Warner Robins

Warner Robins, Georgia
Museum of Aviation at Robins AFB
Nickname(s): The International City, War-Town, The War, Robins
Motto: Georgia's International City
Location in Houston County and the state of Georgia
Coordinates: 32°36′31″N 83°38′17″W / 32.60861°N 83.63806°W / 32.60861; -83.63806
Country	United States
State	Georgia
Counties	Houston, Peach
Founded	September 1, 1942
Government
- Mayor	Donald S. Walker
Area
- Total	22.9 sq mi (59.2 km2)
- Land	22.8 sq mi (59.0 km2)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)  0.39%
Elevation	305 ft (93 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	48,804
- Density	2,143.9/sq mi (827.9/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	Eastern (UTC-4)
Area code(s)	478
FIPS code	13-80508[1]
GNIS feature ID	0333366[2]
Website	www.warner-robins.org

Warner Robins is the 7th largest city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located primarily in Houston County with a small portion in Peach County. The city has its own metropolitan statistical area (Warner Robins metropolitan area. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 48,804.

The official motto of Warner Robins is EDIMGIAFAD, which is an acronym for "Every Day In Middle Georgia Is Armed Forces Appreciation Day". The coining of this phrase is attributed Dr. Dan Callahan, a local civic leader. ^[3]

History

The city was originally named York and, later, Wellston, which was little more than a train stop for local farmers. During World War II, in order to secure a military base, it was renamed after Brigadier General Augustine Warner Robins. The base was originally an Army Air Corps repair depot named Wellston Army Air Corps Air Depot. When the U.S. Air Force was founded in 1947, the base was named Robins Air Force Base and the logistics headquarters was named the Warner Robins Air Materiel Area (WRAMA). That is today called the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center (WR-ALC). The base is the state's largest employer in one location with somewhat over 21,000 personnel, mostly civil servants.

Warner Robins survived a direct strike from an F4 tornado in April 1953. This was one of the earliest tornadoes to be caught on film. The city is nicknamed the "International City;" this comes from the number of people that live there from all over the world brought together by nearby Robins Air Force Base.

BusinessWeek named Warner Robins The Best Places to Raise Your Kids 2009 for the state of Georgia. [1] [2] In May 2009 Warner Robins was listed by the Adversity Index [3] as one of four Georgia metro areas who have had less than nine months of recession over the past 15 years and have only recently been affected by the Global Financial Crisis of 2008-2009. The other listed cities are Atlanta, Athens and Hinesville. The Adversity Index is a joint project between Economy.com and msnbc.com.

Geography

Warner Robins is located at 32°36′31″N 83°38′17″W / 32.60861°N 83.63806°W / 32.60861; -83.63806 (32.608720, -83.638027)^[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.9 square miles (59.2 km²), of which, 22.8 square miles (58.9 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.39%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 48,804 people, 19,550 households, and 13,078 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,143.9 people per square mile (827.9/km²). There were 21,688 housing units at an average density of 952.7/sq mi (367.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 62.50% White, 32.09% African American, 0.30% Native American, 1.79% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 1.24% from other races, and 2.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.80% of the population.

There were 19,550 households out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.3% were married couples living together, 16.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,401, and the median income for a family was $44,217. Males had a median income of $33,030 versus $24,855 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,121. About 11.0% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.

Museum of Aviation

Warner Robins is home to the Museum of Aviation, a four-building complex honoring the history of military aviation.This particular Aviation Museum is one of the most advanced in the country! It is located right next to the Air force base.The main center is the Eagle Building, which contains military memorabilia since World War I. The Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame and a theater showing various films on the military are also located in the building. The museum recently acquired a motion simulator which has some very good simulations in it. Another major building is the Century of Flight Hangar, containing airplanes and ground vehicles. There is also an exhibit and small theater focusing on some famous Middle Georgian politicians and military leaders. Another hangar houses an exhibit on Operation Desert Storm, the Tuskegee Airmen, and additional airplanes. The final building showcases artifacts found on Robins Air Force Base. The museum is free but donations are strongly encouraged. A cafe, gift shop, picnic tables, playground, and an outdoor amphitheatre are also on the grounds. Many families and school groups visit the museum, and it is one of Warner Robins' main tourist attractions. It is also the 4th largest aviation museum in the country.

