A history of Georgia for use in schools

Front matter

> STATE; • HISTORY ^"S^rTes'

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Contents

EPOCH V. -Georgia in the Federal Union.

CHAPTER PAGE

2o. Georgia Enters llie Union of States, 134

Chapter I. Discovery And Early Explorers

Fairest, frnitfulest, and pleasantest of all the world."— Ribault.

The boys and girls wlio study tliis book know that the part of the land upon which we live is called Georgia. On the maps in the Geography they have seen a section with the name ^^ Georgia " printed across it^ which they have been told is a map of this land. They have only to look around them to see some part of the land itself. We know this land and love it. We know the mountains and green valleys that lie iu the northern part ; we knoAV the red hills and gentle slopes in the centre ; we know the wide forest plains in the southern part. It is all Georgia,, from the mountains to the sea. It does not even stop at the water's edge, but extends into the great Atlantic Ocean three miles beyond the line of white breakers that roll upon the shore of the islands along our coast.

Upon this land are great cities, busy towns and villages, and fertile fields. Across this land in every direction extend lines of railroad, and through its length and breadth are churches and school-houses. Within the boundaries of this

HISTORY OF GEORGIA.

land live nearly two million people, skilled in the arts of eivilization, and united for the protection of their liberty, their lives, and their property in one political body or civil society, called the State of Georgia, ^^ the Empire State of the South/' This land was not always called Georgia, and it was not always inhabited by the people that now crowd its cities and towns and cultivate its fields. About four hundred years ago it not onlv had no such name, ])ut even its existence was not

V > known to the civilized world. As late as two hundred years ago it was almost unbroken forest, and the people who inhabited it were savages, who built no cities, liad no written language, knew nothing of their own past history, and who led a wandering life in the solitude of the great forests which covered this land. The story of how that unbroken wilderness became the Georgia of to-dav is of interest to every Georgian.

Voyages to the new world. 3

This is the story which the students of this book have before them.

The voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1492 proved to the 2:)eople of the Old World that land lay beyond the great Atlantic^ although Columbus himself believed this land to be India, and called the savages whom he found here, Indians. He died still believing this. One of his friends, however, Americus Vespucius, who explored the coast of South America, became convinced that it was not India, but in fact a new continent. Upon his return Americus wrote a description of that continent, which he called the "^qw World.'' The scholars who read his description and were convinced of the truth of his opinions called this new world the land of Americus, or America.

The news of the discovery spread rapidly over Europe and created excitement among all classes of people. Every civilized nation fitted out ships and sent them across the Atlantic on voyages of discovery. England sent John Cabot and his son Sebastian, who reached Labrador and explored the coasts as far south as Cape Hatteras ; France sent Verrazano ; Spain, Portugal, and Holland sent many explorers who followed in the path of Columbus, visiting the West Indies, South America, Mexico, and Central America, and even sailing around the world.

Among those who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage was Juan Ponce de Leon, a Spanish nobleman. He heard from the natives of the West India Islands of a great land lying to the north which they called Bimini, and in which was a wonderful fountain whose waters gave renewed youth to the old and feeble. De Leon told this to the King of S^^ain, and in 1512, twenty years after the first voyage of Columbus, he received a royal commission ''to discover and settle the island of Bimini " in the name of the Spanish crown. Ponce de Leon was delayed until the following 3'ear, but in March, 1513, he sailed from the island of Porto Rico, and steering northward past the Bahama Islands, he came in sight of the mainhmd of North America on Easter Sunday, the 27th of March, 1513. He named the land Florida in honor of the day, Pascua Florida heing the Spanish name for Easter Sunday. A few days later lie landed near the present site of St. Augustine, and took possession of the country in the name of the King of Spain. He turned southward, and passing through Florida Straits sailed up the western coast to a bay south of Tampa Bay. The curve of the coast convinced him he had discovered another island like Cuba. He then returned to Spain, and received from the king a new patent to conquer and settle the " island of Bimini and the island of Florida."

