Cash Value of Farms Per Capita Comparison, 1850 and 1860

This graph compares the per capita value of farms in Augusta and Franklin with Virginia, Pennsylvania, the South, the North, and the U.S. In the 1850s the South, Virginia, and Augusta all exceeded or gained significant ground on the North, Pennsylvania, and Franklin.

U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census [1850]. Population of the United States in 1850, Compiled from the Original Returns of the Seventh Census. Washington, D.C., 1854. U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census [1860]. Population of the United States in 1860, Compiled from the Original Returns of the Eighth Census. Washington, D.C., 1864.

Edward L. Ayers and William G. Thomas, III
Cash Value of Farms Per Capita Comparison, 1850 and 1860

"On a per capita basis, Franklin farmers grew far less corn and more wheat than their counterparts in Augusta, and their commitment to wheat was seen by many as both the symbol of the North's wealth and the evidence of its superior labor system."

"The richest farm households in Augusta, however, had a high correlation with relatively high wheat production and low corn production, and slavery enabled even greater success on these farms."