Georgia and the American Experience

Georgia and the American Experience Chapter 6: An Age of Expansion, 1783-1838 Study Presentation

Georgia and the American Experience Section 1: Creating A New Government Section 2: Land Fever in Georgia Section 3: Economic Growth in Georgia Section 4:Georgia At the Dawn of a New Century Section 5:The War of 1812 Section 6:Native Americans in Georgia

Section 1: Creating A New Government • Essential Question • What was Georgia’s role in the Constitutional Convention?

Section 1: Creating A New Government • What words do I needtoknow? • U.S. Constitution • Bill of Rights • General Assembly

Constitutional Convention of 1787 • William Few and Abraham Baldwin represented Georgia at the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia; George Washington presided • U.S. Constitution established three governmental branches: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial • Senate and House of Representatives established; only three-fifths of slave population would count toward representation

U.S. Constitution Ratified in 1788 • Georgia was fourth state to ratify (approve) the new Constitution • Constitution could be amended (changed); first 10 amendments became Bill of Rights • George Washington became the first President

Postwar Georgia • Economy in ruin; government provided food basics as farmers tried to reestablish their farms • Capital moved to Augusta • Georgia delegates met in 1788 and 1789; adopted state constitution similar to national government, with three branches • General Assembly had two houses, Senate and House of Representatives; appointed governor and judges; controlled spending decisions Click to return to Table of Contents

Section 2: Land Fever in Georgia • Essential Question • How did many Georgians obtain land in the twenty years following the end of the American Revolution?

Section 2: Land Fever in Georgia • What words do I needtoknow? • headright system • Yazoo land fraud • Louisiana Purchase

Headright System • Indian land in Georgia east of the Oconee River was given to settlers • Every white male counted as a head of household and had the “right” to receive up to 1,000 acres • This was generally replaced in 1803 by a land lottery for government-owned land west of the Oconee • All white heads-of-household could buy a lottery chance and win land; millions of acres in several states were given away

Yazoo Land Fraud • Around 1795, four companies bribed the governor and legislators • Bought millions of acres in western Georgia (today’s Alabama and Mississippi) for 1½¢ an acre • The public found out and protested; the legislators involved were voted out of office • General Assembly repealed the law approving the sale; the federal government paid more than $4 million to help Georgia settle Yazoo land claims

The Western Territory • In 1802, Georgia ceded (gave up) its land claims west of the Chattahoochee River to the federal government for $1.25 million • President Thomas Jefferson doubled the nation’s size in 1803 with the Louisiana territory purchase; the U.S. paid France $15 million for land that stretched to the Rocky Mountains Click to return to Table of Contents

Section 3: Economic Growth in Georgia • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • How did Georgia rebuild and expand its economy in the late 17th and early 18th century?

Section 3: Economic Growth in Georgia • What words do I need to know? • depression • turnpike • cotton gin • mechanical reaper

Cotton and the Cotton Gin • Eli Whitney in 1793 invented a machine for separating cotton seeds from its fiber • Increased the amount cotton growers could process each day • The gin used wire teeth on a turning cylinder to separate the seed from fiber

The Mechanical Reaper • Cyrus McCormick invented a machine to cut grain in a field • Wooden paddles attached to a horse’s harness allowed six times more grain to be cut per day than previous methods • Georgia farmers could work larger and more profitable farms with these agricultural machines

Depression and the Panic of 1837 • Many Georgia banks failed between 1837 and the early 1840s • This happened during a depression (a sharp economic downturn) • Many business failed; many farmers and planters lost their land • Many banks didn’t have enough cash to pay out money their depositors had entrusted to them

Early Roads in Georgia • Railroads, most built after 1830, replaced horses, stagecoaches, and boats • Most Georgia roads ran east to west; they were former Indian footpaths • Plank roads over wetlands that featured “pikes” or gates were called turnpikes • Travelers paid a toll, or fee at each pike; the Old Federal Road connected Athens north to Tennessee

Terminus • Located at the southern end of a rail line that originated in Chattanooga, Tennessee • Later remained Marthasville, after the daughter of former Governor Wilson Lumpkin • Marthasville became Atlanta, and the capital of Georgia • Rail lines greatly reduced travel time for people and freight Click to return to Table of Contents

Section 4: Georgia at the Dawn of a New Century • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • How did lifestyles differ in Georgia between frontier families and town dwellers?