He did not conquer the natives, however, nor plant a colony, nor find the Fountain of Youth. Eight years passed before he attempted a settlement, and then he was himself wounded in a contest with the savages, and returned with his followers to Cuba;, where he died very shortly from his wounds. He had not entered the territory that is now called Georgia, but his visit is of interest to us because it gave to our land the name Florida, the first name which was given it, and the name by which it was known in Euro})e for more than a hundred years.

In 1520, seven years after Ponce de Leon gave its first name to this country, an expedition was sent out by Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, a wealthy Spaniard, from the island of San Domingo. Joining with another ship on the way, the expedition landed on the coast of what is now South Carolina, near the present site of Port Royal. The Indians were friendly, and a number were induced to come on the ships, where they were held as prisoners and carried to San Domingo to be sold as slaves. De Ayllon had the prisoners released, and four years later he sent two ships, under the command of Pedro de Quexos, to the newly discovered land. Pedro de Quexos succeeded in regaining the friendship of the natives, and explored the Atlantic coast for many miles, including the present coast

First Map of Our Coast, 5

of Georgia. Xo permanent settlement was made, but it is almost certain that the men attached to this party were the first white men who set foot on our soil.

About the time that the second expedition was sent out by De Ayllon, the King of Spain sent another expedition, consisting of a single vessel under the command of Stephen Gomez, with instructions to sail northward and ascertain if any western passage could be found through the continent south of Newfoundland and Labrador. Gomez reached the Labrador coast, and turning southward he explored the whole Atlantic coast of the United States. He proved that Florida was not an island, and the land of De Ayllon was not a new continent, but that both were parts of the same mainland that Ponce de Leon had discovered and named Florida. From his reports a map was prepared in 1529, by Ribero, who was employed by the King of Spain, and this map is the first that shows any knowledge of Georgia's coast line.

QUESTIONS.

What is the name of that part of the land upon which we live? What can you say of our love for this land ? What can you say of the extent of it? What do we find upon the land? How many people live within its boundaries ? Why are they united ? What do they make ? What can you say of this soil four hundred years ago? Who lived here as late as two hundred years ago? What can you say of Christopher Columbus? Why was this country called America? Mention some other explorers in the New World. Who came with Columbus on his second voyage? What land did he seek to explore and settle? When did he discover the mainland, and how did he name it? What can you say of his efforts to colonize the land? Why is his visit of interest to us? What expedition was sent over in 1530? Where did they land? What expedition was sent out four years later, and what did they explore? What expedition was sent out by the King of Spain? What of the exploration of Gomez? What did he prove? What map was prepared in 1529?

TOPICS.

1. The land of Georgia. 4. Story of De Leon.

2. The State of Georgia. 5. Expeditions of De Ayllon.

3. Prehistoric condition. 6. Travels of Gomez.

Chapter II. De Soto.— The Margravate Of Azilia

"Nature lias not Messed the world with any tract which can be preferable to it. Paradise with all her virgin beauties may be modestly supposed at most but equal to its native excellences/''— RoBEUT Montgomery, 1717.

Of the many adventurers who visited and explored all parts of the New World, probably the only one who marched through the forests of Georgia was Hernando de Soto. De Soto landed in Florida in 1539. He had with him six hundred brave soldiers, two hundred horses, a number of fleet greyhounds and savage blood-hounds, and also a drove of hogs which he intended to use for food.

Travelling northward he entered the region of Georgia, and we have records of his marching through Irwin or Coifee County.

From thence he went in a northeasterly direction through Laurens County ; then crossing the Ogeechee Eiver and Briar Creek he camped on the Savannah River, probably at Silver Bluff, a few miles below the present city of Augusta. During the march his soldiers searched everywhere for gold, breaking into Avigwams, temples, and even the graves of the Indians. Tliey suffered for food. At one village an Indian chief sent them a present of partridges, corn, and turkeys. He also

DE SOTO'S MARCH. 7

gave them some dogs, and these were killed by the soldiers and eaten with great relish.

