Jenkins County, Georgia: History
Jenkins County was created on August 17, 1905, from portions of Bulloch, Burke, Emanuel and Screven counties, and named after the 44th Governor of Georgia, Charles Jones Jenkins. The effort was spearheaded by Robert Gray Daniel (d. May 14, 1934), a director of the local Millen Bank, a 40-year member of the board of education and scion of the county's Daniel family who had large mercantile and farming enterprises.
During the Red Summer of 1919, there was a race riot on April 13, 1919 in Jenkins County, in which white mobs attacked the black community. Prosperous and respected local farmer Joe Ruffin, whose family had historically been slaves working the plantations of the Daniel family, was almost impoverished by the costs of his legal defense and vindication.
For a number of years, the largest employer in the county was Jockey International which employed manual and skilled laborers until reducing then closing operations in September 2007. MI Windows and Doors had a long presence in the county at its manufacturing plant, closing in December 2007.
Jenkins County owns the Millen Airport, which was established to increase local and regional transportation flexibility. Annual assessments show the airport has provided consistent benefit to the people and businesses in the county.