Ed Jackson and Charles Pou

The University of Georgia

July 2

1735 In London, the Trustees decided on the name for the new town they had directed be built at the mouth of the Altamaha River in Georgia. In honor of Prince Frederick, son of King George II, the town would be named Frederica.

1776 Delegates at the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia adopted a series of resolutions proposed by Richard Henry Lee that declared "That these United States are and of right ought to be free and independent States," called for a formal declaration of independence from Great Britain, urged signing alliances with foreign countries, and proposed the formation of a confederation. After voting for independence, delegates continued to refine the declaration.

1810 Robert Toombs was born in Wilkes County, Georgia. At age 20, he would open a law practice in Washington, Georgia. After six years in the Georgia House, he was elected to the U.S. House (1846-1851) and to the U.S. Senate (1851-1861). A strong proponent of Georgia's secession in January 1861, he was named Confederate Secretary of State--a post he soon resigned. In July 1861, he was named general of a Confederate regiment -- but proved temperamental. At the end of the war, he fled to Europe. Returning two years later, the "unreconstructed rebel" refused to apply for a pardon. During Reconstruction, he fouoght Republican control of Georgia and proved to be the most influential member of Georgia's Redeemer constitutional convention in 1877.

1826 Commissioners from Georgia and Alabama met at Fort Mitchell, Alabama (near present day Columbus, Ga.) to begin surveying the land to establish the Georgia-Alabama border where the line left the Chattahoochee River. Alabama commissioners soon abandoned the work; the Georgia team completed the survey. While there was some minor dispute over the surveying and validity of the line, Alabama finally ratified it in 1840.

1863 Georgia Confederate Brig. Gen. Paul J. Semmes, commander of Semmes Brigade in Gen. James Longstreet's First Army Corps in the Army of Northern Virginia, was killed in vicious fighting on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg.

1873 Telemon Cuyler was born in Rome, Georgia. He later became a lawyer, writer, and lover of Georgia history. He traveled to Europe extensively, where he searched for historical books, tracts, maps, and other documents related to Georgia. After his death in 1951, Cuyler's extensive Georgiana collection was willed to the University of Georgia Library, where today it is available to students of Georgia history.

1898 According to Georgia's accounting of the origin of "Brunswick Stew," the first pot of this famous concoction was made on St. Simons Island on this day.

1908 Eatonton-born author Joel Chandler Harris died in Atlanta, Georgia. Although best remembered for his Uncle Remus stories, Harris will publish over 30 books, including a series of vignettes of Georgia.

1911 Former Confederate general and historian Clement Evans died in Atlanta. [See Feb. 25 entry for biographical information on Evans.]

1964 Martin Luther King, Jr. was invited to the Oval Office of the White House for President Lyndon Johnson's signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. King stood immediately behind the president during the ceremony.

1999 In the largest shutout win in team history since moving to Atlanta, the Braves beat the New York Mets at Shea Stadium by a score of 16-0. This tied 16-0 shutout margins previously set by the Boston Braves in 1918 and 1952 (though falling two runs short of the all-time Braves shutout margin of 18-0 over Buffalo in 1885). Playing before a sellout crowd, it was not a good game for Mets, who used 36 players and managed only three hits (two off winning pitcher Greg Maddux) during the game. In the top of the ninth inning, John Franco -- the sixth pitcher used by the Mets -- injured his pitching hand. In a strange call, the Mets manager moved third-baseman Matt Franco (no relation to John) to the mound to finish the inning, while sending a starting pitcher off the bench to play outfield. Matt Franco gave up a home run and triple before striking out Andruw Jones to end the inning (and probably his last pitching performance).

2003 Former Atlanta mayor Ivan Allen, Jr died. See March 15, 1911 entry for biographical information.

In Their Own Words on This Day. . .

1735 In this days proceedings of the Georgia Trustees, a complaint was read as to the Trustees' policy of not allowing daughters to inherit land grants in Georgia. In his journal of the Trustee proceedings, the Earl of Egmont summarized the reason for the policy:

"The Arguments urged by the Gentlemen [Trustees present] against making any alteration in the Tenure of lands were, That it was unfit the Trustees Should bind themselves down to give daughters a right to Succeed, because many cases might arise full of perplexity. So that it would be difficult to make one general Rule to Serve all. That our Grants are gifts & favours which may be made on what terms we please, and no many who accepts them on the present foot has reason to complain. That the Trustees will always do what is right, and the people Should have confidence in us. That we have already declared in our Rules that Special regard Shall be had of daughters, which is Sufficient to Satisfy the world on that head, and Should we be more explicite, the general welfare of the Colony might Suffer by it dispeopling it. For persons not inhabiting the Colony might marry Such daughters. That we know our own minds, that if Such daughters marry persons approved of by us who will Settle on the fathers grant, we Shall give it anew to her and her husband and her heirs male. Or we will Sell the Estate to one who will reside, and give the daughters the profit."

Source: Robert G. McPherson, The Journal of The Earl of Egmont: Abstract of the Trustees Proceedings for Establishing the Colony of Georgia, 1732-1738 (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1962), p. 96.

1864 Among the Confederate forces retreating from the Marietta area was John McCorkle, who wrote to his wife "Mat" [Matilda?]:

"My dear Mat, there has been some hard fighting since I wrote you before. We was marched down the railroad on the 21st and the 22nd we charged the Yankees. e lost a great many men. The Yankees drove us back. It was badly managed. . . .

"My dear Mat. I felt awful as the missiles of death was flying in every direction and see men falling on every hand. . . .My dear Mat, I was as near exhausted as ever I was in my life. I did not go as far as some of the boys, as I give completely out from heat and fell down and laid 'till they started back and then I hobbled up the best I could. I had to throw away my knapsack and everything in it, so I have no clothes, only what I have on and they are very dirty. But I would have throwed them away if I had have had to have went naked 'till Christmas rather than been captured, though I reckon I can draw some [more clothes] soon. . . ."

Source: Mills Lane (ed.), "Dear Mother: Don't grieve about me. If I get killed, I'll only be dead.": Letters from Georgia Soldiers in the Civil War (Savannah: Beehive Press), pp. 308-309.