AVhen De Soto reached the bank of the Savannah River he was received by a beautiful Indian princess. She came across the river in her canoe and welcomed him. She took from her own neck a string of j)earls and hung it around the neck of De Soto in token of friendship. She gave him many shawls and dressed skins for clothing. De Soto was moved by the beauty and kindness of the princess^ and taking from his finger a ring of gold set with a ruby, he placed it on her finger.

At Silver Blulf the Indians brought in a dagger and a rosary, both of Spanish make, which proved that some Spanish party had visited the land before him. Historians agree that these were left by De Ayllon^s second expedition, which had explored this coast sixteen years before.

De Soto was hospitably treated by these Indians, but he did not return their kindness. He took from them basketfuls of jiearls, and treated them Avith cruelty. When he left, he took the beautiful princess a captive, and compelled her to go, on foot, ahead of his army. He proceeded up the Savannah Eiver for some distance. At a point believed to be in the present county of Habersham, he turned westward and crossed northern Georgia to the Indian village Chiaha. This village was at the junction of the Oostenaula and the Etowah, where the city of Rome now stands. During the last march before he turned west, the Indian princess escaped from De Soto, taking with her a large box of rare pearls.

After leaving Georgia, July 2, 1540, De Soto continued his march until he came to the banks of the Mississippi River in 1541. He crossed the river, and after wandering in the swamps he was seized with fever, and died in May, 1542. His followers concealed his death from the Indians, and carrying his body at night, weighted it with stones and dropped it into the waters of the great river he had discovered. Only forty of all the six hundred men lived to return to their homes in Spain.

Everywhere on his march De Soto found the red men, whom Cohimbus had named Indians. They were a rough, ignorant, warlike race, of brown or red color, with high cheek bones and long, coarse hair. The men, when they were not at war, spent their time fishing and hunting, while the women cultivated i:>atches of maize or Indian corn. They lived in small villages of skin-covered huts called wigwams.

MARCH OF DE i^OTO scattered about through the woods and on the banks of the streams, where game and fish were plentiful. The Indians were not many in number. Probably not more than ten thousand were in all Georgia at that time.

The explorations of De Soto confirmed Sjiain's title to the lands that we now call CJeorgia. If he had settled his followers on those lands instead of pushing west in search of some mighty empire to conquer, he would have founded here a

RIBAULT EXPLORES OUR COAST. 9

great Spanish-American state with a Spanish-speaking people. Through his faihire to do so, Spain lost her claim to this soil, and more than twenty years passed before another visit was made to our shores by colonists with a view to settlement.

The next visit was made by a French company of Huguenots sent out by Admiral Coligny, who was himself a Huguenot, and who thought to find religious freedom for them in the wilds of America. This expedition was under the command of John Ribault, who explored oar entire sea-coast from the St. John's River to Port Royal. He gave French names to all of our rivers. The St. Mary's he called the Seine ; the Satilla, the Somme ; the Altamaha, the Loire ; the Newport, the Charante ; the Great Ogeechee, the Garonne ; and the Savannah, the Gironde.

His descriptions of our coast are most glowing. He finally built a fort and planted his colony where Port Royal now stands. The fort was called Fort Charles, but was abandoned two years later, and a new fort, called Fort Caroline, was built at the mouth of the River St. John, then called the River May.

Spain was alarmed by these French settlements, and in 1565 sent a large force under Menendez to settle Florida. After founding St. Augustine and fortifying it, he surprised and murdered the French at Fort Caroline, and left a Spanish garrison there. Shortly after, a party of French, in retaliation, recaptured the fort and murdered the Spanish garrison, but did not attempt to hold the country. After this, Spain held peaceably, for a hundred years, the lands that are now Georgia, and the Spanish governors at St. Augustine sent mining parties into the Cherokee country to work the gold mines. Juan Paedo built a fort there, and the mining continued twenty years after Charleston was founded. The ruins of the fort, and mining tools of iron, were found by the early white settlers of North Georgia after the removal of the Cherokees.

