The peeling paint on the doors of this building on Madison Street in Dublin, Ga., illustrates the tough time that parts of the Laurens County community are having. Nearby in one direction is the tallest building in town, an old bank now empty. A few doors away on the other side, a pool hall is for sale.
Dublin suffered during the recent recession as the unemployment rate for Laurens County, where Dublin (population 16,201) is the county seat, rose to 13.8 percent in July 2011. Two years later it was about two points lower, but was down to 9.4 percent in December 2013, according to federal government data found at this site.
Some 23.6 percent of residents of Laurens County (population 48,434) live in poverty, according to Census data
Photo taken Feb. 16, 2014 by Andy Brack. All rights reserved.