Dalton, city, seat of Whitfield County, northwestern Georgia; incorporated 1847. Tufted textile products, such as carpets, are the chief manufactures of this industrial city. Located in Dalton are the Creative Arts Guild and a junior college. Red Clay, the last capital of the Cherokee people before they moved west (1838), and two state parks are nearby. The name of the city is derived from the maiden name of an early landowner's wife. Population 20,939 (1980); 21,761 (1990); 27,912 (2000).