England's claim to the territory was founded on the explorations of the Cabots in 149T and 1498, but for more than one liundred years no attempt was made to enforce tliis claim. In 1663 Charles II. granted all the land lying along the Atlantic coast, between the thirty-sixth and twenty-ninth degrees of nortli latitude, to eight noblemen, called the Lords Proprietors of Carolina. All the land in the present State of Georgia was included in this grant, and from that date was called Carolina by the English, though no attempt was made to settle the lands west of the Savannah River.

The permanent English settlements at Charleston and along the Carolina coast established England's claim to Carolina, while the permanent Spanish settlement at St. Augustine had established Spain's title to Florida ; but no agreement could be reached as to the dividing line between Carolina and Florida. The northern line of Florida Avas not fixed until IT Go, one hundred 3'ears after tlie grant to the Lords Proprietors, when Spain ceded all Florida to England.

The first effort to colonize the territory of Georgia was made by Sir Robert Montgomery in 1717, who secured from the Lords Proprietors of Carolina a grant of the land lying between the Savannah and Altamaha Rivers. It was to be called the Margravate of iVzilia, and was to be a part of Carolina. Sir Robert was to pay a rental of one penny an acre for all lands occupied, and to give the Lords Proprietors one-fourth of all the gold, silver, and jn-ecious stones found there.

The most glowing accounts of the wonders and beauties of Georgia were written. Nowhere in the world could be found such beautiful woods and meadows, such rich mines and fields, such a soft climate and fertile soil. But these accounts did not attract settlers south of the Savannah River, and the red men of the forests remained the only inhabitants of Azilia, until a nobler man, with a loftier aim than Sir Robert, came to make its shores the home of the unfortunate.

[When General Oglethorpe came to America and went np the Savannah River, he took with liim the journal of Sir Walter Raleigh. From the latitude and marks of the place he was led to believe that Sir Walter had been there before him, had landed at Yamacraw and had talked with the natives. He was told that about half a mile from the bluff there was a grave of an old chief who on his death-bed said: " Bury me on the place where I talked with that great, good man from over the sea."]

[To show the number of pearls taken by De Soto's men from the Indians of Georgia, it is related that one day a foot soldier called to a horseman who was his friend and offered him a linen bag of pearls weighing six pounds, saying: "You may have these if you will. I am tired of carrying them." The horseman refused the offer, telling the soldier to keep the jewels for himself. But he replied: "If you will not have them, I will not carry them longer. They shall remain here." So saying, he untied the bag, whirled it around his head, and scattered the pearls in every direction among the thickets and grass.]

QUESTIONS.

Who landed in Florida in 1539? What did he bring with him? What of his march through Georgia? Tell what they searched for. What of the Indian princess? What did the Indians bring in at Silver Bluff? How was De Soto treated by the Indians? How did he treat them? Where did tlie army march after leaving Silver Bluff? What river did he reach in 1541? Describe his death and burial. How many of his followers returned to Spain? Describe the Indians wliom De Soto met. What if De Soto had settled on this land? Who made the next visit? What names did he give to the rivers? How did he describe our coast? On what was the English claim to the territory of Georgia founded? What charter was granted in 1603? What did this territory embrace? Who made the first effort to colonize Georgia? What was it to be called? Give a description of it. Did the effort succeed?

TOPICS.

Let the pupil tell —

1. The story of De Soto's march. 4. How Georgia was first a part of

2. The story of Ribault's travels. Carolina.

3. Of the Spanish occupation. 5. About the Margravate of Azilia.

EPOCH II.

Georgia under the Trustees.

