Published in 1954, this survey of Georgia agriculture is chronologically divided into three sections. “The End of the Golden Age, 1850–1865,” describes the last decade of antebellum agriculture before the overthrow of the plantation system. “The Long Depression, 1865–1900,” tells of the search for new ways to restore prosperity to Georgia's struggling agricultural system. And “The Revolutionary New Century, 1900–1950,” illustrates how agriculture underwent rapid development due to mechanization, diversifi cation, and application of scientific methods. Range concludes each section with his interpretations, emphasizing the impossibility of separating politics and culture in an economy based predominantly on agriculture, as much of the south was during this century.

Unredeemed Land examines the ways the Civil War and the emancipation of the slaves reconfigured the South's natural landscape, revealing the environmental constraints that shaped the rural South's transition to capitalism during the late nineteenth century.