Early settlers to this area were the Creek Indians. They called their settlement Snodon. This historical marker placed by the Barrow County Historic Society is located at the corner of Athens and Church Streets.
In 1793 the area became known as Jug Tavern. The first public school was built on this site in 1880. In 1893 local officials renamed the area Winder in honor of John H. Winder, the general manager of the Seaboard Railway. A year later the state of Georgia approved the name change.
