21 February 1913: "Electric Hatched" Chicks

On this day in 1913, this vision of the future of poultry production was published in the Athens Banner:

Now, of course, the use of electricity-powered heat and air conditioning as part of poultry production is standard. According to the University of Georgia Extension Service, when brooding new chicks in a backyard  coop or on an industrial scale, newly hatched chicks require a 90-degree Fahrenheit ambient temperature, which can be lowered by five degrees per week until reaching 70 degrees, the ideal temperature for chickens.


The State College of Agriculture became part of the University of Georgia in 1932, and has continued to assist Georgia farmers state-wide improve their yields in everything from crops to livestock, but poultry farming has been Georgia's greatest agricultural success. 


In 2009, 54% of Georgia agriculture production came from poultry, with 26 million pounds of chicken being produced daily by the state. The industry brings $18.4 billion into the Georgia economy each year, employs over 100,000 people, and 105 of the state's 159 counties, including Clarke and Oconee counties, produce over $1 million in poultry-related revenue each year.



Learn More:

• Athens Banner, Feb. 1913 - Jun. 1913 on Microfilm in the Heritage collection.
• Department of Poultry Science at the University of Georgia.
• History of the College of Agriculture of the University of Georgia by Calvin C. Murray in the Heritage collection.
• Georgia Poultry Facts (pdf) from the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences website.
• Poultry Tips from the Department of Poultry Science Extension Service at UGA.
• Management Guide for the Backyard Flock from the Poultry Extension Service at UGA.
• The University of Georgia College of Agriculture: An Administrative History, 1785-1985 by Stephen J. Karina in the Heritage collection.
• The University of Georgia: A Bicentennial History, 1785-1985 by Thomas G. Dyer in the Heritage and general collections.
• A Century of Georgia Agriculture, 1850-1950 by Willard Range in the Heritage and general collections.
• Problems of Plenty: The American Farmer in the Twentieth Century by R. Douglas Hurt in the general collection.
• Keeping Chickens with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Care for a Happy, Healthy Flock by Ashley English in the New Books collection.
• The Joy of Keeping Chickens: The Ultimate Guide to Raising Poultry for Fun or Profit by Jennifer Megyesi in the general collection.