In this unit, you will study Georgia’s history and how Georgia became a state. You will learn about important events in Georgia’s past, such as the Battle of Kettle Creek, the invention of the cotton gin, the Dahlonega Gold Rush, the Trail of Tears, and the building of railroads. You will study famous battles of the American Revolution and learn more about key historical figures such as Andrew Jackson and John Marshall.

 

KEY TERMS

 

Articles of Confederation: The first constitution of the United States of America. Because it allowed for only a weak central government, it was later replaced with the U.S. Constitution, which established a federal government with a president, a judicial system, and the authority to tax. (SS8H3d)

 

Battle of Kettle Creek: A battle of the American Revolution fought in Georgia on February 14, 1779. The battle raised the morale of Georgia Patriots, gave them much needed supplies, and set the stage for several victories in the southern backcountry toward the end of the war. (SS8H3c)

 

Cherokee: A group of American Indians who lived in the southeastern United States, including Georgia, before being forcibly removed to reservations in Oklahoma on what would become known as the Trail of Tears. (SS8H4e)

 

Cotton gin: A machine that separates small particles, such as seeds, from cotton fibers. Its invention in the 1790s made cotton easier to process and cheaper to produce. It had a profound impact on Georgia, where cotton became a large and profitable industry, and it enabled the state to trade with not only other states but also other nations. Due to the cotton gin’s effectiveness and the crop’s profitability, slavery increased in Georgia and the Deep South. This led to the South’s support and defense of the institution of slavery and later led to the Civil War. (SS8H4c)

 

Creek: A group of American Indians who lived in the southeastern United States, including Georgia, before being moved to reservations in Oklahoma. The Creek chief William McIntosh supported the efforts of the U.S. government to obtain Creek land. (SS8H4d)

 

Dahlonega Gold Rush: A rapid increase of settlers to Georgia sparked by the discovery of gold near the town of Dahlonega. It spread throughout the state and onto land given to American Indian groups as part of a treaty. Land seized from the Creek and Cherokee for the white settlers eventually led to the removal of the Indians on what would become known as the Trail of Tears. (SS8H4e)

 

Georgia’s state constitution: A document that divides Georgia’s government into three branches: the legislature, which is bicameral (two houses); the judiciary, which is made up of the state supreme court and lower courts; and the executive, which is presided over by the governor. Checks and balances among the branches prevent any one branch from becoming too powerful. (SS8CG1a, b)

 

Headright system: A system in which up to 200 acres of land were granted to people willing to voyage from Great Britain or from other colonies to settle in Georgia colony. Georgia employed the system in an effort to grow its population. (SS8H4b)

 

Andrew Jackson: The president of the United States during the Georgia Gold Rush. He ordered the Cherokee and Creek off Georgian land granted to them by a treaty with the U.S. government. This action led to the removal of the American Indians on what would become known as the Trail of Tears. (SS8H4e)

 

Land lotteries: A system employed by the state of Georgia in the early 1800s in which some citizens could register to win land previously held by the Cherokee and the Creek. (SS8H4b)

 

Loyalist: A colonist who remained loyal to the British government during the American Revolution. (SS8H3c)

 

John Marshall: The chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court at the time of Worcester v. Georgia. (SS8H4e)

 

William McIntosh: A controversial Creek chief who supported the United States in its efforts to take Creek land. (SS8H4d)

 

Patriot: A person who supported breaking from the British government and forming a new government ruled by colonists. (SS8H3c)

 

Railroad: A means of transporting people and goods that made interstate commerce easier and more profitable beginning in the mid- to late 1800s. (SS8H4c)

 

John Ross: A chief who presided over the Cherokee during their migration from Georgia to Oklahoma on what is commonly known as the Trail of Tears. (SS8H4e)

 

Siege of Savannah: A battle of the Revolutionary War that took place in 1779. It was the second-deadliest clash of the war. The British maintained control of Savannah at the end of the siege. (SS8H3c)

 

Signers of the Declaration of Independence: Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, and George Walton were the three Georgians who signed the Declaration of Independence. Gwinnett was a British-born colonist who served in the colonial legislature and the Second Continental Congress. Hall served in the Second Continental Congress and as governor of the state of Georgia. Walton also served as governor of Georgia. (SS8H3b)

 

Trail of Tears: The route along which various American Indian groups were forced to walk from the Southeast to reservations west of the Mississippi. (SS8H4e)

 

University of Georgia: A university created by the General Assembly in 1785. It was the first university in the United States to be created by a state government and it later became a land-grant institution. The founders believed that educated citizens were important to a democratic society, that education should be available to all people, and that the government had a role in providing education. (SS8H4a)

 

Worcester v. Georgia: The case in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states could not make or enforce laws dealing with American Indian groups, reserving such authority for the federal government. (SS8H4e)

 

Yazoo land fraud: The controversial sale of land by the governor of Georgia and the state’s legislature during the mid-1790s. Tracts of land in what would become Mississippi and Alabama were sold cheaply to political supporters. Though reformers later passed a law nullifying the sales, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled the law. (SS8H4b)