Talking Rock, Georgia
20 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1886 and the latest in 1981. It stands in the Talking Rock census division. It lies in ZIP code area 30175. It stands on Mill Creek. The Survey maps it on the Talking Rock quadrangle. 91 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,093 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresTalking Rock grew from 64 to 91 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 64 | |
| 2020 | 91 | +27 (+42%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
11 surveys from 20 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1886 USGS Dalton quadrangle1:125000
- 1892 USGS Dalton quadrangle1:125000
- 1897 USGS Dalton quadrangle1:125000, 4 printings
- 1914 USGS Talking Rock quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1916 USGS Talking Rock quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1955 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1961 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1963 USGS Rome quadrangle1:250000
- 1971 USGS Talking Rock quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1981 USGS Dalton quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
311 since 1992Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 311 fires within 5 miles of Talking Rock between 1992 and 2019, burning about 1,109 acres in total. 5 started naturally. 84 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 131 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 84 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 27 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 18 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 16 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 14 |
| Smoking | 11 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 5 |
| Natural | 5 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2002 | Misuse of fire by a minor | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-LUMPKIN-003 |
| 8 September 1997 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
| 4 September 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 1.0 acres | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-PICKENS-010 |
| 4 September 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-PICKENS-009 |
| 4 September 2002 | Railroad operations and maintenance | 301 acres | Georgia Forestry Commission | FY2003-PICKENS-008 |
| 3 September 1994 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
| 26 September 1998 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
| 11 September 1993 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Georgia Forestry Commission | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
10 of 19 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 19 workings within 5 miles of Talking Rock: 8 past producers, 6 producers, 4 prospects, 1 plant. 7 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Marble, Dimension, Mica, Gold. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Betz Mine | Gold | Past Producer | ||
| Mill No 4 Ga Marble Co | Dolomite | Producer | ||
| J F Hillhouse Prospects | Mica | Prospect | ||
| J L Mullinax Prospect | Mica | Prospect | ||
| W J Garrison Prospect | Mica | Prospect | ||
| Lots 142 & 143 | Marble, Dimension | Prospect | ||
| Marble Quarry Unnamed | Marble, Dimension | Past Producer | ||
| Marble Quarry Unnamed | Marble, Dimension | Past Producer | ||
| Marble Quarry Unnamed | Marble, Dimension | Past Producer | ||
| Unnamed Marble Mine | Marble, Dimension | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
11 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Talking Rock in 11 storm reports between 1998 and 2026: 4 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 2 flash flood, 1 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Talking Rock | $300,000 | A damage survey conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Peachtree City, Georgia and the Pickens County Emergency Management Director confirmed that extensive damage to trees and property across the northern half of Pickens county was the result of a 75 mph straight-line thunderstorm winds. Two large chicken houses, just south-southwest of Talking Rock, collapsed and were destroyed. Eight homes in the same general area suffered minor damage from downed trees and/or tree limbs. In Jasper, the roof of a large building was removed by the strong winds. It should be noted, however, that this roof was built on top of an existing roof. Several power lines were also down in the area between Talking Rock and Jasper. |
| September 2008 | Lightning | Talking Rock | $200,000 | The Pickens County Progress reported that lightning struck two homes west of Jasper. A home on Hobson Drive was struck and set on fire causing considerable electrical and smoke damage to the home. However, the house was apparently not destroyed. Another home in the 3600 block of Georgia Highway 53 was also struck and set on fire by lightning. The home was completely destroyed. |
| January 2009 | Flood | Talking Rock | $5,000 | The Pickens County Progress of Jasper reported that heavy rain pushed many creeks in the county out of their banks. Talking Rock Creek rose from one foot to eight feet. Part of Talking Rock Highway had to be closed because of a mudslide. Several other roads were closed because of localized flooding, including Petit, Jordan, Mineral Springs, Fortner, and Thompson Lane. Damage was limited to debris removal, mostly as a result of the mudslide. |
| December 2004 | Thunderstorm Wind | Talking Rock | $5,000 | The public reported that a tree fell on a car while traveling on a roadway. |
| May 2003 | Flash Flood | Talking Rock | $5,000 | The Pickens county 911 center reported that very heavy rain had quickly forced Price Creek above flood stage resulting in flooding of nearby areas between Georgia Highway 136 and the Gilmer county line along and near East Price Creek Road. |
| April 1998 | Flash Flood | Talking Rock | $5,000 | There was some flooding in Pickens county when Mill Creek overflowed its banks. The Post Office had some water around it. |
| June 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Talking Rock | $3,000 | The Pickens County Emergency Management Director reported that around a dozen trees were down between Talking Rock and the Cherokee County line, southeast of Talmadge. Pea-sized hail was also observed in the far western part of the county. |
| February 2026 | Hail | Talking Rock | - | Quarter sized hail reported near the intersection of hidden creek road and jones road. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Talking Rock | - | A tree was downed on highway 53 at Garrison Rd. |
| July 2003 | Hail | Talking Rock | - | The Pickens county 911 center reported penny to golf ball-sized hail. |
| July 2003 | Hail | Talking Rock | - | The Pickens county 911 center reported penny-sized hail in Talking Rock and the public reported penny-sized hail in Ludville. |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carns Mill | 1.2 miles | 20 | |
| Rober (historical) | 1.4 miles | 20 | |
| Keasley (historical) | 1.7 miles | 20 | |
| Blaine | 2.8 miles | 20 | |
| West Brook | 2.9 miles | 21 | |
| Ruden | 4.1 miles | 21 | |
| Hinton | 4.6 miles | 19 | |
| Clipper | 4.7 miles | 20 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Talking Rock | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2585697 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 356579. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.










