About this episode
The episode explores the impact of the Panic of 1893 on Johnston County's cotton farmers and the subsequent invention of bright leaf tobacco.
In 1893, the American economy collapsed — and Johnston County's cotton farmers watched decades of work evaporate at six cents a pound. What came next was a gamble: build a curing barn you'd never operated, raise a crop you'd never grown, and sell it at an auction that didn't yet exist in your county. This is the story of how the Panic of 1893 killed King Cotton, how a sleeping blacksmith accidentally invented bright leaf tobacco, and how one desperate pivot in 1898 built nearly everything you see in Smithfield today.
Topics covered
- American economy
- cotton farmers
- Panic of 1893
- bright leaf tobacco
- Smithfield
Keywords
- Johnston County
- curing barn
- auction
- King Cotton
- desperate pivot
Mentioned in this episode
Products: bright leaf tobacco
Places: Johnston County's, Smithfield
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