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On June 9, 1732, King George II signed the charter
granting James Oglethorpe and a group of trustees
permission to establish a thirteenth British colony to
be named in honor of the King. The motives for the grant
were to aid the worthy poor in England , strengthen the
Colonies, increase imperial trade and navigation, and to
provide a buffer for Carolina against Spanish Florida.
Even though the King had granted the charter for the
colony, Oglethorpe wanted to get the consent of the
Indians inhabiting the area. There had been an agreement
with them that no more colonies would be located below
the Carolina border. In February 1733, James
Oglethorpe landed at Yamacraw Bluff - a site he
considered perfect for his new colony. The only Indian
tribe living within fifty miles of the new colony was a
group of about 100 Yamacraw Indians. Tomochichi, the
chief of the Yamacraws, greeted Oglethorpe with kindness
because the Indians were pleased with the prospect of
more settlers. Mary Musgrove, the daughter of an Indian
woman and white trader, was hired as Oglethorpe's
interpreter. On February 12, 1733, James Oglethorpe
brought 114 settlers to Yamacraw Bluff to establish the
thirteenth British colony. Savannah became the center of
colonial government.
In 1752, nine years after Oglethorpe left Georgia for
the last time, the trustees relinquished the charter and
Georgia became a royal colony. A governor appointed by
King George II arrived in Savannah in 1754. Under royal
government, provision was made for a General Assembly,
consisting of an elected lower house, called the House
of Commons, and the Governor's Council, whose 12 men
appointed by the King were called the Upper House of the
Assembly. The Commons House first met in January 1755
with 19 representatives elected by landowners of 50 or
more acres within the colony.
Savannah grew slowly until after the departure of the
Spanish from Florida in 1763. By the start of the
Revolution, Georgia had about 35,000 people; with
Savannah's population at approximately 2,500. During the
last part of the colonial period, Savannah export
business increased considerably, reflecting an increase
in farming, lumbering and Indian trade.
When Georgia's independence from British rule was
declared, an Executive Council was elected. The
revolutionary state government made Savannah its Capital
and the Legislature met there in 1777 and 1778. During
the Revolutionary War, the capture of Savannah caused
the revolutionary government to retreat to Augusta in
1778. Upon the fall of Augusta in 1779, the government
was temporarily located at Heards Fort in Wilkes County
from February 1780 to July 1781. Government officials
returned to Augusta in 1782, only to move to Savannah
which had been evacuated by the British. Between 1783
and 1785, the Georgia Assembly rotated between Savannah
and Augusta, and the governor divided his official
residence between the two cities.
Savannah lost its political importance to the rapidly
growing upcountry with the removal of the capital to
Augusta in 1786, but its significance as a port and
trade center was increased. Rice, naval stores and
lumber continued as major exports, and the new item in
Georgias economy was cotton. |
