The colony of Georgia, was the last of the original 13 to be settled, but being the southernmost location, it was number one for heat and humidity. According to the State of Georgia’s website from the Department of Agriculture, www.agr.georgia.gov, the average low temperatures for winter is 32.6 Fahrenheit and the average high temperature in summer is 92.6 Fahrenheit. Fall and spring average temperatures are the same at 62 degrees.
There were many benefits to being a coastal colony. For cities like Savannah, which was the first city in Georgia, it meant there was easy access for ships in and out of harbor and access to rivers and passageways throughout the colony. There were also negatives to being so close to the ocean, including hurricanes and floods. The hot and humid weather also made it easy for disease to be spread. According to www.georgiaencyclopedia.org in 1820, after an outbreak of yellow fever more than 700 people in Savannah died from the disease.
Many settlers who came to Georgia to farm had the greatest success with crops that grew in “humid, subtropical climates”. Settlers came to Georgia because they could have their own piece of land to farm at low cost, especially when compared to more established colonies like Virginia and Massachusetts. Marsh wetlands along the coast were best for growing rice. Other areas where the soil was not as moist were better for crops such as peanuts, and cotton. Nowadays, Georgia is famous for peaches, but it was not until the mid-1800s that farmers produced enough crop so that it could be sold outside of the state.
The hot and humid spring and summer made living conditions for slaves in Georgia very difficult. Especially when cotton was the crop that the slaves had to farm and harvest. Slaves would work the fields all day in the sun and into the night to pick a crop for landowners, then struggle just to sleep through the heat of the night.
The climate of Georgia in present times is very much the same as it was 250 years ago, but the ways that people deal with the weather in Georgia is very different than colonial times. Now, only 1 in 7 people in Georgia make their in agriculture (www.agr.georgia.gov). Inventions like electricity and indoor plumbing have changed the way people live in their homes. Technology has changed the way we farm and live, for example, now every farmer can check the weather to know if there will be a sudden frost and can do more to protect their crops, or prepare in advance for storms.
There were many benefits to being a coastal colony. For cities like Savannah, which was the first city in Georgia, it meant there was easy access for ships in and out of harbor and access to rivers and passageways throughout the colony. There were also negatives to being so close to the ocean, including hurricanes and floods. The hot and humid weather also made it easy for disease to be spread. According to www.georgiaencyclopedia.org in 1820, after an outbreak of yellow fever more than 700 people in Savannah died from the disease.
Many settlers who came to Georgia to farm had the greatest success with crops that grew in “humid, subtropical climates”. Settlers came to Georgia because they could have their own piece of land to farm at low cost, especially when compared to more established colonies like Virginia and Massachusetts. Marsh wetlands along the coast were best for growing rice. Other areas where the soil was not as moist were better for crops such as peanuts, and cotton. Nowadays, Georgia is famous for peaches, but it was not until the mid-1800s that farmers produced enough crop so that it could be sold outside of the state.
The hot and humid spring and summer made living conditions for slaves in Georgia very difficult. Especially when cotton was the crop that the slaves had to farm and harvest. Slaves would work the fields all day in the sun and into the night to pick a crop for landowners, then struggle just to sleep through the heat of the night.
The climate of Georgia in present times is very much the same as it was 250 years ago, but the ways that people deal with the weather in Georgia is very different than colonial times. Now, only 1 in 7 people in Georgia make their in agriculture (www.agr.georgia.gov). Inventions like electricity and indoor plumbing have changed the way people live in their homes. Technology has changed the way we farm and live, for example, now every farmer can check the weather to know if there will be a sudden frost and can do more to protect their crops, or prepare in advance for storms.