Phillipsburg, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Phillipsburg · Tift County, Georgia
Population 507 (est. 2026: ~0)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + -61.93% annual growth projection

Phillipsburg, Georgia

Tift County, Georgia · Population 640

Phillipsburg sits in the flat, agricultural heart of South Georgia, tucked inside Tift County just outside Tifton — the county seat and regional hub that effectively functions as Phillipsburg's downtown. As a Census-Designated Place rather than an incorporated municipality, Phillipsburg has no city hall, no mayor, and no local police force. It is a residential pocket, predominantly Black, with deep roots in the rural South Georgia landscape. The nearest metro influence comes from Valdosta to the south and Albany to the northwest, but for day-to-day life, Tifton is the city that matters.

People & Demographics

The ACS 2022 estimate puts Phillipsburg's population at 467, within a CDP that carries a broader population figure of 640. The community is overwhelmingly Black — 304 of the counted residents, with no White or Asian population recorded in the survey data. The median age is 31.1, meaningfully younger than Georgia's statewide median, which reflects a population with a substantial share of children: 162 residents under 18 in a community of 201 households. Average household size runs at 2.32 people. Family households account for 117 of the 201 total.

Tift County as a whole holds 41,344 residents, meaning Phillipsburg represents a small but demographically distinct slice of the county's population.

Economy & Employment

The economic picture here is stark. Median household income sits at $23,942 — less than half of Georgia's statewide median household income, which hovers around $61,000. Per capita income is $14,236. Of the 467 counted residents, 254 fall below the poverty line, representing a poverty rate exceeding 54%. That figure is among the most severe seen in small South Georgia CDPs.

The labor force count is 60, with 52 total workers recorded. Zero unemployment is reported in the survey data, though the extremely small labor force sample size limits the interpretive value of that figure. Most employment connects to Tifton's economy — agriculture, healthcare, retail, and light manufacturing anchor the broader county job base. Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, located in Tifton, is a significant regional employer and educational institution reachable by phone at (229) 391-5001.

Housing

Phillipsburg has 316 total housing units, but 115 of those sit vacant — a vacancy rate of 36.4%, which is exceptionally high and signals a housing stock that outpaces current demand or has seen significant disinvestment. Of the 201 occupied units, 129 are renter-occupied and 72 are owner-occupied, making this a majority-renter community. Renters pay a median of $816 per month. No valid median home value is available in the dataset.

The rental cost of $816 is notable in context: in a community where median household income is $23,942, rent alone at that rate would consume roughly 41% of gross monthly income for a median-income household, well above standard affordability thresholds.

Schools

Phillipsburg falls within the Tift County School System. Students attend schools that serve the broader county, all located in or near Tifton:

The county runs a single high school, Tift County High, which draws all secondary students countywide.

Getting Around

Of 52 workers with recorded commute data, 41 drove alone and 11 carpooled. No workers are recorded using public transit, walking, or working from home. This is an entirely car-dependent community, consistent with rural South Georgia broadly. Tifton sits on I-75, which gives residents reasonable highway access north toward Macon and Atlanta or south toward Valdosta and the Florida line.

Healthcare

Tift Regional Medical Center serves as the area hospital, located in Tifton. For a searchable directory of individual healthcare providers registered in Phillipsburg with the National Provider Identifier registry, visit the NPI Registry.

Library

The Tifton-Tift County Public Library is the closest public library, 1.2 miles from Phillipsburg. Phone: (229) 386-7148. It serves the full county and provides the nearest point of public internet access, programming, and physical collections for Phillipsburg residents.

Natural Hazards

Tift County has a long and active federal disaster declaration history. Anyone moving here should understand that South Georgia is repeatedly in the path of Atlantic and Gulf storm systems.

Recent and notable declarations:

The 2024 season was particularly active, with Tift County receiving four separate federal declarations within a two-month window. Flood insurance, storm shutters, and emergency preparedness are not optional considerations here — they are baseline expectations.

Government & Municipal Code

Phillipsburg is a Census-Designated Place, not an incorporated town, which means it has no elected municipal government. Tift County government covers services and zoning. A municipal code is published via Municode for reference: Phillipsburg CDP Municipal Code. No local building code is in place.

Weather

Current forecasts and conditions are available through the National Weather Service. The nearest weather observation station is Tifton, 1.1 miles away.

South Georgia summers are hot and humid, with heat indices regularly exceeding 100°F. Atlantic hurricane season runs June through November and, as the FEMA record shows, Tift County experiences real impacts from named storms on a recurring basis.

References

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