The evolution of Dawson County and Historic Dawsonville from quiet mountain village to a popular destination for visitors began when Georgia 400 was completed in the 1980s. Today, the county is one of the most popular "backyard getaways" for the metro Atlanta region and beyond, featuring attractions that range from nature-based activities in nearby backcountry tracts to more urbane pursuits in the community's shopping and entertainment district.

Bisected by two well-known recreational rivers, surrounded by the southern Appalachian mountains and flanked by 39,000 acre Lake Lanier, Dawson County has become a destination so attractive to its visitors that many of them become full-time residents. But a thriving business environment and the phenomenon of residents from nearby population centers "moving out" to the county in pursuit of lifestyle improvements is not surprising to long time natives of the area.