Georgia Colonial Records

History
The first European settlements in Florida were in 1566 on Santa Catalina by the Spanish. A British settlement was founded at Fort King George (Darien) in 1721. In 1732, a charter was granted by the British Crown to create the colony of Georgia.

Statewide Records and Resources
Early Colonial Records available at the Georgia State Archives in Atlanta (1754-1778), film 0158964 ff.
 * Wills, 1754-1777
 * Letters of administration, 1755-1771
 * Inventories of estates, 1754-1770
 * Letters of guardianship, 1757-1777
 * Probate, administration, letters, minutes, appraisements, 1771-1775
 * Inventories, probate, 1776-1778

Published records of wills and estates:
 * Original colonial wills, 1751-1788 (film 0840408).
 * Abstracts of Colonial Wills of the State of Georgia Wills, 1733-1777, by National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the state of Georgia, (Atlanta, Georgia : Town Comm. of the Nat. Soc. of Colonial Dames of America, Georgia, 1962).
 * In the Name of God, Amen: Georgia Wills, 1733-1860, an Index of Testators to Wills of Georgia Recorded in Colonial Will Books and in Loose Will Collections, 1733-1777 and Wills Recorded or on File in County and State Offices, 1777-1860 by Ted O. Brooke, (Atlanta: Pilgrim Press, 1976, film 1036842).
 * Index to Probate Records of Colonial Georgia, 1733-1778, (Atlanta: R.J. Taylor, Jr. Foundation, 1983).

Land Records
From 1732-1755, Georgia land records were part of a trusteeship where lands were given to males and their heirs. Land was distributed by headright and bounty grants after 1756. Land records available at the Georgia State Archives in Atlanta include:
 * Colonial records of Georgia, 1750-1829 (film 0158965 ff.).
 * Commission books, 1754-1827
 * Conveyances, 1750-1798
 * Mortgages, 1755-1785
 * Proclamations, 1754-1794
 * Bonds, bills of sale, deeds of gift, powers of attorney, 1755-1762
 * Fiats for grants, 1755-1776
 * Entry of claims, 1755, 1762-1765
 * Miscellaneous records, 1765-1777


 * Marks and brands, 1755-1793 (film 0488183).
 * Georgia Surveyor General.
 * Entry of land claims, 1755-1758 (film 0488183).
 * Headright surveys, 1748-1773 (film 0465059). Copied and recorded in 1798.
 * Headrights and registers of land grants, 1756-1939 (film 0465071 ff.). This collection includes lists of the wharf and town lots in the town of Brunswick.
 * Headright surveys, 1753-1767, and undated (film 0464998 ff.).
 * Land Office records indexz, 1767-1908 (film 0465173 ff.).


 * Telamon Cyler Collection of colonial records (film 0214742). Includes deeds, inventories, bonds, powers of attorney, etc.