Lenox, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Lenox · Cook County, Georgia
Population 695 (est. 2026: ~800)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + 2.59% annual growth projection

Lenox, Georgia

Cook County, Georgia · Population 752

Lenox sits in the heart of South Georgia's agricultural flatlands, about 10 miles northwest of Adel, the Cook County seat. It's a small town by any measure — fewer than 900 people — but it functions as a genuine community rather than a suburb or an exurb. There's no metro nearby pulling everyone away: the nearest significant city is Valdosta, roughly 50 miles to the south. Lenox exists on its own terms, shaped by the tobacco and peanut economy that defines this corner of Georgia, and by the tightly woven social fabric that small towns either build or lose. This one has held onto it.

People & Demographics

The 2022 ACS puts Lenox's population at 887, with a median age of 32.3 — notably younger than most rural Georgia communities. That youth shows up in the household composition: 216 of the town's 348 households are family households, and 135 children under 18 live here.

The racial breakdown is 583 white residents and 295 Black residents, with 55 identifying as Hispanic or Latino. Average household size is 2.55. Cook County as a whole has 17,229 residents, meaning Lenox accounts for roughly 5 percent of the county population — small enough that county-level services do most of the heavy lifting.

Economy & Employment

The median household income in Lenox is $28,977 — well below Georgia's statewide median, which consistently runs in the $60,000–65,000 range. Per capita income is $20,232. Of the 887 residents, 180 fall below the federal poverty line, representing a significant share of the population.

The labor force stands at 453 people, with 29 unemployed — an unemployment rate of about 6.4 percent. South Georgia's economy runs on agriculture, food processing, and the public sector (schools, county government, healthcare), and those industries define what working in and around Lenox looks like. The closest concentration of employment is Adel and, further out, Valdosta.

Housing

Lenox has 412 total housing units, of which 348 are occupied and 64 sit vacant — a vacancy rate of about 15.5 percent, which is higher than the national average but typical of rural South Georgia towns that have seen modest population decline.

Of occupied units, 209 are owner-occupied and 139 are renter-occupied — roughly a 60/40 split. The median home value is $74,500, making homeownership accessible to a broader income range than in most of the state. Median rent is $682 per month. For a household earning the town's median income, rent at that level consumes a substantial portion of monthly take-home pay, which makes the affordability picture more complicated than the raw numbers suggest.

Schools

Children in Lenox attend Cook County Schools, the county-unified district serving the entire area. There is no separate Lenox city school system.

The district operates four schools: - Cook Primary School — Pre-K through Grade 2, 839 students - Cook Elementary School — Grades 3–5, 634 students - Cook County Middle School — Grades 6–8, 714 students - Cook High School — Grades 9–12, 909 students

All four schools are located in Adel, the county seat. Students from Lenox travel to Adel for their entire K–12 education.

Getting Around

Lenox is car-dependent. Of 410 workers, 361 drive alone and 36 carpool. Zero use public transit — there is none. Seven people walk to work, and only 3 work from home, reflecting the nature of the local economy.

Aggregate commute time across the workforce totals 11,345 minutes, which works out to roughly 27.7 minutes per worker on average. That's consistent with a town whose residents drive to Adel, Tifton, or Valdosta for work. A personal vehicle isn't optional here; it's infrastructure.

Healthcare

Southwell Medical, a campus of Tift Regional Medical Center, serves the broader Cook County area. The nearest library branch — Cook County Library — is also the nearest indicator of the county services cluster centered in Adel, roughly 10 miles away.

For a searchable directory of healthcare providers with active NPI registrations in Lenox, the CMS NPI Registry provides current listings.

Library

Cook County Library is the nearest public library, located 1.4 miles from Lenox. Phone: (229) 896-3652. It serves all of Cook County as part of the South Georgia Regional Library system.

Natural Hazards

Cook County has a well-documented history of federally declared disasters. Since 2004, the county has received declarations for:

That's 15 federal declarations in roughly 20 years. South Georgia sits in a corridor where Gulf hurricanes track inland with enough force to cause major wind and flood damage well away from the coast. Residents here have navigated repeated cycles of storm preparation, damage, and federal recovery assistance. This is not theoretical risk — it's a recurring feature of life in the region.

Government & Municipal Code

Lenox operates under a municipal code published through Municode: library.municode.com/ga/lenox-town-georgia

The town does not have a local building code on file through Municode, meaning construction and development standards default to state and county requirements.

Weather

Current forecasts and conditions for Lenox are available through the National Weather Service: - NWS Forecast for Lenox - Active Weather Alerts

The nearest official weather observation station is in Adel, 1.4 miles away.

References

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