The Trustees of the Georgia colony learned on April 17, 1737 that Spain had 4000 soliders and two warships in Havana, Cuba and was planning on invading Georgia or South Carolina. Thus began the rivalry between then-Spanish occupied Florida and Georgia. Floridians would have to wait until after the 1873 invention of blue jeans by Levi Strauss to develop their modern uniform of jean shorts.
On April 15, 1776, the Georgia Provincial Congress issued “Rules and Regulations,” which would serve as an interim state Constitution until the Constitution of 1777 was adopted.
On April 15, 1783, the United States Congress ratified a preliminary peace treaty with Great Britain, which was signed in November 1782.
George Washington, recently elected President, left his Mount Vernon home on April 16, 1789 for his inauguration in New York.
“I bade adieu to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to domestic felicity; and with a mind oppressed with more anxious and painful sensations than I have words to express.”
On April 16, 1865, Columbus, Georgia fell to Union forces. The Battle of Columbus is widely considered to be the last battle of the Civil War. Though it is not unanimously held to be, a 1935 Act of the Georgia General Assembly declared it the war’s last battle.
RMS Titanic sunk at 2:20 AM on April 15,1912.
Hall of Famer Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians threw his first no-hitter on April 16, 1940 against the Chicago White Sox in Comiskey Park.
Jackie Robinson, born in Cairo, Georgia, became the first African-American professional baseball player in the Major Leagues on April 15, 1947, playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers against the Boston Braves. Robinson scored the winning run in that game.
On April 17, 1944, a fifteen-year old Martin Luther King, Jr., a junior at Booker T. Washington High School in Atlanta, traveled to Dublin, Georgia to give a speech in a contest sponsored by the local black Elks club. During the bus ride to Dublin, King and his teacher had to give up their seats to white riders and stand for much of the ride. King won the contest, delivering his oration, “The Negro and the Constitution.”
On April 17, 1950, the United States Supreme Court dismissed South v. Peters, a complaint against Georgia’s County Unit System of elections.
Each county is allotted a number of unit votes, ranging from six for the eight most populous counties, to two for most of the counties. The candidate who receives the highest popular vote in the county is awarded the appropriate number of unit votes. Appellants, residents of the most populous county in the State, contend that their votes and those of all other voters in that county have on the average but one-tenth the weight of those in the other counties. Urging that this amounts to an unconstitutional discrimination against them, appellants brought this suit to restrain adherence to the statute in the forthcoming Democratic Party primary for United States Senator, Governor and other state offices. The court below dismissed appellants’ petition. We affirm.
On April 17, 1964, the Ford Mustang debuted at the World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows, New York. The world has been a better, if somewhat louder, place ever since. Also present at the 1964 World’s Fair was the Coca-Cola Pavilion, which included a 610-bell electric carillon that would later be installed at Stone Mountain Park in Georgia, where it can be heard most days.
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote “Letter from the Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1965. On April 16, 2006, a new, larger portrait of Dr. King was unveiled in the Georgia State Capitol.
The Atlanta Ladies Memorial Association was formed on April 15, 1966 to assist and honor Confederate veterans. One of its most well-known projects was the “Lion of the Confederacy” memorial in Oakland Cemetery.
Photo: J. Glover (AUTiger)
On April 15, 1989, Chinese students and intellectuals in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, mourned the death of Communist Party General Secretary Hu Yaoban, considered a liberal reformer.
Thirty-two years ago this month “Say Anything” was released, marking the directorial debut of Cameron Crowe, who wrote “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” and later directed “Singles.”
John Cusack, four years past playing a college freshman in The Sure Thing, plays graduating high school senior Lloyd Dobler. Ione Skye, three years after her debut in the very dark drama River’s Edge, plays the brilliant and shy Diane Court. And John Mahoney, four years before he found sitcom immortality as Frasier Crane’s father Martin, plays Diane’s adoring and deeply flawed father, Jim. Writer and first-time director Cameron Crowe was best-known at the time for the screenplay for Fast Times at Ridgemont High — which is fondly remembered now as the launching pad for many respectable careers, but which Roger Ebert had called “a failure of taste, tone and nerve.”
DeForest Kelley, born in Atlanta and known for playing Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy on the original Star Trek series, was inducted into the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame on April 15, 1992.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Brian Kemp signed Executive Order 04.14.22.01, declaring a State of Emergency for Supply Chain Disruptions. From 11Alive:
“Despite the state’s successful mitigation of the public health impacts of COVID-19, Georgia’s supply chain has yet to fully recover and is still experiencing severe disruptions,” reads the state leader’s executive order.
