simons islands. The area is famous for its golf resorts. The PGA Tour holds the RSM Classic every year at the Seaside Course on Sea Island. The Brunswick area is home to two out of three publicly accessible beaches in the state. In 1906 the city was home to a Class D-level minor league baseball team, the River Snipes. In 1951 the Brunswick Pirates, a minor league affiliate of the major league Pittsburgh Pirates, began to play in the GeorgiaFlorida League. The Pirates won league championships in 1954 and 1955. In 1957 the Pirates became affiliates of the Philadelphia Phillies, respectively adopting the name Brunswick Phillies. Following the 1958 season, the Phillies ceased to play. Brunswick was the host of the Golden Isles Bowl Classic, one of the most prestigious junior college football bowl games in the country, from 1950 to 2007. The city is the home of the College of Coastal Georgia, which has an active collegiate sports program. The local high schools compete in theGeorgia High School Association's quad-A Region 2 sporting events. The Golden Isles Speedway, a 58 mile (1 km) race track, is located in western Glynn County, approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of the city. In 2008 Sea Island was ranked the number-one destination for business meetings and golf by Golf Digest and USA Today. There are three golf courses located just north of theCity, and combined withJekyll, St.Simons, and Sea islands, there are 252 holes of golf in the Brunswick area.

Parks and recreation

Six city squares were part of Brunswick's original 1771 Town Plan. Five of the six still exist today, with Hillsboro Square converted into the campus of Glynn Academy High School. The Brunswick area is rich in live oak trees, particularly the Southern live oak. Revolutionary warships such as the USS Constitution (nicknamed Old Ironsides) were clad in St. Simons Island oak planks. Brunswick has a notable live oak named Lover's Oak (located at Prince and Albany streets). As of 2005, it is approximately 900 years old. According to the State of Georgia and American Indian folklore, Native American braves and their maidens would meet under the oak. Another notable oak, Lanier's Oak, is notable as being the location where poet Sidney Lanier, on one of his visits to Brunswick, was inspired to write "The Marshes of G Flynn" The Brunswick Parks and Recreation Department operates city parks and squares. The parks include features such as playgrounds, baseball fields, softball fields, soccer fields, basketball courts, and picnic areas. The district also owns the Roosevelt Lawrence Community Center, a center equipped with popular and traditional recreational game tables, two classrooms, and a multi-purpose gymnasium. There are also two additional squares located within the city, Orange, and Palmetto. The largest park is Howard Coffin Park, located on Blythe Island within the City of Brunswick. The city also has a regional park called Howard Coffin Regional Park, which includes a walking track.

Government

Brunswick uses the council-manager model of municipal government. The city commission consists of five individuals, including the mayor, elected on a plurality-at-large basis. The mayor of Brunswick is Cornell Harvey, who was elected in 2014 and is the first African-American mayor of the city. In November 2008, Mayor Thompson and the city commission of Brunswick traveled to Ganzhou to strengthen ties between the two cities. Ganzhou, a city with a population of 8.5 million, reciprocated, sending a delegation to Brunswick where an official sister city agreement was signed at Old Brunswick City Hall on April 3, 2009. The main duty of the manager is to implement policy set by the cityCommission and manage the operations of the City of Brunswick on a daily basis. In Brunswick, the mayor serves as an at-large commissioner and chairperson; the city manager is Regina McDuffie. The commission meets twice each month at Old City Hall in Old Town and the mayor is the chairperson of the commission for the first two months of each month. In 2008, Brunswick and Ganzhou signed an agreement to become sister cities. In 2009, the city of Ganzhou became a member of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In 2010, Brunswick became the first city in the United States to have a city manager of Chinese descent. In 2012, Brunswick was the second city in North Carolina to become a U.N. member state, after Charleston. In 2013, the state became the fourth city in South Carolina to join the United Nations.

Education

Brunswick is home to the College of Coastal Georgia, which has more than 3,000 enrolled students. The Glynn County School System is the governing authority of public schools in the city. Glynn Academy, the second-oldest public high school in the American South, was founded in 1788 by an act of the Georgia General Assembly. In the city, there is one Catholic school and one Seventh-day Adventist school. There are also Baptist, Pentecostal, and non-denominational Christian schools north of the city and on St. Simons Island. Several smaller Christian schools in Brunswick offer high school education. There is a career-technical academy and several private schools operating in the area. The city is located on the Atlantic seaboard of Georgia and is located in the Coastal Georgia region of the state. It is the home of the University System of Georgia, a state college within the University system of Georgia. In 2008, the college began its transition to a four-year institution. It has bachelor's degree programs in education, business, and nursing sciences, and other associate degree programs designed to prepare students to transfer to senior colleges and universities. It also has a business program and a nursing program, which prepares students to work in the health care industry. The school system has ten elementary schools, four middle schools, and two high schools. More than 12,000 students attend schools inThe school system. There have been no deaths in Brunswick in the last decade.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia = 81.2. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 60. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 20. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Brunswick = 5.4 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 15,210 individuals with a median age of 33.5 age the population grows by 4.44% in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 893.71 residents per square mile of area (345.06/km²). There are average 2.4 people per household in the 6,473 households with an average household income of $26,216 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 8.40% of the available work force and has dropped -2.94% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 25.72%. The number of physicians in Brunswick per 100,000 population = 273.2.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Brunswick = 51.9 inches and the annual snowfall = 0 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 103. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 220. 92 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 42.9 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 28, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Brunswick, Glynn County, Georgia which are owned by the occupant = 38.11%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 47 years with median home cost = $81,680 and home appreciation of -7.45%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $8.13 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,865 per student. There are 15 students for each teacher in the school, 459 students for each Librarian and 459 students for each Counselor. 4.81% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 7.78% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 4.06% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).