From 1937 to the advent of World War II, The Garden Club of Georgia, Inc. (GCG) held annual garden pilgrimages to bring awareness to the state's rich garden heritage. During the Garden Club of Georgia presidency of Peggy White (1989-1991), Atlanta landscape architect James R. Cothran suggested to her that GCG should begin a garden tour similar to Garden Week in Virginia or reminiscent of the former pilgrimages in Georgia from the 1930s. In 1995, GCG established a partnership with the Historic Preservation Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (Mary Ann Eaddy, representative) to cosponsor an annual Historic House and Garden Pilgrimage to raise awareness of historic gardens in Georgia and encourage preservation. The first pilgrimage took place in 1996. After two annual pilgrimages, enough funds were raised to initiate the Georgia Historic Landscape and Garden Grant Program, which funds landscape restoration projects for nonprofit historic gardens in Georgia that are open to the public. Along with the pilgrimages, tours and lectures have also raised money to fund the matching grant program. GCG's Historic House and Garden Pilgrimage (now known as the Historic Landscape and Garden Grant Fundraiser) and Historic Landscape and Garden Grant programs are still active today and help promote and preserve the state's garden heritage.