Gwinnett County · The Main Street city
About Snellville
Snellville is a city in Gwinnett County, about eighteen miles east of Atlanta, founded in the 1870s when the English immigrant Thomas Snell and his partner James Sawyer opened a general store that drew customers from miles around. It was incorporated in 1923, and before the charter it was sometimes called London City.
Today Snellville is a full suburban city with the Scenic Highway retail corridor and a real downtown around Main Street, the Town Green, and City Hall, anchored by the Piedmont Eastside hospital on the south side.
What it is
A general store that became a city
The area was originally Creek territory, and after Gwinnett County was created in 1818 and the land lottery of 1820, settlers moved in for the timber and the streams. The community traces its founding to the 1870s, when Thomas Snell and James Sawyer opened a general store that reportedly took in as much as five hundred dollars a day and drew customers from miles around. Before its incorporation in 1923, the settlement was sometimes called London City.
Snellville shifted from an agricultural center to a bedroom community after the Second World War, and it has grown past twenty thousand residents while keeping a downtown anchored by Main Street, the Town Green, and City Hall.
How it works
A council-manager city
The city
- An elected mayor and city council set policy.
- A professional city manager appointed by the council runs the day-to-day operations.
- The city runs the Town Green, T. W. Briscoe Park, and the downtown.
The county keeps
- The public schools, through four Gwinnett County clusters.
- Property tax, elections, and the county-level services.
- The large county parks like South Gwinnett and Lenora.
Straight answers
Questions people actually ask
Who was Snellville named for?
Thomas Snell, the English immigrant who opened the general store with James Sawyer in the 1870s. The city carries his name.
What schools serve Snellville?
Four Gwinnett County clusters touch the city: South Gwinnett, Shiloh, Brookwood, and Grayson. The cluster for an address comes from the boundary maps. The schools page lays it out.
Is there a hospital in the city?
Yes. Piedmont Eastside Medical Center at 1700 Medical Way is the full hospital in the city, with a 24-hour emergency room.
An editorial guide, not a listings site. Updated September 13, 2026. Real-estate guidance on this page is provided by Rob Dietrich, REALTOR® with eXp Realty, LLC.