Georgia Historical Society

When King George granted the charter for Georgia, he decided he wanted his namesake colony to be located somewhere between the Savannah and Altamaha Rivers, an area claimed by both South Carolina and the Spanish colony of Florida.

From a military standpoint, the new colony would be an ideal buffer between the Spanish-occupied region to the south and the English colonies such as North and South Carolina to the north. As a result, the Trustees chose people to travel to Georgia who had skills to help make the colony successful, instead of choosing people from debtor’s prison. However, most of the first settlers were considered the “deserving poor,” so the Trustees were still fulfilling their humanitarian mission. When the colonists set off on the Ann (the ship that carried them to America), there were no debtors on board – despite what most believe about the colonists who first settled Georgia.

It took the Ann two months to travel from England to America. They stopped first in Charleston, South Carolina, then proceeded further south to Port Royal, South Carolina. Here the colonists waited while Oglethorpe ventured ahead with Carolina Rangers to pinpoint the spot where they would settle. They traveled all this way without knowing exactly where they would be living! But it did not take Oglethorpe too long to locate Yamacraw Bluff, a stretch of land one mile long overlooking the Savannah River. By February 1, Oglethorpe had gathered all of the colonists at Yamacraw Bluff, and the group set about creating temporary shelters and laying out the new city.

Oglethorpe imagined the Georgia colony to be an ideal agrarian society; he opposed slavery and allowed people of all religions to settle in Savannah even though the kings’ charter stated that Catholics and Jewish people were not allowed. Oglethorpe defied this provision of the charter, and allowed a group of Jewish people to settle in Savannah during the summer of 1733. In addition to his religious tolerance, Oglethorpe worked with and respected the local Indian tribes. He established a relationship with the Yamacraw Creeks, protecting them from traders who wanted to take advantage of them and settling land disputes with treaties.

Oglethorpe also established a ten-acre garden to the east of the city called Trustee’s Garden. The garden belonged to the Trustees of the colony, and was modeled after medicinal and botanical gardens in England. This garden would have plants to be used in medicines and plants for raw materials to be used in England, such as mulberry trees. Oglethorpe also grew orange trees, apple trees, pear tree, olives, figs, pomegranates, and other fruits that grew well in the warm climate.

But the early days of the colony were soon overshadowed by the threat from the Spanish. Oglethorpe found himself thinking more and more about how he could protect the citizens of the colony from an invasion from the Spanish. He repeatedly asked Parliament and the Trustees back in England for more resources to protect the colony. Often Parliament and the Trustees didn’t provide enough money and resources, and Oglethorpe used his own money to provide everything the colony needed. He knew he could lose everything if the colony didn’t succeed, but he had confidence in the final outcome.

In 1737, on a trip to England, Oglethorpe persuaded King George to make him a colonel in the British army and give him a regiment of soldiers to bring back to Savannah. Oglethorpe had minimal military experience, but he got what he wanted and found himself in charge of protecting not only Georgia, but also South Carolina against the Spanish forces to the south.

Vocabulary:

Agrarian –Relating to fields and farming, agriculture.

Bluff – A cliff with a flat front overlooking a river or another area. Botanical –Plants, usually herbs, that are used as raw materials.

Buffer – A location between two areas, often serving as protection or a divider.

Ideal – Something perfect and without flaws, an often unreachable goal.

Medicinal – A plant or other beneficial item used to cure a disease or relieve pain.

Military – Relating to soldiers and the army.

Namesake – A person or object named after another person, Georgia is named for King George II.

Overshadowed – When an event or person becomes less important because of another event or person.

Trader – A person who exchanges goods and services for money or for other goods and services.

Teaching Tips

1) Have students locate the Savannah and Altamaha Rivers on a Georgia map to obtain a sense of the large area the colonists were traveling to and how they would determine where to settle.

2) Tell students to design and draw their own garden like the Trustee’s Garden, with different plants that would be helpful to the colonists. They can research vegetables and fruits that grow in coastal Georgia, and discover herbs that can help cure the sick.

3) Have students research and write about the types of people that would have been helpful in 18th century America, people like blacksmiths, carpenters and farmers.

Sources

The New Georgia Encyclopedia, http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org

Savannah 1733 to 2000, Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society by Susan E. Dick and Mandi D. Johnson

Georgia: History Written By Those Who lived It edited by Mills Lane The Man Who Founded Georgia by J. GordonVaeth