In 1789, the legislature sold about 25 million acres to three companies. The sale was halted six months later because Georgia wanted payment to be made in gold and silver rather than in paper money. Pressure to act continued to build on legislators until a majority reportedly favored the sale of the western territory. On January 7, 1795, Georgia's governor George Mathews signed the Yazoo Act, which sold 35 million acres in present-day Alabama and Mississippi to four companies for $500,000.
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