The National Weather Service cooperative observation station in northwest Rabun's Germany Valley measured 116.48 inches of rain during the year.

During 2020, the Germany Valley NWS station reported a yearly precipitation total of 100.19 inches.

The early explorers and settlers divided the Cherokee people into three divisions depending on location and dialect, the Lower, Middle, and Over-the-Hill.

A mound similar to others across North Georgia (including the famous Etowah Indian Mounds) is located about one mile (1.6 km) east of Dillard, Georgia and is likely a remnant of an earlier mound-building Native American culture known as the Mississippian culture.

[5] The mound location is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Hoojah Branch Site.

According to his journal entries for May 1775, Bartram crossed the Chattooga River into Georgia near its confluence with Warwoman Creek.

John Dillard and his family were among the first documented settlers in the area in 1794 as a result of a land grant for his service in the American Revolution.

Eventually, the white settlers were viewed as invaders who did not respect nature and killed the game and, as a result, raids between the clashing cultures became commonplace.

The northern border of the county was established as latitude 35°N, which is the boundary between Georgia and North Carolina.

Due to irregularities in an early survey mission, the Georgia-North Carolina border at Rabun County's northeast corner was erroneously set several hundred yards north of the 35th parallel, giving this location at Ellicott's Rock the distinction of being the State of Georgia's northernmost point.

The county is named for William Rabun, who served as the 11th Governor of Georgia from his election in 1817 until his death in 1819.

[7] Although the county was largely untouched by the Civil War, the area did border on anarchy during that time.

The Railway was in operation for more than 60 years and was featured in the Disney movie, The Great Locomotive Chase.

Among other things, Ranger Nick was responsible for arranging for telephone lines to be run from Clayton, Georgia to the Pine Mountain community in the eastern part of the county.

After the film's release, Rabun County experienced an increase in tourism, with the number of visitors going from hundred to tens of thousands.

It also noted the 40th anniversary of the filming of Deliverance in the area, an aspect which aroused controversy in planning for the festival.

In addition to the Rabun County Sheriff's Office, the towns of Clayton, Mountain City, Dillard, Sky Valley, and Tallulah Falls all have their own police departments.

[10] Two of the stations (Scaly Mountain/Sky Valley and Tallulah Falls) are separate organizations from Rabun County Fire Services.

The north-central portion of Rabun County is in the watershed of the Little Tennessee River, which flows northward from Mountain City.

This also gives it mild weather throughout the warmer months of the year, leading to the county's slogan, Where Spring Spends the Summer.

Rabun County has a number of picturesque waterfalls, many of which are easily reached by relatively short trails.

Rabun County is home to several endangered and threatened species as reported by the US Fish & Wildlife Service[15] and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

[34] In March 2006, Fruit of the Loom announced it would close the Rabun Apparel plant and lay off all 930 employees.

That same year, National Textiles also announced layoffs, which had already targeted its plants in North Carolina and Tennessee.