Bryan

Formed December 19, 1793 (16^th county)

Bryan County (44,739), Pembroke (2,511), Richmond Hill (16,637)

The governmental Neo-Classical Revival style building, located on College Street at Courthouse Street, was built in 1938.  United States Highway 280 is two blocks north of the site.  Walter E. Marshall provided the brown brick designs.  The building features columns and a working clock on the front.  The courthouse was renovated in 1990 and an addition was added in 1993.  Since its organizing on December 19, 1793 as the 16^th county, Hardwick, Cross Road, Eden, Clyde, and Pembroke have served as county seats.  Pembroke was named county seat in 1937.  The county was taken from Chatham County.  The county was named for American Revolutionary statesman Jonathan Bryan.  The county seat is named for settler Pembroke W. Williams.  The county center is 14.5 miles Southeast of Pembroke nearer Ellabell. 

Bryan County government consists of a manager, a sheriff, an administrator, a coroner, a clerk, and a tax commissioner (executive).  It has 6 Commissioners (legislative.)  Twenty-one Superior Court Judges serve Bryan, Appling, Bacon, Brantley, Bulloch, Camden, Charlton, Chatham, Coffee, Effingham, Evans, Glynn, Jeff Davis, Jenkins, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, Pierce, Screven, Tattnall, Ware, and Wayne counties and a State Judge and Three County Judges, court clerk, and county attorney serve Bryan County (judicial.) The county is located in southeast Georgia just west of Savannah, Georgia.  The Canoochee River is its southern border and the Ogeechee River is its northern border.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Effingham and Chatham counties and the Atlantic Ocean and Liberty and Evans counties. 

The area of the county is 442 square miles.  The county is 43 of 159 in the state.  It ranks 46 out of 159 in population in the state.  It has a density of 101.2 persons per square mile making it 57 out of 159 in the state.  Bryan County has 42.8% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 16 crosses east to west through the county from Chatham County to Bulloch County.  Interstate Highway 95 enters from Chatham County and goes south into Liberty County.  United States Highway 17 parallels Interstate Highway 95 from Chatham County to Liberty County.  United States Highway 80 parallels Interstate Highway 16 from Chatham County to Bulloch County.  United States Highway 280 originates in the county and heads west into Evans County.  The county is a capital letter I reclining.  Pembroke is in the extreme northern quarter of the county.  Richmond Hill is in the southeast third of the county.  Pembroke is the county seat and Richmond Hill is the largest city.  Pembroke is 5.6% of the county population while Richmond Hill is 37.2% of the county population.  This county is in the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.