n.
City (pop., 2000: 186,291), western Georgia, U.S. Located on the Chattahoochee River , it was founded in 1827 and by 1840 had become a leading inland cotton port with a thriving textile industry.
During the American Civil War it was a major supply city for the Confederacy and the site of the last battle east of the Mississippi. Now highly industrialized, Columbus is one of the South's largest textile centres. It is home to the Confederate Naval Museum. Fort Benning (established 1918) is nearby.