To highlight Colquitt County’s historic Thigpen Trail and the important part it played in the development not only of Georgia but of the nation, on Oct. 9, 2021, John Benning Chapter DAR held a rededication of the monument it placed there in 1932.

To celebrate Georgia Day 2022, John Benning Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution encourages all Georgians to rediscover the state’s natural, cultural and historic sites, and to recognize the people, institutions and historical events that have shaped Georgia’s place in history and global commerce. Having much for Georgians to rediscover, the landscape varies greatly as it sweeps from the Appalachian Mountains in the north to the marshes of the Atlantic coast on the southeast to the Okefenokee Swamp.

Georgia Day is an annual commemoration of the founding of Georgia, our nation’s thirteenth colony, on February 12,1733, by General James Edward Oglethorpe, a former English army officer. After Oglethorpe left the army, he devoted himself to helping London’s poor and debt-ridden people, whom he suggested settling in America. His choice of Georgia, named for the new King, was also motivated by the idea of creating a defensive buffer for South Carolina, an increasingly important colony with many potential enemies close by. These enemies included the Spanish in Florida, the French in Louisiana and along the Mississippi River, and these powers’ Indian allies throughout the region. At that time, Georgia’s boundaries included much of the present-day states of Alabama and Mississippi. Colquitt County’s historic Thigpen Trail mapped in 1703, was one of many Indian trails that played an important part in the defeat of foreign enemies and their Indian allies, and in the development of not only Georgia but of our nation. The DAR monument placed in 1932 marking the path of Thigpen Trail in our county was rededicated on October 9, 2021 to remind the community of its historic significance.

Georgia’s rich heritage includes three signers of the Declaration of Independence, George Walton, Button Gwinnett, and Lyman Hall, with Georgia later becoming the fourth state to ratify the Constitution of the United States on January 2,1789.

Since its founding 290 years ago, Georgia’s population has grown to more than 10.3 million people and now stands as a commercial, financial, and cultural center for the Southeast and the nation. Georgia’s natural beauty from the mountains to the seashore, and its many historical sites are all reasons to celebrate this great state!