Under this executive order, the governor said price gouging related to the goods and services needed to respond to this State of Emergency, such as motor or diesel fuel, would be “detrimental” and is prohibited.
Rules that limit the hours that commercial drivers can work are suspended “to ensure the supply chain for all supplies, goods, and services throughout Georgia is uninterrupted.” However, the order stated that drivers should not operate their vehicle if they are sick or tired. It went on to say that they must be given ten consecutive hours off-duty before returning to work.
Supply chain issues have been strangle-holding the local economy for some time, affecting everything from gas prices to grocery costs. The ensuing inflation across the state has begun to concern experts, who say Georgia’s 300,000 job openings are being stifled by the Peach State’s historically low unemployment rate.
I’ll admit I’ve never seen strangle-hold used as a verb before.
The declaration will run for 30 days with it expiring at the end of May 15.
United States District Court Judge Mark Cohen declined to unilaterally pronounce Stacey Abrams President of United Earth the Democratic nominee for Governor. From the AJC:
A federal judge ruled Thursday that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams can’t use a state law created to give Gov. Brian Kemp a major fundraising advantage in their possible rematch this year.
“Granting plaintiffs’ requested relief … would require this court to effectively rewrite the statute to recognize Abrams as the Democratic Party nominee before she has been selected in a primary,” Cohen wrote.
The law lets the governor, the opposing party’s gubernatorial nominee, and party caucuses raise as much cash as they can throughout the campaign, including during legislative sessions. It gave incumbents an added edge since their challengers can’t use the funds until they win their party’s nomination.
Abrams’ lawyers argue that she should be treated as the Democratic nominee now since she didn’t draw a primary opponent. U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, the chairwoman of the state Democratic Party, filed an affidavit declaring Abrams the nominee.
However, Cohen said Monday that state law is clear that “Stacey Abrams is not the nominee” and that Abrams’ campaign was asking him to re-write state law by declaring her the Democratic nominee before the primary.
House Bill 1147, authorizes year-round hunting for racoons an opossums, according to 13WMAZ.
Bill 1147 passed both houses this legislative session.
It allows people to hunt and exterminate raccoons and opossums year round, which, in some instances, may help the turkey population, especially at this time of the year when turkeys are watching their eggs. Opossums and raccoons are egg eaters.
Folks that have private land and hunt clubs now don’t have to get a permit to get rid of the problem predators.
Rushton says you cannot hunt or trap raccoons and opossums on public land or wildlife management areas year round, but they will expand the season on public lands when squirrel season begins in August.
Muscogee County is hosting meetings to discuss the referendum to renew a regional T-SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for Transportation), according to WTVM.
The sales tax will go from 8 percent to 9 percent if approved.
Muscogee County is one of 16 counties in the River Valley region that will receive funding from this tax.
The current T-SPLOST will expire by the end of December.
“If approved by voters on May 24th, has a project list of $664 million. And that is a regional project list,” said [Deputy City Manager Pam] Hodge.
The next one will be on April 25 at the Shirley Winston Recreation Center on Steam Mill Road and another one on April 28 at Psalmond Road Recreation Center on Psalmond Road.
Glynn County is considering a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, according to The Brunswick News.
Jekyll Island generated a projected $168 million in taxable sales in 2021, according to a recent analysis, and could create $12 million in revenue over a five-year period for the potential Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) 2022 in Glynn County.
Jekyll Island will contribute $12 million to Glynn County’s LOST revenues in the next five years, according to the analysis. The island will also contribute about $12 million to Glynn County Board of Education’s ESPLOST revenues.
The county commission has yet to announce a full list of SPLOST projects that could be on the ballot in November. In 2021, voters rejected the proposed SPLOST. Proceeds from the tax, used for capital projects, are split among municipalities within the county’s boundaries.
Avian influenza has been detected in Georgia and at least three Bald Eagles appear to have died from it, according to 13WMAZ.
Bird flu has been detected in Georgia bald eagles according to the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), killing at least three birds.
Samples from three bald eagles found dead, one each, in Chatham, Glynn and Liberty counties tested as suspected positive last month at the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study in Athens, they said.
While typically carried by waterfowl and shorebirds, the organization explains eagles could have contracted the virus by preying sick weaverbirds or scavenging on their dead carcasses.
They said that the disease has likely “undercut the nesting success for eagle in the state’s coastal counties.”
Senior Wildlife Biologist Bob Sargent said that while nest success is down, Georgia’s bald eagle population is still strong and he does not expect the virus to significantly slow the species’ rebound.To help prevent the spread, the DNR encourages the public to avoid handling sick or dead birds, and report any dead or sick eagles to (478) 994-1438. They also suggested keeping pets away from sick or dead birds, even though they said transmission to pets is rare.
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