SS8H4b GA Land Policies Review

As Natives were giving up land to Georgia, the state had to decide how to distribute this land. Georgia legislatures could have made a profit selling this land but chose to give land away for free.

Why? Georgia wanted to encourage population growth and have more men to help defend the state.

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The systems used was the Headright and Land Lottery.​

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In the headright system the "head" of a family (white male only) could receive 200 acres of land, plus 50 additional acres for each family member. The only cost was a surveying fee.​

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​The Headright System

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• White men over the age of 21       

• Families limited to 1,000 acres​

• Soldiers who had fought during the Revolution could get more land

• Soldiers had to present a signed voucher by a commanding officer

• This became corrupt very quickly

• Too many claimants "first come, first served"

• Not enough land to offer; settlers drew their own boundary lines

Georgia's boundaries once stretched West all the way to the Mississippi River.

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GA legislatures were bribed into selling 40 million acres of land for $500,000 to four land companies.​

​Yazoo Land Fraud 1795

​U.S. Senator James Jackson, from Georgia, was outraged when he heard the news of the BRIBES! He immediately left Washington, D.C. and came home to straighten out the “mess”.

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​In a symbolic way to put the controversy to an end. James Jackson and several legislators used a magnifying glass to light the Yazoo Papers on fire and burned them on the grounds of the Capitol building in Louisville.  They called it “Holy Fire from Heaven”

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​Fire from Heaven

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Because of corruption and too much land granted under the headright system, in 1803 a new system distributed land by lottery to give people equal chances. Every free white male who had live in GA for a year was given one chance. ​There were 8 lotteries between 1803 and 1833.

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Prices for tickets varied depending on the particular lottery

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Some price ranges are 

$8.10 for a 202 ½ acre lot

$12.15 for 202 ½  acre lot

$19.60 for a 490 acre lot

Prices were different for different drawings

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• Eligible names sent to the state

• Participants paid for ticket 

• Participants’ names were placed in one drum 

• The lots bearing a number would be placed in a second drum. 

• Every free white males given one chance

• Must have live in GA a year

• Men with families and widows with children were given 2 chances​

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