This year we celebrate the centennial of the Georgia Archives.  Beginning in February, the Georgia Archives has many exciting events planned.  The Archives was founded 100 years ago this August. We will be having special centennial events, an exhibit, putting out social media posts, and hosting tours throughout the year, highlighting stories from the Archives’ past.
 
On Saturday, February 3, the Metro Atlanta chapter of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, the Georgia Archives, and the Friends of Georgia Archives and History will host a Black History Month program: "The Enslaved and Free People of Color in Antebellum Georgia." This free program requires no registration and will begin at 9:00 a.m. and continue throughout the day.
 
On Friday, February 9 and Saturday, February 10, we celebrate Georgia Day, the commemoration of the founding of Georgia. On February 12, 1733, James Oglethorpe landed the first settlers from the ship Anne at what was to become Georgia's first city and later the first state capital, Savannah. In celebration of Georgia Day, Georgia's Royal Charter and Georgia's recorded copy of the Declaration of Independence will be on display in the exhibit room behind the Welcome Desk. These documents spend most of their time safely in our vaults, so do not miss your opportunity to view these important pieces of Georgia’s history.
 
In addition, on Friday, February 9, our Lunch and Learn speaker Dr. Richard "Bo" Manly Adams, Jr., the Director of Pitts Theology Library at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University and the Margaret A. Pitts Assistant Professor in the Practice of Theological Bibliography, will present a program focusing on colonial Georgia. The title of his presentation is "Two Ships that Sailed to Georgia in 1736: Conversations Between the Wesleys, the Moravians, and the Salzburgers," In 1736, two ships sailed from Europe to Georgia. On board were representatives of what would become three major Protestant traditions: John and Charles Wesley, the Moravians, and Lutheran Pietists called the Salzburgers. Sponsored by the Friends of the Georgia Archives and History this free presentation is available to the public from noon to 1:00 p.m. Visitors are welcome to bring a lunch to enjoy during the program. One door prize will be drawn at each Lunch and Learn program during our centennial year. No registration is required.

On Saturday, February 10, is the first Anniversary Tour: "Georgia Archives, 100 years: Where We Are Now." On the second Saturday of each month throughout our centennial year, 2018, a free tour will take place from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. No pre-registration is required. Please wear comfortable shoes.

While you are here, do not miss “Georgia’s Christmas Past: A Holiday Exhibit.” Be sure to come in early in February as this exhibit is only up until February 10. The exhibit focuses on records that document past holiday celebrations in Georgia: from a journal entry written in 1737 describing Christmas in Savannah to a photograph of Atlanta’s 2000 New Year’s Peach Drop. You will see an invitation to attend Spelman College’s 1933 Christmas Concert and read an 1889 proclamation from the Mayor of Darien about Christmas fireworks. We have a Georgia family’s recipes for plum pudding and fruitcake, Christmas and New Year’s cards sent to past governors, photographs of Georgians enjoying snowy weather, and an image of a 1973 Children’s Hanukkah project in Valdosta. Come and see how Georgians celebrated the season in years past.