Chapter III. Why Axd By Whom Georgia Was Settled

"Many of our poor subjects are, through misfortune and want of employment, reduced to great necessity, insomuch as by their labor they are not able to provide a maintenance for themselves and families ; and if they had means to defray their charges of passage and the expenses incident to new settlements, they would be glad to settle in any of our provinces in America, where, by cultivating the lands at present waste and desolate, they might not only gain a comfortable subsistence for themselves and families, but also strengthen our colonies and increase trade, navigation, and wealth of these our resL]inii.'' Krf/acf from Chaiier of Oeorgia.

Many years ago it was the custom in England to imprison people for debt. These debtors' prisons, as they were called, were often the scenes of suffering, injustice, and cruelty. The way in whicli they were managed finally became so bad that it attracted public attention, and the British Parliament appointed a committee to investigate and reform the condition of the prisons of England.

The chairman of this committee was James Edward Oglethorpe, a member of Parliament and the author of tlie resolution under wliich the committee was appointed. lie

JAMKS KDWAIVU OGLKTUOKrii.

Why Georgia was Settled, was a good and wise man. In his visits to the prisons his heart was touched by the sufferings of the unfortunate debtors. He saw that these poor men could not possibly earn money to pay their debts while they were shut up in prison. Even if released it was not probable that they Avould succeed in life better than before. All the land in England belonged to the rich, and a poor man, although willing to work, had no right to plant this land and raise food for his family. He thought of the great tracts of land lying idle on the shores of America. On these lands the poor debtors could build homes, and from this fertile soil they could support their families. He enlisted several other noblemen in his plans, and induced them to unite with him in a petition to the king, asking for a grant of land in ^'his Majesty's Province of America,''' where they could colonize many of the worthy and honest poor people living in and near the city of London.

The petition was granted, and the charter for a colony received the great seal of England, June 9, 1732.- The territory granted was that pai't of South Carolina west of the

Savannah River. It included all the land between the Savannah and Altaniaha Kivers, from the Atlantic coast to the headwaters of these streams, and thence extended westward to the " South Seas/'" or Pacific Ocean. Tlie name of Georgia was given to this province in honor of George II., who was then king of England.

The reasons for locating the colony in this place were to ])rotect the frontier of Carolina from the ravages of the Indians, and to take possession of soil that was disputed by the English and Spanish. Oglethorpe also heard that mulberry-trees grew along the Savannah River, and that the climate was suitable for the silkworm. He believed that a fine quality of raw silk could be raised in Georgia by colonists, who could thus find means of earning a living and save to England vast sums of money paid to foreign countries for silks. So firmly did he believe in this that he resolved to send to Italy for persons to teach the colonists how to feed the worms and wind the threads from the cocoons.

The charter created a board of trustees, called The Trustees for estaUishing the colony of Georgia in America^ for a term of twenty- one years, with the power of buying and selling lands, of having a seal, of making laws, and of establishing courts for the government of the new colony. They were given power to send foreigners and subjects of

Great Britain to Georgia and to grant them lands, not over five hundred acres to each person, for which no rent should be paid foi- ten years. On

By whom Georgia was Settled. 15

the reverse of the seal of the TrnBtees was the motto ^'Xon sibi sed aliis,'' \\\\\q\\ means, ^' Not for themselves but for others/' A clear impression of this side cannot be found. The picture on the preceding page shows the front or obverse side of the seal, and the Latin inscription, " Colonia Georgia augeat," meaning, "May the Georgia colony flourish.*'

Having received the charter, the Trustees met and made rules for the settlement and government of the new province. They resolved to grant only fifty acres of land, to each man and his family. Land was granted for life only, and when a man died his sons inherited it. The condition was also put in the grant that the land must be cleared, planted, and a house built by a certain time, or the right to it would be lost. It was required that a hundred white mulberry trees should be planted on every ten acres. The Trustees also prohibited the sale of rum and the use of- negro slaves in the colony. The Trustees asked for gifts of money to aid the enterprise. The responses were liberal. Even Parliament gave £10,000 to help them in their noble purpose.

