Editing Ray City, Georgia

{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- Basic info  ---------------->
|official_name            = Ray City, Georgia
|other_name               = 
|native_name              = <!-- for cities whose native name is not in English -->
|nickname                 = 
|settlement_type          = [[City]]
|motto                    = 
<!-- images and maps  ----------->
|image_skyline            = Ray City Municipal Building.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Ray City Municipal Building
|image_flag               = 
|flag_size                = 
|image_seal               = Seal of Ray City, Georgia.png
|seal_size                = 
|image_shield             = 
|shield_size              = 
|image_blank_emblem       = 
|blank_emblem_type        = 
|blank_emblem_size        = 
|image_map                = Berrien_County_Georgia_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Ray_City_Highlighted.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location in [[Berrien County, Georgia|Berrien County]] and the state of [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =  
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<!-- Location ------------------>
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Georgia (U.S. state)|Counties]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Berrien County, Georgia|Berrien]], [[Lanier County, Georgia|Lanier]]
|subdivision_type3        = 
|subdivision_name3        = 
|subdivision_type4        = 
|subdivision_name4        = 
<!-- Politics ----------------->
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = Mayor
|leader_name              = Brenda Exum
|leader_title1            = <!-- for places with, say, both a mayor and a city manager -->
|leader_name1             = 
|leader_title2            = 
|leader_name2             = 
|leader_title3            = 
|leader_name3             = 
|leader_title4            = 
|leader_name4             = 
|established_title        = <!-- Settled -->
|established_date         = 
|established_title2       = <!-- Incorporated (town) -->
|established_date2        = 
|established_title3       = <!-- Incorporated (city) -->
|established_date3        = 
<!-- Area    --------------------->
|area_magnitude           = 
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_13.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=December 18, 2021}}</ref>
|area_total_km2           = 2.97
|area_land_km2            = 2.97
|area_water_km2           = 0.00
|area_total_sq_mi         = 1.15
|area_land_sq_mi          = 1.15
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00
|area_water_percent       = 
|area_urban_km2           = 
|area_urban_sq_mi         = 
|area_metro_km2           = 
|area_metro_sq_mi         = 
|area_blank1_title        = 
|area_blank1_km2          = 
|area_blank1_sq_mi        = 
<!-- Population   ----------------------->
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_note          = 
|population_total         = 956
|population_density_km2   = 322.03
|population_density_sq_mi = 834.21
|population_metro         = 
|population_density_metro_km2     = 
|population_density_metro_sq_mi   = 
|population_urban                 = 
|population_density_urban_km2     = 
|population_density_urban_sq_mi   = 
|population_blank1_title          = 
|population_blank1                = 
|population_density_blank1_km2    = 
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<!-- General information  --------------->
|timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = EDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|coordinates              = {{coord|31|4|32|N|83|11|51|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|elevation_footnotes      = <!--for references: use <ref> tags-->
|elevation_m              = 58
|elevation_ft             = 190
<!-- Area/postal codes & others -------->
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 31645
|area_code                = [[Area code 229|229]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 13-63728<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=2008-01-31|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0332800<ref name="GR3">{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov|accessdate=2008-01-31|title=US Board on Geographic Names|publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]]|date=2007-10-25}}</ref>
|website                  = 
|footnotes                = 
|pop_est_as_of            = 
|pop_est_footnotes        = 
|population_est           = 
}}

'''Ray City''' is a city in [[Berrien County, Georgia|Berrien County]] and [[Lanier County, Georgia|Lanier County]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], United States. The population was 956 in 2020.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite web |title=City of Ray City - History |url=https://www.raycityga.gov/ministries |website=www.raycityga.gov |access-date=6 May 2024}}</ref>

==History==
Early variant names were "Ray's Pond" and "Ray's Mill".<ref>{{cite book | url=http://www.kenkrakow.com/gpn/r.pdf| title=Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins | publisher=Winship Press | author=Krakow, Kenneth K. | year=1975 | location=Macon, GA | pages=185 | isbn=0-915430-00-2}}</ref> The community was named after Thomas M. Ray, the proprietor of a local mill.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://georgia.gov/cities-counties/ray-city | title=Ray City | publisher=GeorgiaGov | accessdate=25 May 2019}}</ref>

==Geography==
Ray City is in southern Berrien County, with a small portion extending south into Lanier County. [[U.S. Route 129]] passes through the city, leading north {{convert|10|mi|0}} to [[Nashville, Georgia|Nashville]], the Berrien [[county seat]], and east {{convert|8|mi|0}} to [[Lakeland, Georgia|Lakeland]], the Lanier county seat. [[Georgia State Route 125]] leads south from Ray City {{convert|18|mi}} to [[Valdosta, Georgia|Valdosta]], and [[Georgia State Route 37|State Route 37]] leads west {{convert|14|mi}} to [[Adel, Georgia|Adel]].

