In 1860, the Hephzibah Association of Baptist churches of Georgia established a high school at Brothersville community, 14 miles southwest of Augusta. The association named the school Hephzibah High School. A. W. Rhodes and J. H. T. Kilpatrick donated 50 and 16 acres of land to the school, and an additional 15 acres was purchased for a total of 81 acres. The land not used for the school facilities was divided into building lots and sold, thus beginning the town of Hephzibah. With the old Brothersville Academy gone and the Hephzibah High School being the principal attraction, "Hephzibah" was selected for the town name.
The town of Hephzibah was incorporated by and Act of the Georgia General Assembly on October 24, 1870. Gov. Rufus B. Bullock signed this Act into law. At the time of incorporation, the town limits extended one mile in every direction from the school building. Through annexation, the City now encompasses 19.56 square miles.
The name "Hephzibah" is found in Isaiah 62:4, "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married."