Throughout 2026, the Coastal Georgia Historical Society’s monthly feature in Elegant Island Living will trace our region’s Revolutionary War history. Join us on a year-long exploration of the individuals, ideas, and events that make up Coastal Georgia’s unique contribution to this crucial moment in our national story.
Before the British arrived in Coastal Georgia, the area’s longstanding Indigenous societies had been radically changed through contact with French and Spanish settlers. Disease and conflict had devastating effects on these groups, but they endured and adapted. Survivors formed new confederations, including the Yamasee, who dominated the region along with the Creek people by the 1720s. Both the Creeks and the Yamasee began trading with the newly arrived British, yet their monetary debts combined with conflict between the two tribes shattered the groups again. By the end of the 1720s, a new community called the Yamacraw formed out of the remains of the Creeks and Yamasee.
Image courtesy of the Library of Congress
A map of the Georgia coast showing Yamacraw Indian Territory, circa 1745.
Image courtesy of the Library of Congress
A map of the Georgia coast showing Yamacraw Indian Territory, circa 1745.
James Edward Oglethorpe, the founder of Britain’s Georgia colony, saw the Yamacraw as a potential ally. Oglethorpe’s vision for the colony began as a moral project, seeking to reform England’s penal system. Instead of being sentenced to jail, Oglethorpe hoped, England’s debtors could populate Georgia. He believed that these “worthy poor” could be transformed into farmers, merchants, and artisans. His arguments convinced King George II, who granted a charter establishing Georgia in 1732 and named a group of Trustees to govern the new colony. In November 1732, Oglethorpe and 114 British settlers set sail for Georgia.
These newcomers arrived on Yamacraw land in February 1733. Oglethorpe and Tomochichi, a Yamacraw leader, met the same month to negotiate British land use. Their discussion led to Tomochichi’s concession of Yamacraw Bluff, the land upon which the city of Savannah was founded. Tomochichi served as a mediator and representative for the Yamacraw people both in the Georgia colony and in England, where he traveled to meet King George II in 1734.
Image courtesy of the Library of Congress
Painting showing James Oglethorpe presenting the Georgia Indians to the Georgia Trustees in London, England, 1734 by William Verelst
Image courtesy of the Georgia Historical Society
Double-sided Seal of the Georgia Trustees
The Georgia colony was an important buffer between the rest of the British colonies to the north and Spanish Florida to the south, yet the colony’s establishment only inflamed tensions between the Spanish and the British. Clashes continued until the 1742 Battle of Bloody Marsh finally drove the Spanish from Georgia, solidifying British control of the area. The debate over land, boundaries, and ideals, though, was far from over.
This month’s featured images are a map of the Georgia coast, circa 1745, and a painting showing James Oglethorpe presenting the Georgia Indians to the Georgia Trustees in London, England, 1734 by William Verelst, both courtesy of the Library of Congress. Images of the double-sided Seal of the Georgia Trustees are courtesy of the Georgia Historical Society.
Coastal Georgia Historical Society presents this article and images from our archives as part of our mission “to connect people to Coastal Georgia’s dynamic history.” The Society operates the iconic St. Simons Lighthouse Museum and the World War II Home Front Museum, housed in the Historic Coast Guard Station at East Beach. To learn more about the Society, its museums, diverse programs, and membership, please visit coastalgeorgiahistory.org.
