Question

Directions: Complete the chart below based on the passage.
Pretend you are a news reporter from the early 1800. You are reporting to the public about the
capital’s recent move FROM Louisville TO Milledgeville. Explain why Louisville was chosen as
Georgia’s capital location, why it is no longer ideal for Georgia’s capital location, and why the
capital is being moved to Milledgeville, Georgia.

Answer 1

Esteemed readers — a brief dispatch concerning the late removal of our State’s seat of government from Louisville to the newly laid out town of Milledgeville. Below I set forth, in plain terms for your understanding, the reasons Louisville was first chosen, why it has grown unsuitable, and why the Legislature has resolved to seat the capital at Milledgeville.

Why Louisville was chosen as Georgia’s capital
- Centrality to the settled counties of the day: When the government left the old eastern towns, Louisville lay nearer the centre of the State’s population and thus promised easier travel for most citizens and representatives.
- To encourage inland settlement: Placing the capital inland signalled the State’s desire to push the frontier westward and to give the western counties better access to government.
- Available site and civic support: Land was forthcoming and the town was established to serve as the seat of government, making it a convenient and timely choice at that period.

Why Louisville is no longer ideal for the capital
- The State has grown and the population has shifted west and south, so Louisville is no longer central to the majority of Georgians.
- Poor accommodations and limited room for public buildings: Louisville’s small, improvised facilities prove inadequate for the business of a growing commonwealth.
- Difficult travel and health concerns: Roads to Louisville remain rough and slow in many directions, and the situation of the town has been judged by many to be less wholesome and convenient than desirable for a permanent seat of government.

Why the capital is being moved to Milledgeville
- A more central location for the present State: Milledgeville has been selected because it better serves the newer settlements and the interior of Georgia.
- Superior site and access: The chosen site affords higher, healthier ground and easier communication by the principal roads and waterways used by citizens and merchants.
- Planned town and public provision: Milledgeville is a purpose-laid town with land set aside for the public buildings and the accommodation of the Legislature and its officers; its name and founding enjoy the patronage of leading citizens, which promises steadier growth and convenience for government business.

Thus, by common consent and legislative act, your servants in the Assembly have removed the seat of government to Milledgeville so that the public affairs of Georgia may be conducted in a place more central, healthful, and fit for the demands of our expanding State.