Athens is a consolidated city-county in the U.S. state of Georgia. Downtown Athens lies about 70 miles (110 km) northeast of downtown Atlanta. The University of Georgia, the state's flagship public university and an R1 research institution, is in Athens and contributed to its initial growth. In 1991, after a vote the preceding year, the original City of Athens abandoned its charter to form a unified government with Clarke County, referred to jointly as Athens–Clarke County, where it is the county seat.