Georgia experienced an agricultural economic downturn in the years prior to the Great Depression. The invasion of the boll weevil and serious droughts caused farmers to be launched into serious loss of income and the need to examine agricultural practices. The Boll Weevil had many impacts on Georgia. Firstly, it led to the Great Migration, or migration of millions of African Americans to cities in the north which meant tat Georgia lost a lot of its labor force. However, with less reliance on cotton, Georgia's manufacturing grew. And lastly, the Boll Weevil helped to improve agriculture in Georgia by motivating farmers to diversify crops.

 

The boll weevil is an insect whose larva feeds on the cotton plant. While the pest is thought to have originated in Central America, by the 1890s it had made its way into Mexico and then into Texas. By 1915 it had migrated to Georgia and drastically reduced the state’s cotton crop. According to the New Georgia Encyclopedia, due to the destruction caused by the boll weevil, Georgia cotton farmers went from producing “5.2 million acres of cotton in 1914 to 2.6 million acres in 1923.”

​

The boll weevil had a huge impact on Georgia’s economy and rural population. Due to the loss of cotton acreage, along with the recruitment of northern companies, millions of African Americans moved to northern cities. In addition, many sharecroppers and tenant farmers, both Black and white left the farms and moved to Georgia cities such as Atlanta and Macon or migrated into northern cities in search of employment.

​

Additionally, the destruction of the cotton crop forced Georgians to diversify their economy. Cotton ceased to be Georgia’s primary agricultural product. In fact, by 1983, Georgia only produced 115,000 acres of cotton. Also, with the population movement into the cities, Georgia’s manufacturing continued to develop, though slowed greatly by the Great Depression.

​

In addition to the damage caused by the boll weevil, Georgia farmers suffered through another natural disaster in the 1920’s and 1930’s: drought. The worst droughts in Georgia history were from 1924-1927 and 1930-1935. These droughts severely impacted Georgia farmers’ ability to produce agricultural products. With the damage caused by the boll weevil and the droughts, Georgia began to suffer from a depression long before the rest of the United States.