Meriwether County, in west central Georgia was created in 1827 from 503 square miles taken from Troup County.

Greenville is the county seat. In addition to Greenville, incorporated towns in Meriwether County include Gay, Lone Oak, Luthersville, Manchester, Warm Springs, and Woodbury.

Warm Springs, first named Bullochville, took the name Warm Springs in 1924 to reflect its now renowned mineral springs, to which thousands have come for therapy. The most famous of these visitors was U.S president Franklin D. Roosevelt, who first came to Warm Springs in 1924 and liked it so well that he built a second home there, known as the Little White House.

Tourism has been a substantial part of Meriwether County's economy since 1832, when resorts complete with inns and cabins were built around the area's mineral springs. At first, visitors came from the cities of the South, but as railroads reduced reliance on horse and carriage, people from farther away were able to enjoy the curative springs and stay for a season. By 1900 the transient nature of this income source was augmented by the arrival of wealthy families who built summer homes in the area. Another early component of Meriwether County's economy was the processing of cotton. The county continues to lean heavily on industry, and one of the largest employers is Georgia-Pacific.

Warm Springs, with Roosevelt's Little White House, is a major attraction. The adjacent Georgia Rehabilitation Center (later Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation), founded in 1964 and brought under state control in 1974, treats those with brain and spinal cord injuries, strokes, and other conditions needing rehabilitation.

A satellite campus of West Georgia Technical College is located in Meriwether County.