Georgia's first railroad was organized in 1833 by a group of Savannah businessmen concerned that South Carolina's new railroad would divert most, if not all, of central Georgia's commerce away from the port of Savannah. This railroad, the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road company, was chartered in 1827 to build a 136 mile line from Hamburg, South Carolina (across the Savannah River from Augusta, Ga.) all the way to the port of Charleston. On December 20, 1833, the Georgia Legislature granted the Central Rail Road and Canal Company of Georgia (Central) a charter to build a railroad and a canal from Savannah into the interior of the state.