On Oct. 17, 2008, the World War II hangar with interactive exhibits was formally dedicated. It is approximately a $6 million facility and exhibit.

Baseball

In 1958, Claude Lewis, director of the Warner Robins Recreation Department, invented the game of tee-ball. The first game was played in March of that year with 20 children participating. Lewis wrote rules for the new game and sent rule books out to recreation departments all over the country. In 2006, a field was dedicated and named for Lewis, "The Father of Tee-Ball", at the Warner Robins American Little League complex.

Warner Robins Little League won the 2007 Little League World Series 3-2 against Tokyo, Japan. This was the third time Georgia was represented in the Little League World Series and the third championship that the United States has won in a row (and the second consecutive for a Georgia team; the team from Columbus, Georgia won the 2006 title).[4]

On November 14, 2008 it was announced by Little League International that Warner Robins was in the running to be the city to host the Southeast Region Headquarters of Little League Baseball and Softball. The current Headquarters is in Gulfport, Florida. Morganton, North Carolina was also in the running. [5] On December 9, 2008 the Little League International Board of Directors unanimously voted for Warner Robins to become the new Southeast Region Headquarters. Games will be played in Warner Robins starting in 2010. [6]

Urban redevelopment

As of January 2007, the city of Warner Robins is currently working on redeveloping and renewing areas that have suffered from urban decay and/or abandonment through neglect and city growth. The city's plans also include to eventually create a downtown area that will include shopping, entertainment and restaurants and hopefully in the process promote and attract more commercial business to the area.[7]

A recent positive development in the downtown area was the decision of the Warner Robins Area Chamber to purchase and renovate property at 1228 Watson Boulevard for a new chamber headquarters. The organization had looked into various sites throughout Houston County but the final decision was to remain in downtown Warner Robins. In November 2007, the chamber was recently recognized by the organization Keep Warner Robins Beautiful for its efforts at redeveloping and enhancing this property.

Notable residents

• Danny "Boone" Alexander (lead singer of the band Rehab)
• Eddie Anderson (Former NFL football player. Played for the Oakland Raiders)
• Russell Branyan (Major League Baseball player)
• James Brooks (Auburn University football great (1977-1980) and NFL player (1981-1993))
• Kal Daniels, former outfielder for the Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago Cubs.
• Bobbie Eakes, Emmy-nominated actress and singer
• Patrick Henry (Associate Head Coach - Basketball, Texas State University)
• Phil Horan (ex-drummer in Athens, Georgia band, Maserati).
• Willis Hunt, senior federal judge for the Northern District of Georgia
• Mark Johnson former member of the Chicago White Sox.
• Amanda Kozak, Miss Georgia 2006, 2nd runner up Miss America 2007, and Miss Georgia USA 2008
• Victoria Principal (Star of the 80's classic "Dallas")
• Willie Reid, current player for the Philadelphia Eagles.
• Mike Richardson, National Football League cornerback for the New England Patriots
• Gen Robert Lee Scott, Jr. (1908-2006), notable Air Force Pilot and author of "God is My Copilot"
• Ron Simmons (former football player and professional wrestler with WCW and the WWF)
• Stillwater (Southern Rock Band)
• Chansi Stuckey (Current player for the New York Jets in the NFL).
• Neysa Wilkins (Award Winning News Anchor/ Current News Channel 7 Panama City Florida Anchor; Former WMGT-TV Macon Anchor)
• Hollywood Harris (Current professional wrestler in training for WWE; undisclosed family member of WWE Sueperstar Ron Simmons)
• Will Thompson (Football player defensive standout at the University of Georgia, currently Arena Football defensive lineman with the Georgia Force)