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], Ray City has a total area of {{convert|3.0|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|2119|sqm|acre|order=flip|2}}, or 0.07%, are water.<ref name=Gazetteer>{{cite web| url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_13.txt| title=U.S. Gazetteer Files: 2019: Places: Georgia| website=U.S. Census Bureau Geography Division| accessdate=December 9, 2019}}</ref> Beaverdam Creek flows through the middle of the city, and Batterbee Branch flows through the west side. The two streams join west of Ray City to form Cat Creek, a south-flowing tributary of the [[Withlacoochee River (Suwannee River tributary)|Withlacoochee River]], part of the [[Suwannee River]] watershed.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=right
|1910= 300
|1920= 700
|1930= 602
|1940= 638
|1950= 576
|1960= 713
|1970= 617
|1980= 658
|1990= 603
|2000= 746
|2010= 1090
|2020= 956
|estyear=
|estimate=
|estref=
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.html|title=Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decade|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=}}</ref><br> 1850-1870<ref name=1870CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1870 Census of Population - Georgia - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1870|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1870/population/1870a-13.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=|page=}}</ref> 1870-1880<ref name=1880CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1880 Census of Population - Georgia - Population of Civil Divisions less than Counties |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1880|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1880/vol-01-population/1880_v1-09.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=|page=}}</ref><br> 1890-1910<ref name=1910CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1910 Census of Population - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1910|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1910/abstract/supplement-ga.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=|page=}}</ref> 1920-1930<ref name=1930CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1930 Census of Population - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1930|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/03815512v1ch04.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=|pages=251–256}}</ref><br> 1940<ref name=1940CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1940 Census of Population - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1940|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1940/population-volume-1/33973538v1ch04.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref> 1950<ref name=1950CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1950 Census of Population - Georgia |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1950|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/population-volume-2/37779083v2p11ch2.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref> 1960<ref name=1960CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1960 Census of Population - Population of County Subdivisions - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1960|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1960/population-volume-1/vol-01-12-c.pdf|accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref><br> 1970<ref name=1970CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1970 Census of Population - Population of County Subdivisions - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1970|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1970a_ga-01.pdf|accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref> 1980<ref name=1980CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1980 Census of Population - Number of Inhabitants - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1980|url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1980a_gaABC-01.pdf|accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref> 1990<ref name=1990CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 1990 Census of Population - Summary Social, Economic, and Housing Characteristics - Georgia |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 1990|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1990/cph-5/cph-5-12.pdf|accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref><br> 2000<ref name=2000CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 2000 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 2000|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/2003/dec/phc-3-12.pdf |accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref> 2010<ref name=2010CensusGA>{{Cite web|first= |last= |authorlink=   |title= 2010 Census of Population - General Population Characteristics - Georgia  |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|date= 2010|url=https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/2010/cph-2/cph-2-12.pdf|accessdate=|archive-url=| archive-date=}}</ref>
}}

{| class="wikitable"
|+Ray City racial composition as of 2020<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=Explore Census Data|url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US1363728&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P2|access-date=2021-12-18|website=data.census.gov}}</ref>
!Race
!Num.
!Perc.
|-
|[[White (U.S. Census)|White]] (non-Hispanic)
|621
|64.94%
|-
|[[African American (U.S. Census)|Black or African American]] (non-Hispanic)
|205
|21.44%
|-
|[[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]]
|1
|0.1%
|-
|[[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]]
|9
|0.94%
|-
|[[Race (United States Census)|Other/Mixed]]
|39
|4.08%
|-
|[[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]]
|81
|8.47%
|}
As of the [[2020 United States census]], there were 956 people, 484 households, and 313 families residing in the city.

==Education==
Residents of Barrien County are in the [[Berrien County School District]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st13_ga/schooldistrict_maps/c13019_berrien/DC20SD_C13019.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Berrien County, GA|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]]|access-date=2024-09-26}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st13_ga/schooldistrict_maps/c13019_berrien/DC20SD_C13019_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref>

Residents of Lanier County are in the [[Lanier County School District]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st13_ga/schooldistrict_maps/c13173_lanier/DC20SD_C13173.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Lanier County, GA|publisher=[[U.S. Census Bureau]]|access-date=2024-09-26}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st13_ga/schooldistrict_maps/c13173_lanier/DC20SD_C13173_SD2MS.txt Text list]</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Ray City Hotel, Ray City, Georgia (circa 1912).jpg|Ray City Hotel, circa 1912
File:Ray City High School Historic.jpg|Historic Ray City High School
File:Ray City Fire Department.jpg|Fire Department
File:Juanelle Wilson Senior Citizen Center.jpg|Juanelle Wilson Senior Citizen Center
</gallery>

==References==
{{Commons category}}

<references />

{{Berrien County, Georgia}}
{{Lanier County, Georgia}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Cities in Georgia (U.S. state)]]
[[Category:Cities in Berrien County, Georgia]]
[[Category:Cities in Lanier County, Georgia]]