Ed Jackson and Charles Pou

The University of Georgia

January 17

1733 In London, the Georgia Trustees voted to ban Jews from settling in Georgia and further to instruct Jewish leaders in London to stop collecting money to send Jewish settlers to Georgia. This issue had arisen at the Dec. 7, 1732 meeting of the Trustees, but without resolution. In his journal, the Earl of Egmont noted that the Trustees were divided on the issue, but the majority voted against allowing Jews to settle in Georgia "because they generally are not cultivators of land, but Small hedge Shopkeepers, and might keep private correspondence with the Spaniards." At least one Trustee -- Thomas Coram -- feared Jews immigrants would cause Christian colonists in Georgia "to fall off and desert it, as leaves from a tree in autumn." Whatever the reason for the ban, it came too late for 43 Jews who had sailed for Georgia earlier that month. After they arrived in July 1733, Oglethorpe allow them to settle in Savannah -- and some were given land grants. Although there was as yet no official policy on Jews [Georgia's charter guaranteed religious liberty to all but Catholics], Oglethorpe contacted attorneys in Charleston about allowing the Jews to remain after the Trustees' Jan. 17 ban. The lawyers advised Oglethorpe that he could not remove the Jews (which must have delighted him, since the colony's only physician was one of the Jews that arrived in July).

[Note: Letters, diaries, and records of this time show dates based on the Julian calendar (referred to as "Old Style") then in effect in Britain and the American colonies. The Gregorian calendar ("New Style") was adopted in 1752. Thus, Jan. 17, 1732/33 (Old Style) represents Jan. 28,1733 under the calendar now in effect. For a fuller explanation, click here.]

1927 Georgian Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts of America, died in Savannah. [See Oct. 31 entry for biographical information.]

1966 Martin Luther King Jr. opened a civil rights campaign in Chicago, marking the first time for him to launch an initiative in a northern city.

1999 In Minneapolis, the Atlanta Falcons played the Minnesota Vikings for the championship of the National Football Conference. Although Atlanta had a 14-2 regular season -- the best in team history -- Minnesota, with a 15-1 season, was widely expected to win. The Falcons scored first, but Minnesota came back to tie and then take the lead. With 9 minutes left in the game, Minnesota lead by 10 points -- and the game seemed over. The Falcons then scored a field goal to bring them within 7 points of the Vikings. Finally,with one minute left in the game, Atlanta quarterback Chris Chandler threw a touchdown pass to tie the score at 27-27. The game went to overtime, which meant the first team to score won. Minnesota won the coin toss to receive, but finally had to punt on fourth down. After the ball went back and forth several times, the Falcons took over within their own 10-yard-line and marched down the field. On third down, Atlanta coach Dan Reeves called on Morten Andersen to try a field goal from the 20. Andersen came through with a 38-yard field goal to give the Falcons a 30-27 victory, the NFC championship, and the team's first-ever berth in the Super Bowl. Amazingly, the Falcons went through five quarters without an offensive penalty to win their first-ever victory in the Minneapolis Metrodome. Some sportscasters called it one of the best championship games in professional football history. [Click here to view CNN-SI summary of game.]

In Their Own Words on This Day. . .

1733 Four days after reaching Charles Town, the first Georgia colonists were aboard the Anne sailing south along the Carolina coast towards their new home. Aboard ship, Peter Gordon recorded in his journal some unexpected excitement:

