Georgia Day (Georgia (U.S. state))

Georgia Day is the holiday which the U.S. state of Georgia recognizes in honor of its colonial founding as the Province of Georgia. On February 12, 1733 [NS] James Oglethorpe landed the first settlers in the Anne, at what was to become Georgia's first city, Savannah. Not a public holiday, it was created by Georgia's General Assembly, which provided that Feb. 12, "the anniversary of the landing of the first colonists in Georgia under Oglethorpe"—be observed in the public schools as Georgia Day. The law was never repealed, but was not included in the code when it was officially compiled in 1981. Its official legal status is unclear.

Georgia is a state in the Southeastern United States. It borders Tennessee and North Carolina to the north, South Carolina and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Florida to the south, and Alabama to the west. Of the 50 U.S. states, Georgia is the 24th-largest by area and eighth most populous. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, its 2024 estimated population was 11,180,878. Atlanta, a global city, is both the state's capital and its largest city. The Atlanta metropolitan area, with a population greater than 6.3 million people in 2023, is the eighth most populous metropolitan area in the United States and contains about 57% of Georgia's entire population. Other major metropolitan areas in the state include Augusta, Savannah, Columbus, and Macon.