ABOUT FAYETTE COUNTY

Formed: In 1821 from Creek Indian territory.

Named for: The Marquis de LaFayette, one of Gen. George Washington's commanders in the Revolutionary War.

Population: 96,611, 18th of 159 counties in Georgia (2002 Census Bureau estimate).

Area: 199 square miles.

Top employers (nongovernment; listed alphabetically):
• Fayette Community Hospital Inc.
• Hoshizaki America Inc.
• Matsushita Communication/Panasonic
• NCR Corp.
• Photocircuits Corp.
• Wal-Mart Assoc. Inc.

Sales tax: 5 percent.

County millage: 31.72.

Municipalities: Brooks, Fayetteville, Peachtree City, Tyrone, Woolsey.

Did you know?

• Peachtree City features more than 80 miles of paved trails that connect residents with shopping, schools and restaurants.

• The Fayette County Courthouse in Fayetteville was built in 1825, making it the oldest courthouse in the state.

• Dr. Ferrol Sams, author of "Run With the Horseman" and other novels about the rural South, is from Fayette County.

For more about the county:

• Fayette County Chamber of Commerce, 200 Courthouse Square, Fayetteville 30214. 770-461-9983; fax: 770-461-9622; www.fayettechamber.org.

ABOUT COWETA COUNTY

Formed: 1826.

Named for: The Coweta Indians, a Creek tribe that was headed by William McIntosh Jr., who was half Scot, half Creek.

Population: 97,771, 17th of 159 counties in Georgia (2002 Census Bureau estimate).

Area: 446 square miles.

Top employers (nongovernment; listed alphabetically):
• Kmart Corp.
• Newnan Hospital
• Wal-Mart Assoc. Inc.
• William L. Bonnell
• Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Co.

Sales tax: 7 percent.

County millage: 24.17.

Municipalities: Grantville, Haralson, Moreland, Newnan, Senoia, Sharpsburg, Turin.

Did you know?

• Newnan, the county seat, was named for Gen. Daniel Newnan, who fought in the Indian Wars and the War of 1812 and later served in the Georgia General Assembly.

• Among notables from Coweta are former Gov. Ellis Gibbs Arnall, who worked to make Georgia the first state to lower the voting age to 18 and also helped repeal the poll tax, and columnist and author Lewis Grizzard of Moreland.

For more about the county:

• Newnan-Coweta Chamber of Commerce, 23 Bullsboro Drive, P.O. Box 1103, Newnan 30264; 770-253-2270; fax: 770-253-2271; www.ncchamber.org.

Sources: Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia, Census Bureau, Georgia Department of Labor, staff research.