Roswell

History and government

In 1830, while on a trip to northern Georgia, Roswell King passed through the area of what is now Roswell and observed the great potential for building a cotton mill along Vickery Creek. Since the land nearby was also good for plantations, he planned to put cotton processing near cotton production.

Toward the middle of the 1830s, King returned to build a mill that would soon become the largest in North Georgia – Roswell Mill. He brought with him 36 enslaved Africans from his own coastal plantation, plus another 42 skilled enslaved carpenters bought in Savannah to build the mills. The enslaved built the mills, infrastructure, houses, mill worker apartments, and supporting buildings for the new town. The enslaved Africans brought their unique Geechee culture, language, and religious traditions from the coast to north Georgia.

King invited investors from the coast to join him at the new location. He was also joined by Barrington King, one of his sons, who succeeded his father in the manufacturing company. Archibald Smith was one of the planters who migrated there to establish a new plantation, also bringing enslaved African Americans from the coastal areas.

Shortly after 1832 a survey of the area was conducted by Nathan Crawford Barnett as part of the Cherokee Purchase in preparation for the sixth state administrated land lottery culminating in the Cherokee removal.

Barrington Hall (the home of Barrington King), Smith Plantation (the home of Archibald Smith), and Bulloch Hall (the childhood home of President Theodore Roosevelt's mother, Mittie Bulloch) have been preserved and restored. They are now open to the public. According to the 1850 Slave Schedules, these three "founding families", together with the next three largest planters, held 192 slaves, 51% of the total 378 slaves held in the Roswell District. Archibald Smith had a 300-acre (1.2 km2) cotton plantation. According to the 1850 Census, Barrington King held 70 enslaved Blacks. Half of them were under the age of 10. These enslaved people worked in the Barrington's household. Barrington King "leased" or "rented" some of his enslaved adult males to the Roswell Manufacturing Company, but they did not work around the mill machinery.

Geography

Roswell is located in northern Fulton County. It is bordered to the north by Milton, to the northeast by Alpharetta, to the east by Johns Creek, to the southeast by Peachtree Corners in Gwinnett County, to the south by Sandy Springs, to the west by unincorporated land in Cobb County, and to the northwest by the city of Mountain Park and by unincorporated land in Cherokee County. The southern boundary of the city follows the Chattahoochee River.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Roswell has a total area of 37.0 square miles (100.8 km2), of which 40.7 square miles (105.5 km2) is land and 1.3 square miles (3.3 km2), or 3.06%, is water.

Geographic features

Big Creek

Bull Sluice Lake

Chattahoochee River

Morgan Falls Dam

Johns Creek

Crooked Creek

Audery Mill Creek

Climate

Roswell features a Humid subtropical climate, which is characterized by abundant precipitation that is spread evenly throughout the year.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Roswell had a population of 92,833 and 36,163 households, of which 25,529 were families. The median age was 40.0 years. 22.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.2 males age 18 and over.

100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 36,163 households in Roswell, of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 54.2% were married-couple households, 15.3% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 38,032 housing units, of which 4.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.4%.

In 2020, the racial and ethnic makeup of the city was 63.28% non-Hispanic white, 11.52% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 4.98% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.76% some other race, 4.15% multiracial, and 15.18% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, its racial makeup was 75.47% non-Hispanic white, 8.34% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 3.70% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.24% some other race, 1.47% multiracial, and 10.61% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Income and poverty

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $73,469, and the median income for a family was $103,698. The average income for households was $106,219, and the average income for families was $123,481. Males had a median income of $72,754 versus $45,979 for females. The per capita income for the city was $40,106. About 3.2% of families and 5.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.6% of those under age 18 and 0.7% of those age 65 or over. In a 2022 estimate, the median household income was $130,008 with a per capita income of $65,061.

Economy

The Consulate-General of Honduras in Atlanta is located at Suite 3 in 600 Houze Way in Roswell. The city's largest employers are the Kimberly Clark Corporation, Wellstar North Fulton Hospital, Harry's Farmers Market, and the City Of Roswell. A section of Route 400 between Roswell and Atlanta is known as the high tech corridor, where many technology firms like Kimberly Clark have factories or offices. As of the 2006 census, one third of Roswell's 5.000 registered business were home based. The largest industries were retail, technology, food services, wholesale trade, and health care.

Many Roswell residents work in nearby Atlanta.

Businesses with their headquarters in Roswell include Snorg Tees, Tripwire Interactive, and Pharsalia Technologies.

Arts and culture

Festivals and parades

Roswell Memorial Day Ceremony — the largest Memorial Day ceremony in Georgia

Roswell Roots: A Festival of Black History & Culture (February)

Roswell Criterium Bicycle Race and Historic Roswell Kiwanis Kids Bike Safety Rodeo (May)

Roswell Magnolia Storytelling Festival (June)

Riverside Sounds Concert Series (May — October)

Roswell Youth Day Parade and Festival (October)

Keep Roswell Beautiful Duck Race (October)

Roswell Annual Fireworks Extravaganza July 4

Roswell Wine Festival (first Sunday in October - Sunday, October 4, 2015)

Alive in Roswell (third Thursday of the month, April–October)

Public libraries

Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System operates the Roswell Branch and the East Roswell Branch.

Parks and recreation

The city maintains more than 900 acres (3.6 km2) of parkland, as well as three historic house museums that are former plantations.

A branch of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, a component of the National Park System, is located in Roswell at Vickery Creek.

Education

Public schools

Roswell's local public schools are part of the Fulton County School System.

Amana Academy (K–8)

Fulton County Charter High School of Mathematics and Science (disbanded)

Fulton Academy of Science and Technology (K-8)

International Charter School of Atlanta (K-8)

Crabapple Middle School

Elkins Pointe Middle School

Holcomb Bridge Middle School

Centennial High School

Crossroads Second Chance North Alternative School

Roswell High School

Infrastructure

Major roads and expressways

State Route 9

State Route 92

State Route 120

State Route 140

State Route 400

Pine Grove Road

Riverside Road

Crabapple Road

Pedestrians and cycling

Big Creek Greenway

PATH400 (proposed)

Roswell Riverwalk Trail

Vickery Creek Trail