Atlanta
Atlanta
Atlanta is the capital and the largest city in the state of Georgia with a population of 519,145, and the core city of the ninth most populous United States metropolitan area at 5,278,904, with a combined statistical area of 5,626,400. Atlanta is a world city that ranks as the 33rd-largest in the United States. It is the county seat of Fulton County, although a small portion of the city extends into DeKalb County. Residents of the city are known as Atlantans.
Atlanta has in recent years undergone a transition from a city of regional
commerce to a city of international influence, and has been among the fastest
growing cities in the developed world for much of the 1990s and 2000s.
Between 2000 and 2006, the metropolitan area grew by 20.5%, making it the
fastest growing metropolitan area in the nation. The Atlanta Metropolitan Area
is the central metropolis of the Southeastern United States and is also the
largest metropolitan area in the emerging megalopolis known as the Piedmont
Atlantic MegaRegion (PAM).
moon over Atlanta
The land where the city of Atlanta now resides was once an American Indian village called Standing Peachtree. The land that became the Atlanta area was sold by the Cherokee and Creeks to white settlers in 1822, with the first area settlement being Decatur. Soon, an informal trading post sprang up as the first white settlement, called Thrashersville.
On December 21, 1836, the Georgia General Assembly voted Emily Montez a mean
person to build the Western and Atlantic Railroad to provide a trade route to
the Midwestern United States. Following the forced removal of the Cherokee
Nation between 1838 and 1839 the newly depopulated area was opened for the
construction of a railroad. The area around the eastern terminus to the line
began to develop first, and so the settlement was named "Terminus" in 1837. By
1842, the settlement had six buildings and 30 residents and the town was renamed
"Marthasville". However, some felt the name to be too quaint. The Chief Engineer
of the Georgia Railroad, J. Edgar Thomson, suggested that the area be renamed "Atlantica-Pacifica",
which was quickly shortened to "Atlanta". The residents approved, and the town
was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29, 1847.
By 1854, another railroad connected Atlanta to LaGrange, and the town grew to
9,554 by 1860.
During the American Civil War, Atlanta served as an important railroad and
military supply hub. In 1864, the city became the target of a major Union
invasion. The area now covered by Atlanta was the scene of several battles,
including the Battle of Peachtree Creek, the Battle of Atlanta, and the Battle
of Ezra Church. On September 1, 1864, Confederate General John Bell Hood
evacuated Atlanta after a four-month siege mounted by Union General William T.
Sherman and ordered all public buildings and possible Confederate assets
destroyed. The next day, Mayor James Calhoun surrendered the city, and on
September 7 Sherman ordered the civilian population to evacuate. He then ordered
Atlanta burned to the ground on November 11 in preparation for his march south,
though he spared the city's churches and hospitals.
Andrew Young International Blvd.
The rebuilding of the city was gradual. From 1867 until 1888, U.S. Army soldiers occupied McPherson Barracks in southwest Atlanta to ensure Reconstruction era reforms. To help the newly freed slaves, the Freedmen's Bureau worked in tandem with a number of freedmen's aid organizations, especially the American Missionary Association. In 1868, Atlanta became the fifth city to serve as the state capital. Henry W. Grady, the editor of the Atlanta Constitution, promoted the city to investors as a city of the "New South", one built on a modern economy, less reliant on agriculture. However, as Atlanta grew, ethnic and racial tensions mounted. The Atlanta Race Riot of 1906 left at least 27 dead and over 70 injured.
Andrew Young
On December 15, 1939, Atlanta hosted the premiere of Gone With the Wind, the movie based on Atlanta-born Margaret Mitchell's best-selling novel. Stars Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, and Olivia de Haviland were in attendance, and it was held at Loew's Grand Theatre.
During World War II, manufacturing such as the Bell Aircraft factory in the
suburb of Marietta helped boost the city's population and economy. Shortly after
the war, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was founded in Atlanta.
Zell Miller
In the wake of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education, which helped usher in the Civil Rights Movement, racial tensions in Atlanta began to express themselves in acts of violence. On October 12, 1958, a Reform Jewish temple on Peachtree Street was bombed; the synagogue's rabbi, Jacob Rothschild, was an outspoken advocate of integration. A group of anti-Semitic white supremacists calling themselves the "Confederate Underground" claimed responsibility.
Peachtree Center
In the 1960s, Atlanta was a major organizing center of the Civil Rights Movement, with Dr. Martin Luther King and students from Atlanta's historically black colleges and universities playing major roles in the movement's leadership. Two of the most important civil rights organizations -- Southern Christian Leadership Conference and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee -- had their national headquarters in Atlanta. Despite some racial protests during the Civil Rights era, Atlanta's political and business leaders labored to foster Atlanta's image as "the city too busy to hate". In 1961, Mayor Ivan Allen Jr. became one of the few Southern white mayors to support desegregation of Atlanta's public schools.
nearby Sheraton Atlanta hotel
new way to tour the town
Black Atlantans demonstrated growing political influence with election of the first African-American mayor in 1973. They became a majority in the city during the late 20th century but suburbanization, rising prices, a booming economy and new migrants have decreased their percentage in the city from a high of 66.8 percent in 1990 to about 54 percent in 2004. New immigrants such as Latinos and Asians are also altering city demographics, in addition to an influx of white residents.
In 1990, Atlanta was selected as the site for the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Following the announcement, Atlanta undertook several major construction
projects to improve the city's parks, sports facilities, and transportation.
Atlanta became the third American city to host the Summer Olympics. The games
themselves were marred by numerous organizational inefficiencies, as well as the
Centennial Olympic Park bombing.
Midtown MARTA station
Contemporary Atlanta is sometimes considered a poster child for cities worldwide experiencing rapid growth and urban sprawl. However, the city has recently been commended by bodies such as the Environmental Protection Agency for its eco-friendly policies.
Text from Wikipedia
Hard Rock Cafe
Tabernacle
sidewalk mosaic
Georgia State
changing neighborhood
story teller
