Banks County was created from parts of Franklin and Habersham counties in 1858.  It was named for Dr. Richard E. Banks, a prominent circuit riding physician who treated the settlers and native Americans of northern Georgia and South Carolina.  He was from Gainesville, Georgia. 

Ty Cobb, Baseball Hall of Famer, was born in 1886 in Banks County in a small community known as "The Narrows" which consisted of less than 100 people.