Ed Jackson and Charles Pou

Carl Vinson Institute of Government

The University of Georgia

April 11

1768 Benjamin Franklin was named Georgia's colonial agent with instructions "to represent, solicit, and transact the affairs of this province in Great Britain."

1790 Politician George Rockingham Gilmer was born April 11, 1790 in what was then Wilkes (later Oglethorpe) County, Gilmer was educated early at the academy of Moses Waddel, who later served as president of the University of Georgia while Gilmer served on the Board of Trustees. Gilmer studied law until the War of 1812, when he led an expedition against the Creek Indians. His political career began in 1818 with his election to the Georgia House of Representatives. After two years in the General Assembly, Gilmer was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, but poor health precluded a long stay in Washington. He was back in the Georgia legislature by 1824, and was elected governor in 1829. Gilmer was a staunch believer in states' rights in regards to Indians living within the state of Georgia. With the discovery of gold in Cherokee territory in 1829, the Georgia legislature extended state law throughout the area - resulting in two Supreme Court cases ruling Georgia could not legally extend its laws in such a way. But Gilmer (who had served another term in Congress before being re-elected governor in 1837) defied the rulings and pushed to have the Cherokees forcibly removed from their land in 1836, the beginning of the infamous Trail of Tears. Gilmer retired from public life after completing his term as governor in 1839. Subsequently he authored his memoirs, Sketches of Some of the First Settlers of Upper Georgia. He died Nov. 15, 1859.

1853 John Archibald Campbell was appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court. He was born June 24, 1811 near Washington, Georgia. After graduating from the University of Georgia at the age of 14, he practiced law in Alabama. In 1853, President Franklin Pierce appointed Campbell to the U.S. Supreme Court, where four years later he sides with the majority decision in the Dred Scott case, adding his own concurring opinion in the important case. Following the outbreak of the Civil War, Campbell resigned from the high court and became Assistant Secretary of War for the Confederacy. Imprisoned briefly after the war, President Johnson ordered the release of Campbell, who then practiced law in New Orleans until his death in 1889.

1862 After a second day of extensive bombardment, Confederate Col. Charles Olmstead surrendered Fort Pulaski to Union forces at 2:30 p.m.

1947 Jackie Robinson signed a contract to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers for an annual salary of $5,000 with a signing bonus of $3,500. Subsequently, he became the first black player in a major league exhibition baseball game in which the Dodgers played the New York Yankees.

1948 Savannah-born Claude Harmon became the first native Georgian to win the Masters golf tournament. [Click here to read the story of his win.]

1956 James Brown's "Please, Please, Please" became his first recording to enter the R&B chart of top hits.

1982 The record season-opening stretch of consecutive wins continued as Atlanta Brave pitcher Rick Mahler had a 5-0 victory against the Houston Astros to post the Braves fifth straight win. Contributing to the win were homers by Dale Murphy and Bob Horner.

1983 Seve Ballesteros won his second Masters golf tournament. [Click here to read the story of his win.]

1987 Author Erskine Caldwell died in Paradise Valley, Arizona. Born in rural White Oak, Georgia in 1903, Caldwell grew up witnessing the severe plight of poor sharecroppers in the early part of the century, a plight worsened by the Great Depression. With a unique blend of tragedy and comedy, Caldwell wrote his most famous works based on these observations. He gained world renown with the publication of Tobacco Road in 1932, followed by God's Little Acre the following year. While many in the South were scandalized at Caldwell's graphic use of sex and violence, his works were nevertheless very popular. In 1937, he and Margaret Bourke-White (his wife at the time) published You Have Seen Their Faces, a photographic essay of poor, white, rural Southerners during the Depression. Altogether Caldwell published twenty-five novels, some one hundred-fifty short stories, and twelve volumes of non-fiction.

1965 Jack Nicklaus scored a record 271 (17 under par) in his second Masters win, beating Arnold Palmer and Gary Player by nine strokes. [Click here to read the story of his win.]

1966 Jack Nicklaus won his third Masters championship becoming the first golfer to win consecutive Masters championships. His victory came in a playoff with Tommy Jacobs and Gary Brewer. [Click here to read the story of his win.]

1976 Ray Floyd shot a record-tying 271 to win the Masters by eight strokes over Ben Crenshaw. [Click here to read the story of his win.]

1990 Gov. Joe Frank Harris signed an act of the General Assembly designating the Vidalia Sweet Onion as Georgia's official state vegetable. [Unlike most other acts and resolutions designating Georgia state symbols, this act does not spell out reasons for the importance of Vidalia Onion to Georgia. However, that can be found on "The Vidalia Onion Story"page.]

