Emerson, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Emerson · Bartow County, Georgia
Population 1,716 (est. 2026: ~1,300)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + -8.33% annual growth projection

Emerson, Georgia

Bartow County, Georgia · Population 1,415

Emerson sits in the upper Etowah River valley, tucked into the northwestern corner of metro Atlanta's outer ring. Cartersville, the Bartow County seat, lies just a few miles to the north. Allatoona Lake — a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reservoir formed by damming the Etowah — borders the town's eastern edge and defines much of the landscape residents interact with daily. At roughly 1,400 people, Emerson is a small, stable community that operates less as a destination and more as a place where people have put down roots along one of Georgia's most historically traveled corridors. The railroad came through here in the 19th century; Interstate 75 now runs nearby, keeping Emerson within commuting range of Marietta and Atlanta without dissolving it into the sprawl.

People & Demographics

The ACS 2022 estimate places Emerson's population at 1,594. Median age is 40, roughly in line with the broader Bartow County profile. The town is predominantly white (1,289 residents), with 195 Black residents and 146 Hispanic or Latino residents. The Asian population is 3. There are 610 households total, of which 422 are family households. Average household size is 2.60. Children under 18 account for 362 residents — about 23% of the population — suggesting a community with active family life but not a particularly young demographic skew.

Economy & Employment

Median household income in Emerson is $74,432. Per capita income comes in at $41,857. Both figures sit above what one typically finds in smaller Bartow County communities, though the county as a whole — with a population of 108,901 — has been growing steadily and drawing more middle-income households outward from metro Atlanta. Of the 1,594 residents counted, 815 are in the labor force and 53 are unemployed, an unemployment rate of approximately 6.5%. A total of 160 residents fall below the poverty line, representing around 10% of the population.

The local economic base is not self-contained. Most residents work elsewhere — see commuting data below — tying Emerson's economic health closely to the broader northwest Georgia and Atlanta metro job market.

Housing

Emerson has 627 total housing units. Of those, 610 are occupied and just 17 are vacant — a vacancy rate of under 3%, which points to a tight, stable housing stock. Owner-occupied units number 415; 195 units are renter-occupied. That owner-to-renter split (roughly 68% owners) is consistent with a settled, community-rooted population rather than a transient one.

Median home value is $188,300. Median rent is $1,153 per month. For context, northwest Georgia communities along the I-75 corridor have seen sustained appreciation pressure as Atlanta's growth pushes outward, and Emerson's relatively modest median value may not reflect the full pace of recent change.

Schools

Children in Emerson attend Emerson Elementary School, which serves grades pre-K through 5 with 386 students. Middle school students move on to Red Top Middle School, serving grades 6 through 8 with 565 students. Both schools fall within the Bartow County School System. High school students attend Cass High School in Cartersville. There are no colleges or universities located within Emerson proper.

Getting Around

Of 744 workers, 585 drive alone to work — nearly 79%. Another 56 carpool. Zero residents report using public transit. Thirteen walk to work. Eighty-six work from home. The aggregate travel time for all workers totals 20,530 minutes, which works out to an average one-way commute of roughly 27.6 minutes. That average is consistent with a population that commutes to Cartersville, Acworth, Kennesaw, or Marietta for work. Emerson is a car-required town; there is no local transit infrastructure.

Healthcare

The closest full-service hospital is Piedmont Cartersville Medical Center in Cartersville, a short drive north via U.S. 41 or I-75. For a comprehensive search of licensed healthcare providers registered in Emerson with the federal NPI system, the CMS NPI Registry returns current results.

Library

The nearest public library is the Cartersville Public Library, located 3.8 miles from Emerson. It is part of the Cherokee Regional Library System serving Bartow County. Phone: (770) 382-5657.

Parks & Recreation

Allatoona Lake's presence immediately east of town gives residents direct access to Corps of Engineers recreation areas. Riverside Park Day Use Area, Cooper's Furnace Day Use Area, and Cooper Branch No. 2 Day Use Area are all within close range and offer fishing, swimming, picnicking, and boat access on the lake.

Within the broader region, three National Park Service units are accessible from Emerson:

Natural Hazards

Bartow County carries a substantial FEMA disaster declaration history. Since 1994, the county has been included in 15 federal declarations covering tornadoes, severe storms, flooding, hurricanes, winter storms, and pandemic response. Notable events include Hurricane Opal (1995), the 2008 tornado outbreak, severe storms and tornadoes in April 2011, Hurricane Irma (2017), and Hurricane Helene (2024). A severe winter storm declaration was issued as recently as January 2026. The county was also designated for Hurricane Katrina evacuation support in 2005.

The pattern reflects northwest Georgia's exposure to both Gulf-track hurricane remnants and severe convective weather, as well as periodic winter ice and snow events capable of triggering statewide emergency declarations. Residents should maintain household emergency preparedness consistent with this history.

Government & Municipal Code

Emerson's municipal code is published through Municode and is publicly accessible at library.municode.com/ga/emerson. The municipal code does not include a local building code — construction standards default to state and county requirements.

Weather

Current National Weather Service forecasts for Emerson are available at the NWS forecast page for this location. Active weather alerts can be checked at the NWS alerts page. The nearest official weather observation station is Allatoona Dam 2, approximately 3.5 miles from town.

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)