"The 17th about two in the afternoon, we were alarmed by a sloop who as soon as he perceived us standing along shore, emediately changed his course and bore down upon us, which looking very suspitious made us conclude he must either be a pirate or Spanish Guard de Costa and that his intention was to plunder us, upon which Mr. Oglethorp order'd all our men upon deck, and the small arms to be brought up, and all the women and children to keep below, and not appear upon deck. In the mean time, while we were drawing our men up, and getting our arms loaded, and ready for our defence, Captain Thomas who commanded the shipp order'd his great guns to be charg'd, and all things ready on his part, continuing still our course. And the sloop bearing still down upon us and who by this time had gott so near us that we could perseive hade Jack Ensigne and pennant flying, which appear'd to us to be Spanish Colours, but being by this time pretty well provided for him, the Captain ordered the Course to be hauled up in order to waite for him. As soon as he came within gun shott of us, the captain order'd a gun to be fired across his stem, and we could perceive the ball to fall about a hundred yards ahead of him, but that not bringing him too, as we expected it would, he ordered another to be fired, still nearer to him, with fell within a very small distance of him, upon which and fearing the next shott would be aboard him he thought proper to lower his top sails, and upon viewing us and finding we were so well provided for him both sides of the shipp being compleatly lined with armed men, he thought proper to gett upon a wind, and stand away the same course he was in when we perceived him first. The pilote whome we hade on board said he had some knowledge of him that he had been a pirate, and that he certainly would have plundered us hade he not found we were too strong for him. I cannot here omitt taking notice of the bravery of some of our women who when we expected every moment to come to an ingagement beg'd they might be assisting in handing us up arms ammunition, and whatever should be wanted, and that if it would be permitted they would come upon deck and fight as long as they could stand, while some of our men who had been noted the whole voyage for noisy bullying fellows, were not to be found upon this occasion but sculked either in the hold or between decks."

Source: [No author or editor cited], Our First Visit in America: Early Reports from the Colony of Georgia, 1732-1740 (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1974), pp. 10-11.

1736 Missionary Benjamin Ingham kept a record of his voyage to colonial Georgia, including this frightening encounter with a tumultuous sea:

"The wind was very Strong; about half an hour after 10 at night, we encountered such a wave, as we did not meet with in all our passages besides: it shook the whole frame of Ship from Stem to Stern; the water sprung thro' the Sides of the Ship which before were tight, and was also toss'd above the main Yard; falling down it cover'd the decks, broke into the great Cabin, fill'd Mrs. Welshe's Bed; Mr. Oglethorpe was gone to Bed, but he got up and resign'd his own dry Cabin to the Sick, betaking himself once more to his Hammock. Hitherto we had had a very fine passage, but now approaching near Land, we met with contrary winds, which kept us above a Fortnight longer at Sea than otherwise we should have been."

Source: [no author or editor cited], Our First Visit in America: Early Reports from the Colony of Georgia, 1732-1740 (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1974), p. 173.

1736 John Wesley also recorded his account of the same storm:

"Many People were very impatient at the contrary Wind. At Seven in the Evening they were quieted by a Storm. It rose higher and higher till . . . the Sea broke over us from Stem to Stern: burst through the Windows of the State Cabin, where three or four of us were, and cover'd us all over, tho' a Bureau shelter'd me from the main Shock. About 11, I lay down in the great Cabin, and in a short time fell asleep, tho' very uncertain whether I should wake alive, and much ashamed of my Unwillingness to die. O how pure in Heart must he be, who wou'd rejoice to appear before God at a Moment's Warning! Toward Morning, he rebuked the Winds and the Sea, and there was a great Calm."

Source: [no author or editor cited], Our First Visit in America: Early Reports from the Colony of Georgia, 1732-1740 (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1974), p. 189.

1739 On the previous day, James Oglethorpe had written the other Trustees about practical reasons to oppose slavery in Georgia. Today, in a second letter from Fort Frederica, Oglethorpe addressed more philosophical reasons to oppose slavery:

"I have wrote already a letter upon the head of Negroes and shall only add that if we allow slaves we act against the very principles by which we associated together, which was to relieve the distressed. Whereas, now we should occasion the misery of thousands in Africa, by setting men upon using arts to buy and bring into perpetual slavery the poor people who now live free there. . . ."

Source: Mills Lane (ed.), General Oglethorpe's Georgia: Colonial Letters, 1733-1743 (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1990), Vol. II, p. 389.