Editing Douglas, Georgia (section)

==History==
Douglas was founded in 1855 as the seat of the newly formed Coffee County.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=REtEXQNWq6MC&pg=PA228 | title=Historical Gazetteer of the United States | publisher=Routledge | date=May 13, 2013 | access-date=November 30, 2013 | author=Hellmann, Paul T. | pages=228| isbn=978-1135948597 }}</ref> It was named for Senator [[Stephen A. Douglas]] from Illinois, a renowned [[stump speech (politics)|stump speaker]] who was the challenger to [[Abraham Lincoln]] in the [[1860 United States presidential election|presidential election of 1860]].<ref>{{cite book | url=http://www.kenkrakow.com/gpn/d.pdf | title=Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins | publisher=Winship Press | author=Krakow, Kenneth K. | year=1975 | location=Macon, GA | pages=64 | isbn=0-915430-00-2}}</ref>

Douglas was chartered as a town in 1895 and as a city in 1897. In 1895, the railroad came to Douglas and the community began to boom.<ref>[http://www.cityofdouglas.com/web/index.php City of Douglas - A Georgia City of Excellence. Retrieved 13 May 2008.] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511173145/http://www.cityofdouglas.com/web/index.php |date=May 11, 2008 }}</ref> In 1909, the [[Georgia and Florida Railroad (1926–63)|Georgia and Florida Railway]] located its offices in Douglas.

The Eleventh District Agricultural & Mechanical School was established in Douglas in 1906. In 1927, [[South Georgia State College|South Georgia College]] was founded as Georgia's first state-supported junior college.

During the 1920s and 1930s, Douglas was one of the major tobacco markets in the state. Much of this history is depicted in the Heritage Station Museum, located in the former Georgia and Florida Railway train station on Ward Street in downtown Douglas.

Douglas has two areas listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]: the downtown and Gaskin Avenue historic districts. They were added to the list in 1989.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://douglas.georgia.gov/05/home/0,2230,8609704,00.html |title=georgia.gov – City of Douglas. Retrieved 14 March 2008. |access-date=May 14, 2008 |archive-date=April 18, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080418060454/http://douglas.georgia.gov/05/home/0,2230,8609704,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In the aftermath of the [[2020 United States presidential election]], Douglas gained national attention when [[Georgia election racketeering prosecution#Coffee County election equipment breach|the elections office for Coffee County was visited by lawyers for President Trump]] on the day after the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack|January 6 incident at the US Capitol]], after Coffee County elections officials were unable to certify results in a mandatory recount following a close win in the state by Joe Biden over President Trump.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Pratt |first1=Timothy |title=Trump's Georgia charges thrust Coffee county in to the spotlight. Its people seek accountability |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/sep/15/georgia-trump-indictment-coffee-county-elections-conspiracy |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=15 September 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Guff |first1=Samantha |last2=Reeve |first2=Elle |title='Crooked Coffee': The alleged election office breach in the Trump indictment was part of a years-long pattern, some locals say |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/02/politics/georgia-coffee-county-breach-voters/index.html |work=CNN |date=2 September 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=WALB News |date=2020-12-08 |title=Letter: Coffee Co. cannot certify results from second statewide recount |url=https://www.walb.com/2020/12/08/letter-coffee-co-cannot-certify-results-second-statewide-recount/ |access-date=2025-02-15 |website=WALB |language=en}}</ref>

In late September 2024, Douglas was in the direct path of [[Hurricane Helene]], which resulted in widespread damage and power outages. A wind gust of {{convert|80|kn|mph|abbr=on}} was recorded in Douglas during the storm, with 80-85% of homes in Coffee County suffering damage.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-03-21 |title=To Helene and back: Coffee County reeling after storm unleashes its full fury – Douglas Now |url=https://douglasnow.com/2024/09/28/to-helene-and-back-coffee-county-reeling-after-storm-unleashes-its-full-fury/ |access-date=2025-03-22 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=First Alert Weather |date=2025-03-19 |title=Weather Blog: NOAA NHC releases full report on Hurricane Helene |url=https://www.wrdw.com/2025/03/19/weather-blog-noaa-nhc-releases-full-report-hurricane-helene/ |access-date=2025-03-22 |website=WRDW |language=en}}</ref>