Entertainment

Warner Robins has made its contributions to the entertainment world as well in television and music. Victoria Principal was a star of the television series Dallas, Bobbie Eakes who was famous for her roles in The Bold and the Beautiful and All My Children daytime soaps. Musically, Warner Robins has contributed as well with commercial and locally popular acts in its history. The "Southern rock" band Stillwater formed in 1973 have broken up and reformed several times thru the years. Notable members were Michael Causey and Bobby Golden. They to date have released two albums I Reserve the Right! in 1979 and Running Free in 1997. In the late 1970s they toured with and opened for acts such as Atlanta Rhythm Section and The Charlie Daniels Band. They officially broke up last in 1998. Most recently popular commercial successful act has been the group Rehab who is active. Notable members include Danny Alexander and Mike Hartnett. They have released 2 major albums and have charted 2 singles. Most notably the single "Sittin in a Bar". They have toured with acts such as Linkin Park and Kid Rock. Some of the locally popular acts to emerge from Warner Robins that didn't have the commercial success were bands during the 80s like the hard rock band Andromeda with members Steve Price(drums) and Steve Shuemate(guitar) which saw their most popular times during the mid 80s. They were a participant in a "Battle of the Bands" in Macon, Georgia in the mid 80s. Andromeda disbanded in the very late 80s. Traxx a metal band which formed in the latter 80s and had members such as James Jones and Michael Moore had a local following as well but toured the state mostly playing in Savannah, Georgia and Columbus, Georgia and didn't play much at home in Warner Robins. They disbanded in the early 90s as well after the fall off of the "Metal and Glam Metal" scene.

Education

The portion of Warner Robins in Houston County is within the Houston County School System. The Houston County school system has 35 schools. Four of them are high schools with another one due to open in August 2010.

The portion in Peach County is within the Peach County Schools. Peach County has six schools one being a county-wide high school.

Colleges and universities

• Georgia Military College
• Macon State College
• Middle Georgia Technical College

High schools

• Houston County High School
• Houston County Career and Technology Center
• Northside High School
• Warner Robins High School
• Elberta Center
• (Veterans High School opening August 2010.)

References

Externals links

• Warner Robins Community Magazine
• Official City Website
• Warner Robins Chamber of Commerce
• Official Miss Warner Robins Scholarship Website
• New Georgia Encyclopedia article on Warner Robins

• Warner Robins, Georgia is at coordinates 32°36′31″N 83°38′17″W / 32.60872°N 83.638027°W / 32.60872; -83.638027 (Warner Robins, Georgia)Coordinates: 32°36′31″N 83°38′17″W / 32.60872°N 83.638027°W / 32.60872; -83.638027 (Warner Robins, Georgia)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Houston County, Georgia County seat: Perry Cities Byron‡ | Centerville | Perry‡ | Warner Robins‡ CDP Robins AFB Unincorporated communities Bonaire | Clinchfield | Dunbar | Elberta | Elko | Grovania | Hayneville | Henderson | Kathleen | Klondike Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Peach County, Georgia County seat: Fort Valley Cities Byron‡ | Fort Valley | Perry‡ | Warner Robins‡ Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

v • d • e Macon-Warner Robins-Fort Valley Combined Statistical Area Principal cities Macon • Warner Robins • Fort Valley Municipalities Allentown • Byron • Centerville • Culloden • Danville • Forsyth • Gray • Jeffersonville • Perry • Roberta Other communities Avondale • Bolingbroke • Bonaire • Clinchfield • Dunbar • Elberta • Elko • Franklinton • Haddock • Juliette • Kathleen • Knoxville • Lizella • Musella • Robins AFB • Sofkee • Smarr • Walden Counties Bibb • Crawford • Houston • Jones • Monroe • Peach • Twiggs CSA components Macon Metropolitan Statistical Area • Warner Robins Metropolitan Statistical Area • Fort Valley Micropolitan Statistical Area

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