1. On April 16, 1862, the Battle of Fort Pulaski took place on Cockspur Island near Savannah during the American Civil War. Union forces, led by General Quincy A. Gillmore, bombarded the Confederate fort with rifled artillery, ultimately resulting in its surrender after only two days of fighting.

2. Georgia native and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. penned his famous "Letter from Birmingham Jail" on April 16, 1963, while he was imprisoned after being arrested for protesting segregation in Alabama. The letter, which reflects King's views on nonviolent resistance and the need for immediate social change, is now considered a seminal work in the civil rights movement.

3. On April 16, 1868, the Georgia Constitutional Convention reconvened in Atlanta to write a new state constitution in accordance with the Reconstruction Acts passed by the U.S. Congress. The resulting document was notable for establishing universal male suffrage and creating a limited public school system.

4. Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz became the second pitcher in Major League Baseball history to record 2,000 strikeouts and 150 saves on April 16, 2003. Smoltz, who spent the majority of his career with the Braves and was a seven-time All-Star and Cy Young Award winner, is now a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

5. One of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in Georgia history occurred on April 16, 1998, when a series of tornadoes tornadoes touched down across the state, resulting in 12 fatalities and 160 injuries. The outbreak was part of a larger weather system that affected the Southeastern United States, causing a total of 36 deaths and widespread property damage.