Boll weevil 50 years earlier

[MikeTurcotte]

The Boll Weevil is a beetle that destroys cotton. In OTL, it arrived in the USA in 1892, and by 1915 had migrated throughtout the South. In the 1970s, the technology to combat the Boll Weevil had been developed, and the South's cotton industry recovered.

So, POD - the Boll Weevil makes it to Texas (in small numbers) by 1842, and has infested the South by 1855.

Impacts?

Mike Turcotte

[Enigmajones]

De cotton come up and started to growin', and, suh, befo' de middle of May I looks down one day and sees de boll weevil settin' up dere in de top of dem little cotton stalks waitin' for de squares to fo'm. So all dat gewano us hauled and put down in 1922 made nuttin' but a crop of boll weevils.- A slave in the 1840's Deep South.

Its actually from the American Memory project an account from a sharecropper at the time of the OTL infestation.

[Color-Copycat]

The South tries to shift investment to other crucial cash crops, but ultimately its not enough to save the cotton industry. International textile powerhouses like Britain start looking towards Egypt and India for their supplies, and I imagine the South would start some serious attempts at investing in the development of industry to diversify their economy.

[MattII]

With the cotton industry devastated the South would have no reason to secede from the north, so that throws the Civil War into doubt.

[Color-Copycat]

I think there'd still be other issues at play, like the debate over extension of slavery to the western territories.

[lloyd007]

Boll weevil in 1842 means devastation for the Plantation Classes quite obviously. Doubly so once they start trying to sell their slaves and find out noone is buying. Slavery is ended de facto by 1860 as the South's economy collapses and the land is parceled out for money. Released slaves are pushed into sharecropping and other Jim Crow'esque situations earlier and states and the Federal govn't vow not to let such a collapse happen again.

[wkwillis]

California is the land of white gold. Good weather for cotton, no boll weevil.
You can also control the boll weevil and other cotton pests by switching back and forth on a county basis between corn and cotton, or beans and cotton, or whatever. Crop rotation was known.

[Fiver]

You can also control the boll weevil and other cotton pests by switching back and forth on a county basis between corn and cotton, or beans and cotton, or whatever. Crop rotation was known.

It was know but seldom used. Cotton yielded a vastly higher profit, so many planters kept planting it year after year, leading to soil exhaustion.

[Derek Jackson]

Remember too that the abolitionist movement was also inspired by religious feeligns.

It might be strengthened by what would appear to be God's interevention.

[jabberwoky]

bump (this is cool)

[Johnrankins]

I think the Southern economy collapses and you have no Civil War as Southerners are in even worse shape to start one and know that England and France have no reason to intervene if they do. Slaves plunge in value, planters start switching to other crops but none are as valuable as cotton. Planters could be come harsher treating slaves West Indies style and working them to death. After all slaves are now cheap. If they die buy another one. :(