The City of Marietta announced on its website that the 4th annual Lemon Street Classic will be held on December 21, 22 and 23, 2023.
The event features three days of basketball tournament for young athletes. More than 25 high schools from around the state and five from out-of-state are scheduled to participate.
According to the news release:
The name of the event pays homage to the area’s only school for minorities during segregation. The Lemon Street School was a place of community and pride for the Black community in Marietta and throughout Cobb County. The last graduating class was in 1966, before its integration with Marietta High School and various Cobb County Schools. Lemon Street Elementary School has recently been added to the Georgia Registry of Historic Places.
“We are fortunate to have an event like Lemon Street Classic in our community, not only from a tourism standpoint, but from a historical standpoint as well,” said Rachel Rogers, Director of Sports Sales & Engagement at Cobb Travel & Tourism and the Cobb Sports Alliance. “Lemon Street has such a rich history, and to see it honored in a unique way is a testament to the innovation and thoughtfulness of the sports community in Cobb.”
The Marietta High School Boys Basketball team will be playing as Lemon Street High School to honor the historic Black school.
The following statements by people involved in organizing the tournament were provided on the city’s website:
“We are honored to wear the Lemon Street Hornets uniforms and represent all those that came before us, just as we do when we put on the Marietta Blue Devils uniform,” said Coach Nicholas Estes, Varsity Assistant Boys Basketball Coach at Marietta High School for the news release. “We hope to inspire and untie our community through this event and hope to make our city proud.”
“We began this event to honor the history of Lemon Street and now it’s taken a history of its own. We have been honored to recognize many alumni from Lemon Street over the past three years, while enjoying high level high school basketball games in the background,” said Head Coach Markus Hood for the Marietta Blue Devils.
“It’s a great sense of community when you are able to honor someone for who they were, when they may feel their voice was taken away from them with the demolition of their high school,” said Director of the Lemon Street Classic, John Silvey. “I love seeing their faces, or the joy in their family’s faces when they are recognized, and they realize they haven’t been forgotten.”
To purchase tickets, visit https://lemonstreetclassic.com.
To read the complete news release on the City of Marietta website, follow this link.
About the City of Marietta
The City of Marietta is the county seat of Cobb County. The latest estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau puts the population of the city at 60,867 which makes it the second largest city in Cobb County by population, smaller only than the newly incorporated City of Mableton.
Here are a few quick facts from the Census Bureau
| Marietta city, Georgia | |
| Population, Census, April 1, 2020 | 60972 |
| Population, Census, April 1, 2010 | 56579 |
| Age and Sex | |
| Persons under 5 years, percent | 6.7% |
| Persons under 18 years, percent | 21.8% |
| Persons 65 years and over, percent | 13.2% |
| Female persons, percent | 49.9% |
| Race and Hispanic Origin | |
| White alone, percent | 53.4% |
| Black or African American alone, percent(a) | 32.3% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native alone, percent(a) | 0.6% |
| Asian alone, percent(a) | 1.9% |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, percent(a) | 0.0% |
| Two or More Races, percent | 4.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino, percent(b) | 15.7% |
| White alone, not Hispanic or Latino, percent | 46.4% |
| Population Characteristics | |
| Veterans, 2016-2020 | 2678 |
| Foreign born persons, percent, 2016-2020 | 16.6% |
| Housing | |
| Owner-occupied housing unit rate, 2016-2020 | 44.0% |
| Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2016-2020 | $310,100 |
| Median selected monthly owner costs -with a mortgage, 2016-2020 | $1,856 |
| Median selected monthly owner costs -without a mortgage, 2016-2020 | $526 |
| Median gross rent, 2016-2020 | $1,145 |
| Families & Living Arrangements | |
| Households, 2016-2020 | 24148 |
| Persons per household, 2016-2020 | 2.39 |
| Living in same house 1 year ago, percent of persons age 1 year+, 2016-2020 | 77.9% |
| Language other than English spoken at home, percent of persons age 5 years+, 2016-2020 | 23.7% |
| Computer and Internet Use | |
| Households with a computer, percent, 2016-2020 | 95.1% |
| Households with a broadband Internet subscription, percent, 2016-2020 | 86.6% |
| Education | |
| High school graduate or higher, percent of persons age 25 years+, 2016-2020 | 88.6% |
| Bachelor’s degree or higher, percent of persons age 25 years+, 2016-2020 | 44.0% |
| Health | |
| With a disability, under age 65 years, percent, 2016-2020 | 6.3% |
| Persons without health insurance, under age 65 years, percent | 20.2% |
| Economy | |
| In civilian labor force, total, percent of population age 16 years+, 2016-2020 | 67.2% |
| In civilian labor force, female, percent of population age 16 years+, 2016-2020 | 61.2% |
| Total accommodation and food services sales, 2012 ($1,000)(c) | 264544 |
| Total health care and social assistance receipts/revenue, 2012 ($1,000)(c) | 1584232 |
| Total manufacturers shipments, 2012 ($1,000)(c) | 1129407 |
| Total retail sales, 2012 ($1,000)(c) | 1976915 |
| Total retail sales per capita, 2012(c) | $33,875 |
| Transportation | |
| Mean travel time to work (minutes), workers age 16 years+, 2016-2020 | 28.5 |
| Income & Poverty | |
| Median household income (in 2020 dollars), 2016-2020 | $59,594 |
| Per capita income in past 12 months (in 2020 dollars), 2016-2020 | $36,112 |
| Persons in poverty, percent | 14.1% |
| Businesses | |
| All firms, 2012 | 10501 |
| Men-owned firms, 2012 | 4934 |
| Women-owned firms, 2012 | 4186 |
| Minority-owned firms, 2012 | 4286 |
| Nonminority-owned firms, 2012 | 5502 |
| Veteran-owned firms, 2012 | 1015 |
| Nonveteran-owned firms, 2012 | 8663 |
| Geography | |
| Population per square mile, 2010 | 2451.4 |
| Land area in square miles, 2010 | 23.08 |
