Placard 3: The University of Georgia
Following the revolution, Georgia’s
leaders wanted to make sure that their new state
promoted education for all white citizens. In
February 1784, the General Assembly (GA’s
Legislative Branch) set aside 40,000 acres of land
to establish a state chartered (state created and
state funded) college. Abraham Baldwin (one of
GA’s two Constitution signers) created the school
and the state legislature approved it in 1786.
Several years went by, however, before the
General Assembly took action to build the
college.
Finally in 1801, with Abraham Baldwin as
the leader, the school opened. Built in Athens, on
633 acres along the banks of the Oconee River, the
new school was called Franklin College, in honor of
Benjamin Franklin. However, it ultimately became
known as the University of Georgia.
As the first state-supported college in the
nation, the University of Georgia became a model
for state university systems in the U.S.
Interestingly, both the University of Georgia and the
University of North Carolina claim to be the oldest
state-supported university in the U.S. Georgians argue that Georgia is clearly the oldest because
it was founded first. North Carolinians, however, point out that, while Georgia was the first
chartered, the University of North Carolina was the first to actually open its doors to students in
1795 versus UGA in 1801.
Placard 2: Georgia’s Moving Capital
Savannah was the first
capital of Georgia. In 1785, the
capital was moved northwest to
Augusta. Yet, within a year, the
General Assembly (Georgia’s
Legislative Branch) appointed a
commission to find a new capital
city with a more central location
as settlement continued to move
west.
There were some strings
attached though—this new
capital was to be located within 20 miles of an Indian trading post called “Galphin’s Old Town”
or “Galphinton.” It was also to be named Louisville to honor King Louis XVI of France for
helping us win the Revolutionary War. A site was selected, but it took ten years before the
government actually moved there in
1796.
Louisville did not stay the capital
of Georgia very long. An outbreak of
malaria and the state’s continuous
expansion westward caused state officials
to move the capital again in 1804.
The capital moved to
Milledgeville near the center of the state
Milledgeville remained the capital of
Georgia through the Civil War. After the
war, in 1868, Atlanta became the final
capital of Georgia. .
Placard 4: Baptists and Methodists
The Georgia Constitution of 1777 provided Georgians with religious
freedom! Hooray! Catholics, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Jews, and Protestants set
up churches in Savannah, Augusta, and the frontier of Georgia.
The two religious groups that grew the most were the Baptists and
Methodists. Both of these religions grew rapidly because of their willingness to
use new methods to reach people in the isolated,
rural frontier of the new western frontier of
Georgia.
One big advantage for Baptists was their
willingness to allow unschooled men to lead
churches. The Baptists were known for the freedom of their
congregations and their emotional preaching. In 1788, they
even established the first all black Baptist church in Savannah.
It was controlled and led entirely by its black members. Most
surprising is that the majority of these men were slaves.
The Methodists grew quickly just like the Baptists. Methodists used circuit riders.
These were specially trained ministers who traveled the countryside on horseback going from
church to church, preaching passionate
sermons and performing ceremonies such as
weddings, communions, and baptisms. They
left the daily church business to local leaders.
Together, the Baptists and Methodists came to
be the most dominant Christian religions in
Georgia. This is still the case today.
Placard 1: The Headright System and Land Lotteries
After the American Revolution, Georgia had a lot of land available for settlement.
During this time, land was a symbol of wealth and power.
Giving away land would encourage immigration into the state
and stimulate economic growth.
Headright System
Georgia decided to distribute land by the headright
system. Under the headright system, white males were
considered to be the “heads” of families and were granted 200
acres plus 50 acres for each family member including slaves.
The limit was 1,000 acres, and the only cost was a surveying
fee. The state expected these people to settle the land FAST
and make it productive for farming or to build mills. The
headright system continued until 1803.
Land Lottery
After the Yazoo fraud case (if you haven’t read about that mess yet, you will soon),
Georgia began distributing land through land lotteries. Most white males could purchase
chances to win land lots in old Indian territories. War veterans and widows (women) with
children were provided more chances.
Here’s how it worked: There were
two barrels in Milledgeville (the state
capital). In one barrel were the land lots; in
another were names. Someone would draw a
name and land lot at the same time. After the
winner paid a small fee, the land was all
their’s…good or bad. It was a gamble. You
hope for land perfect for farming or
development and not a swamp. Georgia gave
away thousands of acres of the Creeks’ and
Cherokees’ lands through the lotteries.
Placard 5: The Yazoo Land Fraud
After the Revolutionary
War, Georgia’s western territory
stretched far into present-day
Alabama and Mississippi. This
territory was called the Yazoo lands,
after the Yazoo River that flows
through the region. This is a lot of
land!!
A group of land speculators
(people who buy land cheap and
sell at a higher price) paid some
legislators to vote yes on a law that
would sell them the Yazoo land!
Paying a legislator to vote a certain way is called bribery and it is illegal. The Yazoo Act of 1795
was passed allowing the speculators to buy 55 million acres of land for one cent per acre (that is
cheap!) from Georgia. The speculators then sold the land to Georgians at a much higher cost.
Georgians were furious! How dare their government sell land that was rightfully theirs as
citizens of the state? They voted many
of the legislators out of office and
elected new ones to take their places.
The newly elected members of the
General Assembly (Georgia’s legislative
branch) tried to fix the problems caused
by the Yazoo Land Act.
To fix the mess, the U.S.
government had to get involved. The
land eventually became Alabama and
Mississippi. The paper on which the
Yazoo Act of 1795 was printed was burned on the capitol lawn in Louisville (Georgia’s 3rd
capital) by legislators elected to replace the old ones. This incident caused a lot of Georgians to
distrust state government for a long time.
