1. THE IMPACT OF KING COTTON ON ANTEBELLUM AND POSTBELLUM GEORGIA Computer Skills for the Inform. Age, Georgia State University 27 November, 2015

2. Early History of Cotton in Georgia ◦First planted in 1733 in Trustees Garden, Savannah with imported seeds from England ◦Production rapidly increased within 16 years. ◦By 1791, Georgia was producing ¼ of US cotton with the rest (3,000 of 4,000) in South Carolina.

3. Antebellum Period ◦The Cotton Gin was invented in Georgia in 1794 by Eli Whitney. ◦This had a significant impact economically and exponentially expanded production, which increased the need for slaves. ◦By 1815, the United States (the South) had a worldwide monopoly on cotton.

4. Slave Trade with the ‘Upper South’ ◦Foreign slave trade was abolished in the early 1800s. ◦Slaves were brought in from ‘Upper Southern’ (Virginia and Maryland) plantations that produced a different type of cotton. ◦James Silk Buckingham report ◦Increased slave death rate among Northern-imported slaves

5. Postbellum Georgia ◦Civil War ceased almost all cotton production in the South. ◦Postbellum, black and tenant farmers did most of the cotton growing. ◦1880, Georgia’s first million bale harvest ◦High cotton profit in GA continued until mid-20 th century, a 200 year domination.

6. Conclusion ◦First planted in Savannah in 1733 ◦Cotton Gin, invented in Georgia in 1794, led to US domination of the cotton industry. ◦In the South in both the antebellum and postbellum periods in United States history, cotton was an essential plant, and ruled the economy. ◦Slavery was essential to the growth of the plant, and tenant farmers (usually former slaves) were imperative for its ability to endure well into the 20 th century.

7. References ◦Canaday, N., and Jaremski, M. 2012. "Legacy, location, and labor: Accounting for racial differences in postbellum cotton production." Explorations in Economic History, 49: 291-302. doi:10.1016/j.eeh.2012.05.002 ◦Haney, P. B., Lewis, W. J., and Lambert, W. R. 2009. "Cotton production and the boll weevil in Georgia: history, cost of control, and benefits of eradication." University of Georgia Research Bulletin, 428 ◦Pargas, D. A. 2013. "In the Fields of a ‘Strange Land’: Enslaved Newcomers and the Adjustment to Cotton Cultivation in the Antebellum South." Slavery & Abolition, 34:4, 562. doi:10.1080/0144039X.2013.780460 ◦Phillips, U. B. 1905. "The Economic Cost of Slaveholding in the Cotton Bel t" 257. ◦All images obtained from the public domain.