Historic Georgia Rail Junction
Welcome to Union Point, a Greene County rail town where two Georgia Railroad lines once met and a brick storefront-and-mill heritage still stands.
Union Point is a small city in Greene County, in the Piedmont lake country of east-central Georgia, roughly midway between Atlanta and Augusta. The 2020 census counted 1,597 residents. The community was first settled in the 1770s as Thornton's Cross Road, but it took its present identity — and name — from the railroad: the site became the point where two lines of the Georgia Railroad converged, and the town grew as a junction and shipping point for the surrounding agricultural region. Incorporated in the early 1900s, Union Point developed a commercial district of brick storefronts, warehouses, and rail-era lodging. Its most notable industrial landmark is the former Chipman Union Hosiery Mill, a complex of roughly twenty buildings from the late 1800s that once employed much of the town. The Terrace Hotel, which served train passengers and traveling salesmen, is another surviving marker of the rail era. These structures give the city a tangible sense of its nineteenth-century prosperity. Today Union Point is quieter, with a small downtown and a residential core that transitions quickly into farmland and timber. The county seat of Greensboro, about seven miles away, provides most services, and Interstate 20 passes just to the north. Lake Oconee, a major recreation and resort destination in Greene and Putnam counties, lies a short drive away, as does the Oconee National Forest. For residents, Union Point offers an affordable, low-density small-town setting with convenient access to the lake economy and the larger regional hubs of Athens, Atlanta, and Augusta. Its history as a railroad crossroads remains the community's defining story.
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Union Point's housing reflects its industrial and rail past. The oldest stock consists of modest wood-frame mill cottages, Victorian and craftsman-era homes, and early twentieth-century houses on small town lots near the old commercial district. Newer construction and manufactured homes appear on the town's edges and along surrounding county roads. Because the city has grown slowly, prices are relatively modest and much of the inventory is single-family and owner-occupied, with larger acreage parcels available in the surrounding countryside.
Union Point is compact enough to read as one town, with the historic downtown and railroad alignment at its center. The former mill district and the streets around the Terrace Hotel form the older core, while residential blocks spread east and west toward the town limits. Beyond the city, the Greene County countryside is organized around small crossroads communities and lake-oriented developments near Lake Oconee. Greensboro functions as the area's commercial and governmental hub.
Daily life in Union Point is unhurried and community-oriented, centered on churches, schools, and local gatherings. Residents drive to Greensboro for groceries, banking, and services, and to Lake Oconee for boating, golf, and dining. The town's annual events and its preservation of rail-era buildings reflect local pride in its history. Newcomers are drawn by the combination of small-town pace, low density, and proximity to both the lake and the Interstate 20 corridor.
Public school students in Union Point attend the Greene County School System, which operates elementary, middle, and high schools and is based in the county seat of Greensboro. Most school-age children ride a short distance into Greensboro for classes. The district serves the entire county, including the lake-area communities, so families benefit from shared facilities and programming across a modest student population. Private and regional options are available in nearby Athens.
Union Point sits south of Interstate 20, which runs through Greene County and connects the area west to Atlanta and east to Augusta. State routes link the city to Greensboro, Crawfordville, and the surrounding countryside. The original Georgia Railroad alignment remains part of the region's freight network. For air travel, Athens and Atlanta offer the nearest airports, with Hartsfield-Jackson about 80 miles to the west. Daily travel is car-dependent, as in most of rural east-central Georgia.
The defining recreational draw near Union Point is Lake Oconee, a large reservoir shared by Greene and Putnam counties that supports boating, fishing, and a cluster of golf and resort communities. The Oconee National Forest offers hunting, hiking, and camping within a short drive, and the Oconee River corridor adds paddling and wildlife viewing. Local parks and the town's own civic events round out the recreation calendar for residents.
About Union Point
Union Point is in Greene County, in east-central Georgia, roughly midway between Atlanta and Augusta. The county seat is Greensboro, about seven miles away, and the city lies just south of Interstate 20.
Public school students in Union Point attend the Greene County School System, based in nearby Greensboro. The district operates elementary, middle, and high schools serving the entire county, so most Union Point students travel a short distance into Greensboro for classes.
Union Point takes its name from its railroad history. The community, first settled as Thornton's Cross Road, became the junction where two lines of the Georgia Railroad met, and the town grew around that convergence point before incorporating in the early 1900s.
Union Point is a short drive from Lake Oconee, the large reservoir shared by Greene and Putnam counties that anchors the region's boating, fishing, and golf-oriented communities. The lake's marinas, resorts, and waterfront dining are easily reached from the city.
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