1. 1776: The Georgia Provincial Congress approved the first state constitution in Savannah. This event made Georgia one of the thirteen original American colonies to adopt a new form of government.

2. 1862: The Great Locomotive Chase began in Big Shanty, Georgia (now Kennesaw). The Union Army stole a locomotive (The General) and headed north, creating a major blockade on Confederate supply lines.

3. 1945: President Franklin D. Roosevelt passed away at his Warm Springs, GA retreat. Roosevelt had visited Warm Springs for therapeutic reasons after being diagnosed with polio in 1921.

4. 1981: Atlanta, Georgia installed the world's first working traffic light countdown timer. This innovation helped reduce red-light violations and accidents at intersections.

5. 2001: The State of Georgia executed convicted murderer and former Ku Klux Klan leader, Joseph Paul Franklin. Franklin was responsible for several racially-motivated murders during the 1970s and 80s.