Section 4: Georgia at the Dawn of a New Century • What words do I need to know? • pioneers • frontier Georgia • cultural refinements • townsfolk

Frontier Georgia • Undeveloped land in central and western Georgia • Few settlers; much land given away in land lotteries • Far-flung trading posts were only stores • Often danger lurked from hostile attacks • Social activities often centered around necessary work • The country store became the center of activity; few luxuries were available

Life in Georgia’s Towns • Cultural refinements (higher level living) set apart frontier and town lifestyles • Newspapers, theater, and debate societies • Fancy balls, barbecues, camp meetings, and horse racing • Orphanages, hospitals, and facilities for people with special needs were operated

Religious Activities • Anglicans, Quakers, and Methodist circuit riders (traveling ministers for frontier dwellers) grew in number • Georgia’s first Roman Catholic Church established in Wilkes County in 1796 • Savannah had active Jewish synagogue • As more towns were established, churches become central to community life • In other parts of America, the Mormon church and the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) churches were started

Education in Georgia • The University of Georgia chartered in 1785 as nation’s first land-grant university; opened for classes in 1801 • UGA was often called Franklin College in its early days • By 1820, there were forty academies (schools) across the state • Georgia Female College (later Wesleyan College) opened in 1836 Click to return to Table of Contents

Section 5: The War of 1812 • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • What were the causes of the War of 1812?

Section 5: The War of 1812 • What words and people do I need to know? • embargo • president James Madison • war hawks • Treaty of Ghent

Unhappy with French and British Trade Policies • Years of war between Great Britain and France prompted both countries to try to block U.S. trade with its enemy • British ships made American sailors serve with the British Navy • President Thomas Jefferson ordered an embargo in 1807 to stop trade with foreign countries; this proved disastrous to American shipping

The War Hawks • Land-hungry Southerners and Westerners • Believed British were stirring up the Indians in the western territories • Argued for war against Great Britain • Believed the British should be driven from Canada to eliminate the problems in the western territories • President James Madison pushed Congress to declare war on Great Britain in 1812; the war declaration narrowly passed

War Breaks Out • War lasted for two years; neither side gained advantage during first two years • In 1814, British attack and burn Washington, the young national capital • British later attacked Baltimore harbor; “The Star Spangled Banner” written during The Battle of Fort McHenry • The Battle of New Orleans, fought after the Treaty of Ghent ended the war, was a decisive American victory • The war united the American states as one nation; Andrew Jackson became a national hero Click to return to Table of Contents

Section 6: Native Americans in Georgia • ESSENTIAL QUESTION • Why were the Indians removed from Georgia?

Section 6: Native Americans in Georgia • What words do I need to know? • syllabary • Oconee War • Treaty of New York • Red Sticks • White Sticks • Treaty of Indian Springs • Trail of Tears

Cherokee Culture • Most advanced of Georgia’s tribes; learned quickly from white settlers • Some, like Chief James Vann, lived in large houses • Chief Vann encouraged Christianity • Sequoyah developed a syllabary, a group of symbols that stand for whole syllables; it gave Cherokees a written form of their language • Government modeled on that of United States; capital at New Echota by 1825

Creek Indians • Series of clashes between Creek and settlers who pushed into their land known as Oconee War • Treaty of New York: Creeks give up all land east of the Oconee River, but could keep land on the west side; this angered Georgia settlers, who felt betrayed by their government • Land treaties were often broken • Red Stick Creeks endorsed war to fight for their land claims; White Stick Creeks wanted peace

The Creek War • Red Sticks attacked Fort Mims, killing more than 400 people • The Battle of Horseshoe Bend, in Alabama, ended the Creek War in 1814; Andrew Jackson led the U.S. troops • The Creeks were forced to give up nearly all their land to the U.S. government • The Treaty of Indian Springs gave up last Creek lands in Georgia to the U.S.; Chief William McIntosh was later murdered by rival Creeks for signing the treaty

Creek Removal • Treaty of Washington (1832) resulted in 5 million acres of Creek land ceded to the United States • U.S. agreed to allow Creeks who wished to remain and live on 2 million of those acres; the U.S. promised to protect those who stayed • Those who didn’t wish to stay would have to move to the western territories • The treaty was broken; by 1840, nearly all Creeks were forced to move west

The Trail of Tears • Discovery of gold in north Georgia heightened demand for Cherokee land • The Supreme Court ruled that Cherokee territory was not subject to state law, but the ruling was not enforced • Between 1832 and 1835, Cherokees were stripped of their land • In 1838, thousands of Cherokees were forcibly removed to Oklahoma; about 4,000 died from disease, exposure, or hunger • 700 to 800 escaped and hid in the North Carolina mountains Click to return to Table of Contents

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Georgia and the American Experience