1996 Greg Norman shot a remarkable 63 at the Masters, equaling the lowest round ever in a major championship. Norman's round tied the Augusta National course record set in 1986 by Nick Price. Norman, however, would stumble badly in the final round and lose to Nick Faldo. [Click here to read the story of Faldo's win.]

1996 After achieving a major league record of 18 consecutive victories on the road, Greg Maddux lost a 2-1 game to the San Diego Padres.

1999 In the final round of the 1999 Masters, the lead went back and forth -- with five players -- including Georgia's Davis Love III -- tied for first place at one point. In the end, Spain's Jose Maria Olazabal, who won the 1994 Masters, finished 8 under par to win his second green jacket. [Click here to read the story of his win.] Love came in at 6 under, repeating his 1995 second-place finish at Augusta National.

2004 - Phil Mickelson won his first major championship by winning the 2004 Masters. He was the only the fourth player in Masters history to win the tournament by scoring a birdie on the final hole. His caddie, and good friend, Jim "Bones" Mackay resides in Athens, Georgia - click here for the story on how they met.

In Their Own Words on This Day. . .

1745 William Stephens was the Trustees' secretary to Georgia from 1737-1750 and sent them regular reports. He also kept a journal during much of this time. On this day in 1745 he wrote:

"April 11. Thursday. Captain Horton took his leave of us this morning, and returned the same way that he came, taking Captain Noble Jones with him so far as Skeedaway Guard, after first having made such a Disposition of his Boats, as was most likely to produce the good Effect wished for in catching those pernicious Traders with the Spaniards, unquestionably in the very Act. Wherein if they Succeeded, upon immediate notice being sent to the Captain he would instantly be back again, and Secure both Men and Vesell..."

Source: E. Merton Coulter (ed.), The Journal of William Stephens, 1743-1745 (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1959), pp. 215-216.

1862 From Fort Pulaski, Confederate commander Col. Charles Olmstead wrote to his wife:

"I address you under circumstances of the most painful nature. Fort Pulaski has fallen and the whole garrison are prisoners. Early yesterday morning a flag of truce came over from Tybee Island conveying a demand for the surrender of the fort. Of course, i could give but one answer, that I was here to fight, not to yield. We instantly made all our preparations and at 8 o'clock precisely the enemy fired upon us. We replied slowly at first but increasingly in rapidity as we got the range. It soon became to my mind that if the enemy continued to fire as they had begun that our walls must yield. Shot after shot (of rifled cannon projectiles) hit immediately about our embrasures. Some came through, dismounting our guns, wounding one man very severely and flaking off the bricks in every direction.

"On taking a survey of the fort after the firing had ceased, my worst fears were confirmed. The angle immediately opposite to the fire of the enemy was terribly shattered, and I was convinced that another day would breach it entirely. I went to bed . . . in my clothes but could not sleep, the excitement of the day, the heavy responsibility resting upon me, and the many grave doubts I felt as to the ultimate result all combined to banish sleep from my eyelids.

"At half past 11, the enemy opened fire again and kept it up at intervals of ten or fifteen minutes during the night. We did not answer, however, until 6 o'clock in the morning, when firing became general again and continued until about half past 2 o'clock in the afternoon, when it was reported to me that our magazine was in danger. I found that the breach in one wall had become so alarmingly large that shots from the batteries of the enemy were passing clear through and striking directly on the brickwork of the magazine. It was simply a question of a few hours as to whether we should yield or be blown into perdition by our own powder. Our position was now as follows: several of our barbette guns had been rendered useless, our traverses giving away, the west side of the fort a complete wreck, and the southeast angle so badly breached as to permit free access of enemy shot to our magazine. I conferred with my officers and they united in advising me to surrender at once to avoid any further and unnecessary bloodshed. Their advice chimed with my own views and I gave the necessary orders for a surrender.

"Oh, my dear Wife, how can I describe to you the bitterness of the moment! It seemed as if my heart would break. I cannot write now all the details of our surrender, it pains me too much to think of them now. But I must tell you of the kind feelings evinced for me by my men. They crowded around me and endeavoured by every means in their powers to show me that they were willing to share whatever fate might be in store for me. . . .

"The Federal officers who have been in the fort have acted in the most courteous and gentlemanly manner toward us. I am assured that we shall have every privilege granted us consistent with the discharge of their duty. . . .

"I am still in the dark as to where we will be sent, though I believe New York is our destination. The money I have with me will be useless at the North, so I enclose it to you, something like $90.00. And now darling, I must say good by."

Source: Mills Lane (ed.), "Dear Mother: Don't grieve about me. If I get killed, I'll only be dead." (Savannah: Beehive Press, 1990), pp. 111-12.

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© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia

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