Page Contents for Bishop, Georgia

Statistics & Facts

Location

History & History-related items

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Statistics & Facts

The Georgia state capital is Atlanta.
The population of Bishop is approximately 158 (1990), 224 (2010).
The approximate number of families is 71 (1990), 79 (2010).
The amount of land area in Bishop is 2.009 sq. kilometers.
The amount of surface water is 0 sq kilometers.
The distance from Bishop to Washington DC is 513 miles.
The distance to the Georgia state capital is 59 miles. (as the crow flies)
Bishop is positioned 33.81 degrees north of the equator and 83.43 degrees west of the prime meridian.

Location

east of Atlanta and southwest of Athens.
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History & History Related Items

Bishop is named for William Henry Bishop, who was born in Oconee County, Georgia, and farmed there until the outbreak of the Civil War. He immediately enlisted in Cobb's Legion -- a unit commanded by General T.R. Cobb of Athens. The Georgia contingent had its first battle at Antietam in Maryland in which it made an heroic stand in fending off Union forces, and preserving Confederate positions.

As a sergeant, Bishop was at Gettysburg. In the Battle of the Wheatfield, he was wounded in the foot. Since the wound left him ambulatory, he worked as an orderly during his convalescence at the front. He survived until War's end and walked home to Oconee County, Georgia. The railroad had a watering stop across the road from his farm, so his wife generated a small business selling biscuits and other minor food items to passengers. As a result a small town developed there. The original Bishop home was destroyed by fire during the 1980s.

His grand son, George Norman Bishop, was later a Professor at the nearby University of Georgia, and authored a definitive book on tree identification. Honored as a distinguished professor of dendrology, the University of Georgia Arboretum bears his name today.
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