Rabun

Formed December 21, 1819 (47^th county)

Rabun County (16,882), Clayton (1,991)

The Modern style red brick and concrete building, built in 1968, replaced a classic 1908 courthouse.  It is on Courthouse Square at Savannah Street.  The site is on United States Highway 76 as Savannah Street.  John J. Harte and Associates are the designers.  It features columns and a tower.  Rabun County was created on December 21, 1819 from Habersham County as the 47^th county.  There were 1824, 1838, and 1908 versions of the courthouses earlier.  Claytonsville was the first county seat until 1823 when Clayton took over.  Towns County was later created from Rabun County.  The county is named for Governor William Rabun.  Congressman Augustin S. Clayton is the namesake of the county seat.  He is also the namesake for Clayton County.  The county center is 2.8 miles East of Clayton. 

Rabun County government consists of a manager, a sheriff, an administrator, a coroner, a clerk, and a tax commissioner (executive).  It has 5 Commissioners (legislative.)  Twenty-eight Superior Court Judges serve Rabun, Cherokee, Dawson, Fannin, Forsyth, Gilmer, Gwinnett, Habersham, Hall, Lumpkin, Pickens, Stephens, Towns, Union, and White counties and Five County Judges, court clerk, and county attorney serve Rabun County (judicial.) The county sits in the northeast corner of the state on the border with both North Carolina and South Carolina.  The Chattooga River is its eastern border.  The county is surrounded clockwise by North Carolina and South Carolina, and Habersham and Towns counties. 

The area of the county is 371 square miles.  It is 67 out of 159 counties in the state.  It ranks 102 out of 159 in population in the state.  It has a density of 45.5 persons per square mile making it 96 out of 159 in the state.  Rabun County has 25.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highways 23/441 cross the county north to south from North Carolina to Habersham County.  United States Highway 76 goes east to west from South Carolina to Towns County.  The county’s overall shape looks like a pistol pointing east.  Clayton is located slightly west of center in the county.  Clayton is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 11.8% of the county population.  The county is pronounced RAE-BUN.