Question

SS8H4 Explain significant factors that affected westward expansion in Georgia between 1789 and 1840.
SS8E2 Evaluate the influence of Georgia-based businesses on the State’s economic growth and
development.
In 1785, the U__________________________ of G________________________
was chartered as the nation’s first public school of higher education, with Abraham
Baldwin serving as its president until 1801. The school was declared a
“l_________________________ g__________________________” university in
1872 when it added agriculture and mechanical arts classes; this reclassification
also saved the Athens school from potential bankruptcy.
Although Georgia’s first state-level constitution (1777) recognized the city of
S____________________________________ as the capital, political events –
coupled with a westward-shifting population – resulted in several changes of venue
over time:
- A___________________________________ during the American Revolution.
- L_____________________________________ after the American Revolution.
- M_____________________________________ through the Civil War.
- A_____________________________________ after the Civil War.
Among the technological advances to spur Georgia’s westward expansion and economic growth during
this period, the two biggest were the invention of the c________________________ g_______________
by e_____________________________________ Eli Whitney, and the expansion of the state’s
r_____________________________________.
Georgia’s westward expansion came at the expense of the American Indians present in the state,
specifically the C__________________________________ in northern Georgia and the
C__________________________ in southern Georgia. Lands purchased or forcibly taken from these two
tribes were distributed in various ways. One example of this happened just after the American Revolution,
when the state gave away thousands of acres of Indian land to soldiers who had fought in the war. Those
who did not fight were also entitled to Indian land under the h___________________________________
s________________________________, which permitted white males, over the age of 21, to receive up
to 200 acres; married men with families and/or slaves could receive even more land.
Another land grab – later deemed an outright
land fraud – occurred in 1795 under the terms
of the Y______________________________
Act. This act, pushed through the General
Assembly and passed by the governor through
bribery, sold western Indian lands to four land
development companies for $500,000. When
the truth about this land deal came out,
Georgians cried foul. The General Assembly
nullified the sales, and ultimately the land was
ceded to the U.S. government; it would
eventually become the states of
A_______________________________ and
M__________________________________.Yazoo Land Fraud
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Unit 4 | Statehood (Part 2) – Westward Expansion

Answer 1

SS8H4 / SS8E2 — Completed passage with blanks filled:

In 1785, the University of Georgia was chartered as the nation’s first public school of higher education, with Abraham Baldwin serving as its president until 1801. The school was declared a “land‑grant university” in 1872 when it added agriculture and mechanical arts classes; this reclassification also saved the Athens school from potential bankruptcy.

Although Georgia’s first state‑level constitution (1777) recognized the city of Savannah as the capital, political events – coupled with a westward‑shifting population – resulted in several changes of venue over time:
- Augusta during the American Revolution.
- Louisville after the American Revolution.
- Milledgeville through the Civil War.
- Atlanta after the Civil War.

Among the technological advances to spur Georgia’s westward expansion and economic growth during this period, the two biggest were the invention of the cotton gin by inventor Eli Whitney, and the expansion of the state’s railroads.

Georgia’s westward expansion came at the expense of the American Indians present in the state, specifically the Cherokee in northern Georgia and the Creek in southern Georgia. Lands purchased or forcibly taken from these two tribes were distributed in various ways. One example of this happened just after the American Revolution, when the state gave away thousands of acres of Indian land to soldiers who had fought in the war. Those who did not fight were also entitled to Indian land under the headright system, which permitted white males, over the age of 21, to receive up to 200 acres; married men with families and/or slaves could receive even more land.

Another land grab – later deemed an outright land fraud – occurred in 1795 under the terms of the Yazoo Act. This act, pushed through the General Assembly and passed by the governor through bribery, sold western Indian lands to four land development companies for $500,000. When the truth about this land deal came out, Georgians cried foul. The General Assembly nullified the sales, and ultimately the land was ceded to the U.S. government; it would eventually become the states of Alabama and Mississippi.