1. In 1861, Georgia became the fifth state to secede from the United States and join the Confederacy, leading to the start of the American Civil War.

2. On January 19, 1947, Georgia native and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was ordained as a Baptist minister at the age of 18.

3. The University of Georgia was founded on January 19, 1785, making it the first university established in the United States through a state charter.

4. On this day in 1864, Union General William T. Sherman invaded Georgia and began the March to the Sea, a campaign that devastated the state's infrastructure and economy.

5. In 1977, Georgia Governor George Busbee dedicated a new state flag, which prominently featured the Confederate battle emblem. The controversial design remained in use for 23 years before being replaced in 2001.