McIntosh County was created in 1793 from part of Liberty County. The state’s 17th county was named for the McIntosh clan who pioneered the area.

McIntosh County is rich in historical sites. Fort King George, the first English fort in Georgia, was on the site of Darien. In the late 16th century, Franciscan friars from Spain established a mission on a bluff near Darien. On the same site had been an Indian village of great antiquity. Ruins of a Spanish fort and mission are also found on Sapelo Island.