The Trustees also offered inducements to men of means to join the colony. To a man of good character who would pay his own expenses and bring with him ten able-bodied menservants over twenty-one years of age, the Trustees agreed to grant five hundred acres of land, which could not be sold, but descended to his male heirs. A rental of twenty shillings a year was to be paid for every hundred acres, but the payments were not to commence for ten years. Within the ten years each person was to clear and cultivate two hundred of the five hundred acres of land, and to plant two thousand white mulberry trees. Persons having land under this grant must live in Georgia at least three years, and could not leave the province without permission of the Trustees.

It may seem strange that parties receiving land were not permitted to mortgage or sell it, and that the land descended only to the male heirs, but it must be remembered that the object of the Trustees was to secure a large number of male citizens who could be relied upon for the defence of the colony. Every settler was a soldier, and was required to do military service.

A great many persons were anxious to join this colon3\ Many were rejected. Xo debtor was taken without the consent of the creditor ; no criminals or wicked persons Avere accepted ; no man was received who would leave a wife or little children depending on him for support. The debtor jirisons Avere carefully examined, and the worthiest of these unhappy people were taken. Four months Avere devoted to this Avork, and the best people among the needy j^opulation of England Avere chosen to be the first settlers of Georgia.

The plans for sailing were made Avitli care. November 17,

1732, the ship Anne (pronounced an), Avliich bore the company Avith Oglethorpe at its head,Aveighed anchor and dropped doAvn the T'hames River. On board were thirty-five families, containing one hundred and thirty persons, bound for the New A\'orid.

The voyage Avas long, taking two months and seven days. Prayers Avere offered every morning and night that no accident or misfortune should overtake them. At length, January 13,

1733, their hearts Avere gladdened by the sight of land. They had reached the harbor of Charleston. The governor of South Carolina gave them a hearty Avelcome, and furnished a pilot to conduct them to Port Royal harbor. The next morning they continued their voyage, and on the 19th landed at Beaufort- town, Avhere they Avere saluted by the artillery.

[James Edward Oglethorpe belonged to an ancient family in England. He was called " a gentleman of luiblemished character, brave, generous, and humane." He was born in 1689, and Avhen a young man left college to begin the life of a soldier.

Oglethorpe soon became an ensign of the English army, then a lieutenant of the first troop of the Queen's Life Guards. Going abroad, he enlisted under Prince Eugene, and finally became his aide-de-camp.

When he returned to England he entered upon very wealthy estates, and began political life. He was in Parliament for thirty-two years, and was the friend of the unfortunate and oppressed. Ills scheme to found a colony for poor debtors in Georgia will ever endear him to the hearts of all true philanthropists. No colony in America can point to a founder in whose character are more unselfish and generous qualities than are found in James Oglethorpe, the father of Georgia.

"To see a gentleman of his rank and fortune visiting a distant and uncultivated land, with no other society but the miserable whom he goes to assist, exposing himself freely to the same hardships to which they are subjected, in the prime of life, instead of pursuing his pleasures or ambition on an improved and well-concerted i)lan from wliich his country must reap the profits, at his own expense and without a view or even a possibility of receiving any private advantages from it, must give every one who has approved and contributed to the undertaking the highest satisfaction ; must convince the world of the disinterested zeal with which the settlement is to be made, and entitle him to the truest honor he can gain — the perpetual love and applause of mankind."]

QUESTIONS.

What can you say of debtors' prisons ? What did Parliament do ? Who was on this committee, and what did lie think ? What petition was made, and for what ? When did the charter of Georgia receive the Great Seal ? What was the first object ? Describe the territory granted. Why was the province called Georgia ? Mention two other reasons for locating the colony on the Savannah River. What can you say of Oglethorpe's hopes for silk culture ? What powers were given the Trustees ? What motto did the seal contain ? What were some of the rules made by the Trustees ? What did the Trustees ask for ? And what did Parliament give them ? Who were rejected and who received as emigrants ? When did the emigrants sail ? How many were on board ? Who was with them ? When and where did they sight land ?