Placard 6: King Cotton
With new settlers pouring into Georgia during the
1800s, Georgia was becoming an economic and political
power.
One major reason for Georgia’s rapid growth was
the success of the cotton crop. Settlers had grown cotton
in Georgia’s mild climate for years but didn’t make much
profit. Why? Because it was a hard and time consuming
job to separate the seed from the cotton by hand.
Everything changed in 1793 when Eli Whitney was
credited for inventing the cotton gin while visiting a plantation near Savannah. His machine of
rollers, teeth, and brushes cleaned the seeds out of the cotton very quickly and efficiently. The
cotton gin led to more cotton being planted, more and bigger plantations (large farms), and the
need for more slaves. This invention forever
changed the South and the United States.
Cotton became a cash crop for
Georgia. A cash crop is a crop that is grown to
make money. Also, several factors led to King
Cotton’s rise including the invention of the
cotton gin. Another was that northern and
NEW southern textile factories’ need for
cotton to make clothes, towels, sheets, etc.
Another was the invention of the railroad
which allowed cotton and goods to be
transported more easily and quickly.
Placard 7: The Railroads and Atlanta
By the early 1800s, Georgia needed a faster
more efficient way to move goods and cotton from
the interior fields to the ports along the coast.
Railroads were the answer. In 1834, Georgia
began building railroads. By 1860, there were 1,200
miles of railroads in Georgia. Georgia’s railroads
were not necessarily built to move people from city
to city. Rather, they were built to move cotton and
other goods. Some rail lines even ended in the
middle of plantations (large farms) instead of
connecting cities. This will be a big problem during
the Civil War. Eventually, rail lines in Georgia
started connecting to railroads from other states and
moving people too.
The city of Atlanta has its roots in the railroads. The Western and Atlantic rail line from
Chattanooga, Tennessee ended at a town called Terminus (which means “the end”). Two other
railroads eventually converged there, leading to the town’s growth as a transportation center.
The name of Terminus was changed to Marthasville in 1843. The new name comes from the
granddaughter of then current Governor Lumpkin. Then in 1845, the name was finally changed
to Atlanta. This is feminine for Atlantic of the Western and Atlantic railroad.
Atlanta became a huge transportation hub in the South. You will see its importance
during the Civil War. Even with this growth Atlanta did not become the state capital until after
the Civil War.
Atlanta is not laid
out like most
cities. Instead of
sitting north and
south, it sits
towards the
northeast because
it was planned
around the
railroad.
Placard 8: Removal of the Creek Indians
After the Revolution, Georgia began to move west and take lands from the Creek Indians.
The Creeks were very big in southern and western Georgia. (The Cherokee lived mainly
in the northern part of the state.) Feeling outnumbered and in need of money, Creeks sold much
of their land to Georgia. Most Creeks
did not like losing their lands.
Chief Alexander McGillivray
(who was part Scottish) led the Creeks
in resisting white expansion by fighting
and killing settlers. President George
Washington met with Chief
McGillivray in hopes to bring peace. In
1790, they signed the Treaty of New
York (Did you know: New York was the
capital of the U.S.?) which had the
Creeks give up more of
their lands. Georgia
agreed not to take
any more of their
lands. Of course, that promise didn’t last long.
Georgia wanted the rest of the Creek lands. Georgia bribed the
Creeks’ new chief William McIntosh to sign the Treaty of Indian Springs
in 1825. The treaty gave Georgia all the remaining Creek lands.
Eventually, Georgia got Creek lands to the Chattahoochee River.
The Creeks were furious at McIntosh! It was time to
carry out the Blood Law! One night, a group surprise attacked
McIntosh at his house, shot him, stabbed him, scalped him,
killed him, and burned his house down.
The Treaty of Indian Springs left the Creeks homeless. They eventually were forced to
move to Oklahoma. With the Creeks out of the way, Georgia’s next target were the Cherokee.
Placard 9: Removal of the Cherokee
The Cherokee lived mainly in the northern
part of the state under the leadership of Chief John
Ross. (The Creek Indians lived mainly in southern
and western Georgia.) According to U.S. law, the
Cherokee were allowed to be a separate nation from
Georgia and the U.S. The state of Georgia did not
agree with this.
By the 1820s, the Cherokee had a language, a
newspaper, and a unified government at New Echota
... the Cherokee capital. What they also had, was
trouble …waiting around the corner.
First was the election of President Andrew Jackson, who did not like Natives Peoples.
Second was the 1829 discovery of gold in Dahlonega, right in the middle of Cherokee lands.
Third, Georgia started passing laws denying Cherokees rights to their own land and the gold.
Supporters of the Cherokee fought to have the laws thrown out. At the Supreme Court,
the Cherokee won! In Worcester v. Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that GA laws do not
apply in Cherokee territory (since it was a separate nation by treaty with the U.S. government).
However, Georgia and President Andrew Jackson ignored the court’s decision (notice the
Executive branch not enforcing the law)
and ordered the Cherokee to move west.
A group of Cherokee went to
Washington, D.C. looking for help.
Their efforts failed.
In 1838, in secret, some
Cherokee officials led by a chief: Major
Ridge (not Chief John Ross) signed the
Treaty of New Echota …selling all
Cherokee lands to Georgia.
Federal soldiers brutaly herded
14,000 Cherokee on an 800-mile journey to present-day Oklahoma. The march, known as the
Trail of Tears, began in the autumn of 1838 and lasted through one of the worst winters ever
recorded. More than 4,000 men, women, and children died from the harsh weather, disease, and
lack of food. Chief John Ross remained the Cherokee leader for many years. First the Creeks
and now the Cherokee… Georgia was successful in pushing out all of their native people to
fulfill their desire for land and gold.