CHAPTER II 

 THE MOVEMENTS OF COUNTRYMEN 



It is evident from the material already presented that 

 migrations of Negroes are by no means new phenomena. The 

 descriptions of the actions of f reedmen during the period of 

 disorganization known as reconstruction, indicate that the 

 movement started with emancipation. This very unstable 

 condition soon settled down to a steady flow of Negroes from 

 the old Black Belts. Examination of past censuses by the 

 same methods used in the previous chapter indicates that 

 mo s_t of the counties in the ante-bellu m Black Belt of Georgia 

 h ave been stationary or decreasing almost continuously since 

 1 880. Examination of birthplac e statistics of the Census 

 indicates tha t there has also been a shift from the Border 

 Stat es northward and from the old Cotton States westward 

 fo r the past forty years. 



At this stage it should also be emphasized that the move- 

 ment is by no means a simple phenomenon. It arises from 

 complex social and economic conditions and is attended 

 by complex social and economic changes. One of the most 

 enlightening indications of the desire of the Negro to take 

 advantage of his agricultural opportunity and the extent to 

 which he is able to do so is found in a study of rural migra- 

 tion. As previously indicated, the principal shift before 

 1915 was from one rural district to another within the 

 .S outh 1 — * movement from certain agricultu ral communities 

 t o other agricultural communitie s. The number moving from 

 coun try to city was relatively sm all. Since 1910, however, the 

 entra nce of the boll weevil into Georgia and th e excep tional 

 ind ustrial opportunities of the North have changed the cur- 

 rent of migration. The boll weevil lessened opportunity in 

 the soutnern portion of the State, slackened the immigration 



