Georgia Historical Society

From the GHS Print Collection

The Georgia Historical Society online exhibit, "Encounter and Exchange" is an examination of some of Georgia's historical meetings between various individuals and groups of people and the exchange of ideas that followed. Sometimes these encounters were forced and bloody, others were cooperative and peaceful. Regardless of the circumstances, Georgia's historical encounters gave rise to the rich cultural and ethnic diversity of the present-day state.

The exhibit is designed to complement the 2007 lecture series and to provide an online teaching aid for Georgia's educators. The lecture series concentrates on three themes - colonial settlement of North America, the first two hundred years of slavery in North America, and human interaction with the environment - and the aim of the exhibit is to apply these themes to Georgia's history. Digital images of artifacts and documents offer a visual aid and exemplify the ways in which the Society's collections can serve researchers and students alike. Teaching tips and additional reading suggestions follow the explanatory text to help Georgia's teachers incorporate state history into related curriculum in accordance with professional standards.

Some of the exhibits also include "A New Theory to Consider." These notes outline some of the latest theories in historical thinking that may not be included in elementary and secondary education texts. It is hoped that exposure to these theories may help all students expand their analytical thinking skills and, more specifically, prepare high school students for new ideas that will be encountered in college.

In keeping with the subject matter of the lecture series, much of the exhibit is dedicated to the coastal areas of Georgia. Therefore, the exhibit should be used in conjunction with the previous exhibit, "Three Centuries of Georgia History," to create a more complete understanding of the Georgia story.