Georgia On My Mind

Highlights of the history of this fabulous state

we call home!

Pre-history Georgia as the 13th colony Revolutionary War Early Statehood

Block I

Pre-history

Included the four pre-historic Indian cultures: Paleo, Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian

Georgia as a ColonyGeorgia was founded as the 13th British colony in 1733.James Oglethorpe is considered the founder of Georgia.Some of the early groups that settled Georgia were the Scottish Highlanders, Salzburgers and Portuguese Jews.

Revolutionary War

America declared independence from Britain in 1776

The Revolutionary War lasted from 1775-1781

Georgia was not directly involved until the last two years of the war.

The time of early statehood would cover the

years from 1783-1845. Many significant events occurred during that

time. The US Constitution was ratified and Georgia

became the fourth state to ratify it. The University of Georgia became the

country’s first land-grant university. Our capital moved from Augusta to Louisville

to Milledgeville

Early Statehood

Many towns began to develop and

transportation changed from simply horses and wagons to railroads by the early 1830s.

Cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney in Georgia and transformed the South’s way of life and its dependence on slavery.

The Yazoo Land Fraud was Georgia’s biggest political scandal up to that time.

The Creek and Cherokee were removed in what is one of Georgia’s darkest moments as a state.

Early Statehood

Historical Block #2

Antebellum (1845-1860) Civil War Reconstruction New South

Antebellum means “before the war.” This was the period in which differences

between the North and South were becoming very distinct.

The South favored slavery, the north was against it.

The South favored states’ rights, the north was against them.

The South’s economy was based on agriculture, the North’s was based on manufacturing

Antebellum

Southern Antebellum Life

Northern Antebellum Life

Civil War

The Civil War lasted from 1861-1865.

The first fighting in Georgia began in 1863.

One of the most famous events from the Civil War happened in Georgia – Sherman’s March to the Sea

The Confederates’ last victory occurred in Georgia at the Battle of Chickamauga

Andersonville, the most notorious POW camp of the Confederacy, was in southwest Georgia

Andersonville Prison Camp

Cannons at Chickamauga

Sherman’s March

The Civil War in

Georgia

Reconstruction Reconstruction was time after the Civil War

when the south had to be reconstructed (rebuilt) politically, economically, and socially.

Most historians put the dates of reconstruction as 1865-1870

However, in many ways Reconstruction lasted much longer

The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments were added to the Constitution

Slavery ended, but many southern freedmen stayed on the farms they knew and worked as sharecroppers or tenant farmers.

The New South

The phrase “New South” came from a speech made by Henry W. Grady

It referred to the time in which the South had to stop being dependent on agriculture and diversify its economy to include industry.

Early 20th Century (1900-

1945) Post World War II (1945-

1969) Modern Civil Rights (1950-

1970) Modern Georgia (1970-

today)

Historical Block #3

This includes a number of major events that

could easily be illustrated/researched. World War I The boll weevil infestation and drought of the

early 1920s in Georgia. The Great Depression and New Deal FDR and his time in Warm Springs, GA World War II

Early 20th Century

Post World War II

This time period included the 1950s and 1960s.

The 1950s were a time of conformity – fitting into society’s “norms.”

The Korean War broke out during this time. Jackie Robinson integrated baseball. Elvis Presley broke onto the music scene,

beginning rock and roll. More people had cars and traveled long

distances on interstate.

Post World War II

Atlanta’s suburbs began to grow because of new companies and factories moving to the city.

Atlanta became the southeastern hub for 3 major interstates.

Modern Civil Rights

The modern civil rights movement began in the 1950s as a challenge to long-standing Jim Crow laws.

Noteworthy events included the Montgomery Bus boycott, Brown vs. Board of Education, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1964

The most notable civil rights figure during this time was a Georgian: Martin Luther King Jr. Other civil rights figures from this time included Jackie Robinson, Rosa Parks, Linda Brown, Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes, Benjamin Mays, and Andrew Young

Modern Georgia

Georgia became a modern power player in the south with the growth of Atlanta.

Hartsfield International Airport worked its way to becoming the busiest airport in the world.

Many businesses, including Home Depot, UPS, Coca-Cola, and Delta Airlines, have their world headquarters in Atlanta.

The city hosted the Summer Olympics in 1996. Atlanta’s growth benefited the rest of the

state.