Important Dates in
Georgia Hernando de Soto passed
through Georgia (1540). James Oglethorpe founded
Savannah (1733). Georgia ratified the
Constitution (1788). Union troops captured
Atlanta (1864). Former Governor Jimmy Carter was
elected President (1976).
James Edward
Oglethorpe led an effort to reform
England's prison system, and then helped found
Georgia as a haven for England's "worthy
poor."