Riceboro, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Riceboro · Liberty County, Georgia
Population 935 (est. 2026: ~400)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + -20.64% annual growth projection

Riceboro, Georgia

Liberty County, Georgia · Population 615

Riceboro sits in the coastal plain of southeastern Georgia, about 35 miles southwest of Savannah and roughly 10 miles from Hinesville, the Liberty County seat. U.S. Highway 17 — the old coastal highway — runs through town, connecting it to the low-country landscape of tidal rivers, longleaf pine, and former rice plantation land that gives the community its name. With a population of 967 by the most recent census count (the city's own figure is 615), Riceboro is a small, predominantly Black community in a county shaped heavily by the presence of Fort Stewart, one of the largest Army installations in the eastern United States. The town does not have the commercial footprint of Hinesville, but it is within easy reach of county services, and its housing costs sit well below state and regional norms.

People & Demographics

Riceboro's population skews older than most small Georgia towns. The median age is 48.8 years — notably higher than Liberty County's overall profile, which is pulled younger by the military-age population at Fort Stewart. Of 967 residents, 884 identify as Black and 52 as white, making this one of the more racially homogeneous communities in a county that is itself more diverse than the Georgia average. Three residents identified as Hispanic or Latino.

There are 394 occupied households, with an average size of 2.45 people. Family households account for 260 of those. Children under 18 number 180, representing roughly 19 percent of the population.

Economy & Employment

The median household income in Riceboro is $43,913, and per capita income comes in at $28,595. Both figures trail state medians for Georgia. Of 420 residents in the labor force, 68 are unemployed — an unemployment rate of roughly 16 percent, which is high by any benchmark and reflects the limited local employment base. Fort Stewart and the Hinesville commercial corridor are the primary employment draws for residents who commute out of town.

Poverty touches 174 residents, or roughly 18 percent of the population — a meaningful share that shapes both housing choices and community services.

Housing

Riceboro's housing market is one of the most affordable in coastal Georgia. The median home value is $85,700, and median gross rent is $747 per month. Of 449 total housing units, 394 are occupied and 55 are vacant — a vacancy rate of about 12 percent. Ownership dominates: 322 of the 394 occupied units are owner-occupied, compared to just 72 renter-occupied. That 82 percent ownership rate is unusually high for a community with income figures this modest and speaks to generational land tenure patterns common in historically Black communities in rural Georgia.

Schools

Riceboro is served by Liberty County Schools. Students in the county attend a network of schools spread across the district rather than neighborhood-specific campuses. Schools serving Liberty County students include:

Elementary (PreK–5): Button Gwinnett Elementary (1,119 students), Waldo Pafford Elementary (831), Joseph Martin Elementary (772), Liberty Elementary (737), Frank Long Elementary (728), Taylors Creek Elementary (625), Lyman Hall Elementary (604)

Middle (6–8): Snelson-Golden Middle (876 students), Lewis Frasier Middle (779), Midway Middle (707)

High School (9–12): Bradwell Institute (1,755 students), Liberty County High School (1,077)

The county operates a large, geographically distributed school system — in part because Fort Stewart families are spread across a wide area.

Getting Around

Riceboro is car-dependent. Of 352 workers, 270 drive alone to work, and 30 carpool. Just 6 use public transit, and 46 work from home. The aggregate commute time for all workers totals 6,870 minutes, suggesting an average one-way trip of roughly 19–20 minutes — consistent with the short drive into Hinesville or toward the Fort Stewart gate. There is no walkable commercial district, and no meaningful pedestrian infrastructure for commuting.

Healthcare

Liberty Regional Medical Center serves as the primary civilian hospital for Liberty County residents. Fort Stewart's Winn Army Community Hospital serves active-duty military and eligible dependents. Neither facility has a CMS rating available in current data.

For a full directory of licensed healthcare providers in Riceboro, the CMS NPI Registry can be queried directly: NPI Registry — Riceboro, GA

Library

The nearest public library is the Hinesville Library, located approximately 4.1 miles away. Contact: (912) 368-4003. The library is part of the Three Rivers Regional Library System, which serves Liberty County residents.

Parks & Recreation

Two National Park Service units are accessible within roughly 45 miles:

The surrounding Liberty County landscape — tidal marshes, barrier islands, and the Altamaha River system — offers fishing, hunting, and wildlife access for those who know where to look.

Natural Hazards

Liberty County has accumulated one of the longer FEMA disaster declaration records in Georgia. Since 1998, the county has been included in 15 federal disaster or emergency declarations:

Residents should treat hurricane preparedness as an annual operational requirement, not a contingency plan. Evacuation routes along U.S. 17 can back up significantly when coastal counties move simultaneously.

Government & Municipal Code

Riceboro's municipal code is published through Municode and available at library.municode.com/ga/riceboro. The municipal code does not include a locally adopted building code.

Weather

Current forecasts for Riceboro are available from the National Weather Service: NWS Forecast — Riceboro, GA

Active weather alerts: NWS Alerts

The nearest official weather observation station is Walthourville 3.4 WNW, located approximately 2.7 miles away.

References

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