Nicknames: Peach State

Capitol: Atlanta

Motto: Wisdom, justice, and moderation

Song: Georgia on My Mind words: Stuart Gorrell, music: Hoagy Carmichael

Flower: Cherokee Rose, Rosa laevigata

Tree: Live oak, Quercus virginiana

Bird: Brown Thrasher

Gained Statehood: January 2, 1788

Name Origin: Named for King George II of England

Georgia is a place to enjoy history, Southern charm and beauty. From azaleas and magnolias to the impressive architecture of antebellum southern mansions, Georgia is a truly beautiful state. Georgia welcomes visitors with nature, hospitality and poise.

Hernando de Soto, the Spanish explorer, first traveled Georgia in 1540. Gen. James Oglethorpe later established the first permanent settlement in Georgia in 1733 for the British which is now present day Savannah. In 1742, Oglethorpe defeated Spanish invaders in the Battle of Bloody Marsh on St. Simons Island. During the Revolutionary War, many Georgians still felt loyalty to England. Therefore, the war was fought not only between American and British forces, but also between citizens who became revolutionaries, the Whigs, and those still swearing allegiance to the king, the Tories. Between 1783 and 1785, the Georgia Assembly rotated between Savannah and Augusta, and the governor divided his official residence between the two cities. In 1860 the national debate over the extension of slavery into new territories reached a crescendo. Georgia was a Confederate stronghold during the Civil War. Georgia did not suffer direct devastation from the war until 1864 when General William Tecumseh Sherman advanced though Northern Georgia, besieged and captured Atlanta, and then pushed on to Savannah on his famous March to the Sea. Following the Civil War, the rebuilding of Georgia was a slow and painful process. There were political conflicts between the newly enfranchised black citizens who, for the first time, were allowed to hold seats in the Legislature. In January, 1977, Georgia sent its first President to the White House, Jimmy Carter of Plains, Georgia. Currently Georgia is emerging as a leader in the social, political and economic progress of the United States. Atlanta, the largest city in the state, is the communications and transportation center for the Southeast and the area's chief distributor of goods. Georgia leads the nation in the production of paper and board, tufted textile products, and processed chicken. Georgia's agricultural products include corn, cotton, tobacco, soybeans, eggs, and peaches. Georgia produces twice as many peanuts as the next leading state. From its large forests pine come more than half of the world's resins and turpentine. Georgia is also a leader in the production of marble, kaolin, barite, and bauxite.

Conrad Aiken , James Bowie , James Brown , Jim Brown , Erskine Caldwell ,James E. Carter , Ray Charles , Lucius D. Clay , Ty Cobb ,Ossie Davis , James Dickey , Mattiwilda Dobbs , Melvyn Douglas , Rebecca Latimer Felton , Roosevelt Grier , Oliver Hardy , Joel Chandler Harris , Larry Holmes , Miriam Hopkins , Alan Jackson , Harry James , Jasper Johns , Bobby Jones ,Stacy Keach , DeForest Kelley , Martin Luther King, Jr. , Gladys Knight , Joseph R. Lamar , Little Richard , Juliette Gordon Low , Carson McCullers , Johnny Mercer , Margaret Mitchell , Elijah Muhammad , Jessye Norman , Otis Redding , Burt Reynolds , Jackie Robinson , Dean Rusk , Nipsey Russell ,Travis Tritt , Alice Walker , Joanne Woodward , Trisha Yearwood