This is one of numerous structures that make up the Golden Peanut facility in Dawson. Georgia is the leading peanut producer in the nation, and Terrell County is one of the leading counties for production. Dawson is also home to the National Peanut Research Laboratory, a project of the United States Department of Agriculture.
This was one of the first places I photographed when I began the Vanishing Georgia project in 2007-2008. Nearly every small South Georgia town would have had a business like this at one time but many have been absorbed into more general agribusiness operations in the modern era.
This was originally home to the Tifton Telephone Company. Later, it housed the Georgia Peanut Commission, before their move to a site beside Interstate 75 several years ago. The brickwork is some of the best in Tifton.
Tifton Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
A monument to the peanut might seem strange, but not so in Early County, which is one of the leading producers of this valuable crop in the entire state, with over 100 million pounds harvested in 2021. Located on the northeast lawn of the courthouse, it reads: The people of Early County, the largest peanut producing center in the world, have erected this monument in tribute to the peanut, which is so largely responsible for our growth and prosperity. Not only has it contributed to the higher living standards of the people engaged in its producing, manufacturing and marketing, but has also become important to the better health of the people of the world, as it is the source of some of our most nutritious and beneficial foods.
Peanuts remain central to the economy of Southwest Georgia.
Blakely Court Square Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
The unusual structure advertising Sessions Peanut Company has become a landmark of Colquitt.
Colquitt Town Square Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
Hot boiled peanuts really are a sort of Southern caviar. If you don’t understand, you probably never will. But as any Southerner will tell you, we love ’em down here! Georgia leads the nation in peanut production, so there are plenty to go around. Roadside vendors like this one are a link to the past and no small town in South Georgia is worth its salt if it doesn’t have at least one. Amanda Jones Little says this seller “has the best in town” and nice produce, as well.
I first shared an image of this old warehouse over six years ago. It was once among the busiest places in Fitzgerald, handling peanuts from farmers all over Ben Hill County and the surrounding area.
Fitzgerald Commercial Historic District, National Register of Historic Places
The most-photographed roadside symbol in Plains, the “Smiling Peanut” was made for a rally in Evanston, Indiana in 1976 by James Kiely, Doyle Kifer, and Loretta Townsend. After spending years beside the depot, it was later moved to the Davis E-Z Mart on Highway 45.