Excerpt from A Standard History of Georgia and Georgians, Vol. 1 Georgia's history has heretofore existed, at least for the reading public, only in detached fragments, or in meager chronological outlines. This statement is not intended to convey any disparagement. The histories written by McCall, Stevens, and Jones, are works of surpassing value and, for the periods covered, are exhaustive of detail. But these histories deal only with the State's Colonial and Revolutionary epochs. Isaac W. Avery has made a luminous contribution to the history of the Civil war, dealing, however, principally with political events connected with the picturesque personality of Georgia's war governor. Lawton B. Evans has written a splendid epitome of the states political history, while U. B. Phillips, of the University of Michigan, and R. P. Brooks, of the University of Georgia, have each treated the subject with great ability from economic and sociological points of view. Gen. Clement A. Evans, and Prof. Joseph T. Derry, have each discussed the subject in its military aspects. The necessity for a work, therefore, weaving together in one continuous narrative the complete history of Georgia has long been felt. It was the purpose of Col. Charles C. Jones, Jr., the states greatest historian, to bring his masterful work down to the present time, but ere his stupendous task was half finished, death sheathed his shining pen forever. The present work is not designed to complete the unfinished task of Colonel Jones. That glorious Georgian will always occupy a niche in the Temple of Fame peculiarly his own. This work is intended only as a sincere and earnest contribution to the state's political annals, to bridge the gaps which have heretofore existed, and to connect the more or less familiar story of Georgia's remote historic past with the narrative of recent happenings. It is to be regretted that important records no longer exist on which to base an accurate account of the period immediately subsequent to the Revolution. This is due to the fact that when Georgia was overrun by the British, some of her most precious documents suffered destruction. The loss is an irreparable one, since the period in question was a period of beginnings, marked by organic changes. Original sources of information are also lacking for other periods; all of which emphasizes how important it is for the state to create a Department of Archives, in which to safeguard its immortal things. The necessity for providing quarters in which to house current volumes often relegates the old records to dark nooks and corners, where the agencies of decay make sad havoc of priceless values. New England's dearest care for generations has been her sacred memorials. Georgia's history is not one whit less glorious. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.