Walnut Grove, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Walnut Grove · Walton County, Georgia
Population 1,594 (est. 2026: ~1,900)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + 5.71% annual growth projection

Walnut Grove, Georgia

Walton County, Georgia · Population 1,322

Walnut Grove sits in the eastern half of Walton County, about 45 miles east of Atlanta along the US-78 corridor. It is a small, quiet city that functions less as a commercial hub and more as a residential anchor — the kind of place where households are established, children are raised, and most working adults drive somewhere else for the day. Monroe, the Walton County seat roughly 10 miles to the southeast, is where residents find the courthouse, the regional hospital, and the county library. Walnut Grove's identity is suburban-rural: orderly, owner-occupied, and older than many surrounding communities.

People & Demographics

The ACS 2022 estimate places Walnut Grove's population at 1,620, with a median age of 45.2 — meaningfully older than the typical Georgia community. The town counts 689 households, 474 of which are family households, with an average household size of 2.35. Children under 18 number 232.

Racial composition is predominantly white (1,340), with smaller Black (53), Asian (49), and Hispanic/Latino (64) populations. Walton County as a whole holds 96,673 residents, meaning Walnut Grove accounts for roughly 1.7% of the county's population — a small slice of a mid-sized exurban county that has grown steadily as Atlanta's sprawl moves east.

Economy & Employment

The median household income in Walnut Grove is $78,750, and per capita income sits at $32,906. For context, Georgia's median household income hovers around $61,000–$65,000 at the state level, placing Walnut Grove comfortably above average.

Of 975 residents in the labor force, 31 are unemployed — a low figure relative to the labor force size. The economy here is not locally self-contained. Most working residents commute out. An estimated 162 residents fall below the federal poverty line.

Housing

Walnut Grove's 741 total housing units are nearly fully occupied — only 52 sit vacant. Of 689 occupied units, 554 are owner-occupied and 135 are renter-occupied, yielding an owner-occupancy rate of approximately 80%. That's a strong ownership rate that reflects the community's established, residential character.

The median home value is $208,500. Median gross rent runs $1,197 per month. Both figures are consistent with Walton County's broader market, which remains less expensive than Metro Atlanta while benefiting from proximity to it.

Schools

Walnut Grove students attend Walton County Schools. The district's schools serving this area include:

High school students are served by Monroe Area High School, located in Monroe, reinforcing the functional relationship between Walnut Grove and the county seat. Elementary enrollment numbers across the district reflect a county that has absorbed significant population growth over the past two decades.

Among Walnut Grove residents 25 and older (1,181 total), 460 hold a high school diploma as their highest credential. Bachelor's degrees are held by 77 residents; master's degrees by 34. No doctoral degree holders were recorded in the ACS 2022 data.

Getting Around

Walnut Grove is a car-required community. Of 944 workers, 694 drove alone to work. Seventy-five carpooled. Zero used public transit. Zero walked. Notably, 145 worked from home — about 15% of the workforce, a figure that reflects pandemic-era shifts that have held for many exurban households.

The aggregate commute travel time totals 25,200 minutes across all workers, suggesting an average one-way commute of roughly 27 minutes. Atlanta's eastern suburbs and the Monroe commercial corridor are the most likely destinations.

Healthcare

The nearest hospital is Piedmont Walton Hospital in Monroe, the primary acute-care facility serving Walton County. Ridgeview Institute Monroe, also in Monroe, provides behavioral health services. Both are within the Monroe area, approximately 10 miles from Walnut Grove.

For specific local providers, the CMS NPI Registry can be searched directly: NPI Provider Search — Walnut Grove, GA

Library

The Monroe-Walton County Library serves as the public library for the region and sits approximately 2.3 miles from Walnut Grove. Contact: (770) 267-4630. The library is part of the broader public services infrastructure centered in Monroe.

Parks & Recreation

Two National Park Service units are within regional reach:

The Island Ford Visitor Center (Chattahoochee River NRA) is approximately 36.6 miles away. Both NPS destinations are day-trip accessible from Walnut Grove.

Natural Hazards

Walton County has a documented FEMA disaster history stretching back to 1973. Winter weather is a recurring threat — severe winter storms triggered federal emergency declarations in 1993, 2000, 2014, and as recently as January 2026. Tornado and wind events have struck in 1973 and 1993. The county fell under Hurricane Irma declarations in September 2017 and Hurricane Helene emergency status in September 2024, both events affecting inland Georgia more severely than their coastal origins might suggest. COVID-19 produced two federal declarations in March 2020. A 1977 drought declaration rounds out the record.

Residents should monitor active weather alerts for the area: NWS Alerts — Walnut Grove

Government & Municipal Code

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

Weather

Current forecasts are available through the National Weather Service: NWS Forecast — Walnut Grove, GA

The nearest weather observation station is Monroe 1.8 ENE, approximately 0.6 miles from the community.

References

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