Georgia

History: Prior to settlement by Europeans, Georgia was inhabited by the mound building cultures of Native Americans. The colony of Georgia was founded on February 12, 1733, by James Ogelthorpe. Later it was briefly invaded by the Spanish in 1742, then was ruled directly by the king of England. Georgia was one of the original thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule during the American Revolution. It became the 4^th state on January 2, 1788. Georgia joined the confederacy in 1861, fought in the Civil War, and became the last Confederate state to rejoin the U.S. in 1870.

Economy: Atlanta is the world’s busiest airport by passenger and aircraft traffic. For five years through 2017, Georgia was ranked the top state in the nation to do business, in finance, insurance, technology, manufacturing, real estate, service, logistics, and much more. It also has a lot of agriculture and mining, as well. Their farms produce peanuts, corn, Vidalia onions (very sweet), and soybeans; also they are the number one producer of pecans in the world.

Climate: Most of the state is a humid subtropical climate. So, it is hot and humid during the summers. In the winters, it receives moderate to heavy precipitation (rainfall) which varies from 45 to 75 inches in the northeast part of the state. Georgia is subject to hurricanes coming north from either the east coast of Florida or from the Gulf of Mexico.

Geography: Georgia is the largest state east of the Mississippi River. It has three main kinds of topographical areas; low coastal plain, mountainous, and the Piedmont foothill region in central Georgia (which covers about a third of the state). Georgia is bordered by Florida to the south, Alabama (west), North Carolina (north), South Carolina (across Savannah River) and the Atlantic Ocean (east). Also, off Georgia’s coastline are several scenic islands.

Fun Facts:

Georgia was the last of the original 13 colonies to be founded.
The Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta is the largest aquarium in the world, with over 100,000 aquatic animals in over 10 million gallons of water.
The soda drink ‘Coca-Cola’ was invented in Columbus in May 1886.
Georgia is called the Peach State because it’s the top producer of peaches in the U.S.
In 1996 Atlanta hosted the Summer Olympic Games, the first time ever in the South.
Georgia became the first state to change the legal voting age from 21 to 18, in 1945.

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