audiobook Lugenia Burns Hope; Black Southern Reformer (Brown Thrasher Books Ser.) by Jacqueline Rouse in History

Description

James Habersham was an early American success story. After arriving in Savannah in 1738; he failed in his efforts to wrest a living from the Georgia wilderness and lived his first year at public expense. Then; by dint of his own efforts and through the connections he forged; Habersham emerged as one of the colony's most influential and prosperous citizens; making his name as a planter; merchant; evangelist; and political leader. The third wealthiest person in the colony at the time of his death in 1775; Habersham had a public career that included service as the secretary of Georgia; president of the King's council; and acting Governor.But Habersham's story is more than biography. It also provides a window into colonial Georgia and its transformation from a struggling colony on the brink of collapse in the 1740s to a prosperous province in the 1770s; confident enough to defy the Crown. Ranging over such topics as the rise of Methodist missionary fervor; the development of transatlantic trade; the introduction of slavery; and the escalating debate over American independence; Frank Lambert tells how Habersham's success is inextricably tied to Georgia's fortunes and how he played a major role in helping the colony exploit its abundant resources. Habersham's economic development plan provided a blueprint for attracting new settlers; supplying an abundance of cheap labor; and opening new markets.Habersham's achievements; however; are obscured by his unpopular stance on American independence. While his three sons distinguished themselves as Patriots; Habersham remained loyal to the Crown; though he had opposed Britain's new imperial policies in the 1760's. Nevertheless; it was Habersham's loyal service to colonial Georgia that enabled the colony to separate successfully from the mother country and assume its place in the new republic as a prosperous; vigorous state.