Demographer, Georgia County Guide Editor, Doug Bachtel Dies

Doug Bachtel died Thursday of complications from multiple sclerosis. He was for many years a demographer in the Department of Housing & Consumer Economics in the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences, crunching numbers and rejoicing in data long before data was cool.

Doug may be best known for bringing to Georgia the idea of creating the Georgia County Guide, having worked on a similar publication at Auburn University. The County Guide is filled with facts, ratings and rankings that help people make sense of dry numbers. It was both revered and reviled by public and elected officials across the state--some people didn't like to see their dirty laundry aired publicly.

"He made the U.S. Census date understandable to people with the County Guide," said Anne Sweaney, a longtime faculty member and interim dean in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. She worked with Doug for years and was also in the Department of Housing & Consumer Economics.

"He served the people of Georgia for decades," she said. "He brought demographic data to communities. And he never gave up."

Doug never met a reporter or an inquiry he didn’t like, answering questions and providing insights. He relied on numbers to tell stories and to connect the dots—about poverty, about high school dropout rates, about payments from the federal government for Medicare, Medicaid and other programs. 

"Doug was courageous, and he felt compelled to speak the truth," said Jerry Gale, a colleague in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. He said Doug was Wikipedia before there was Wikipedia. "His was a very open heart. There was a light behind him that was always there. He was truly engaged in being and doing and giving."

Tim Johnson, director of Whatever It Takes, said that before the Internet because a daily presence in people’s lives, people could go to Doug Bachtel’s Georgia County Guide to find just about any data about demographics, economics, education, health – literally anything collected by state or federal agencies. Planners, researchers, public officials, nonprofit organizations, and businesses all turn to Doug to find out what the numbers were, Johnson said.

“Right up until his passing, Doug continued to be the “go-to” source on data for Georgia. He was also a caring, good human being,” said Johnson. “He made a difference, and his pioneering work will provide a continuing legacy for Athens, other communities, and the state.” 

Funeral services for Doug Bachtel are 1 p.m. on Aug. 17 in the chapel of Lord and Stephens West on Jimmy Daniel Road.