

World War II and Georgia
The war brought an infusion of federal dollars into Georgia. Every major Georgia city housed a military installation, thanks primarily to Congressman Carl Vinson and Senator Richard Russell. Fort Benning in Columbus was the largest infantry training school in the world; Robins Field in Macon employed 13,000 civilians; the University of Georgia’s Naval school trained 2,000 combat pilots, and Hunter Field in Savannah and Camp Gordon in Augusta trained enlisted men for battlefields. In Marietta, 28,000 Georgians worked at the Bell Bomber plant, while thousands of shipyard workers in Savannah and Brunswick built nearly 200 Liberty ships to transport men and supplies to the front.
World War II ended the Great Depression in Georgia, transformed the state’s economy, and accelerated urbanization and changes in race relations. Its impact was felt long after President Harry Truman declared an official end to World War II on December 31, 1946, Today in Georgia History.

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Fast Fact
The percentage of women in the workplace increased from 24 percent at the beginning of the war to 36 by its end.

GHS Finding Aids
Georgia Historical Society collection of World War II papers and other materials
Frederick William Mingledorff, Jr. family papers
Lillian Gray and George A. Porter papers
Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace collection of Mac Gordon papers
Harris Neck Air Base (Ga.) histories
Savannah Shipyards, Inc. papers
Katherine Morrell Driscoll letters
Cheaves family letters and school notebook
Butler King Couper, Jr. papers and military uniforms
William A. McCormick correspondence