February 13, 1730

1730 In London, James Oglethorpe unveiled his plan for creating a charitable colony for poor debtors released from prison to Sir John Percival, a fellow member of the House of Commons who had served on his Gaols [Jails] Committee. At this point, Oglethorpe expected that the proposed colony would be located in the West Indies. Percival embraced the idea and quickly became a key figure in what would become the Georgia movement.

February 13, 1850

1850 Gov. George Towns signed legislation creating Gordon County as Georgia’s 94th county. Created from portions of Bartow and Floyd counties, the new county was named for William Gordon, president of the Central Railroad and Banking Co. and an active proponent of Georgia’s transportation development.

February 13, 1854

1854 Gov. Herschel Johnson signed legislation creating Chattahoochee County as Georgia’s 109th county. Created from portions of Marion and Muscogee counties, the county was named for the Chattahoochee River, which forms the county’s western boundary.

February 13, 1854

Georgia cities and towns incorporated by acts approved by the governor on Feb. 13:
1854 Graniteville (Coweta County)

February 13, 1917

1917 Martha Lumpkin, daughter of Gov. Wilson Lumpkin, and for whom Terminus was incorporated as Marthasville in 1843, died in Atlanta. She had been born Aug. 25, 1827.

February 13, 1941

1941 Gov. Eugene Talmadge signed a joint resolution of the General Assembly proposing a constitutional amendment to change the term of the governor and other constitutional officers from two years to four. On the following June 3, Georgia voters ratified the amendment.

February 13, 1956

1956 The Secretary of the Senate sent S.B. 98 (which would change Georgia’s state flag by adding the Confederate battle flag) to Gov. Marvin Griffin, who immediately signed it into law in a ceremony attended by flag designer John Sammons Bell and state senators Jefferson Lee Davis, and Sen. Willis Harden (who were the bill’s primary sponsors). The same day, by a 39-0 vote, the full Senate adopted H.R. 185, which declared that Georgia was interposing its sovereign power and declaring the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decisions null and void.