1877: The Chattahoochee River flows freely across the northern part of Georgia.

Today: A dam constructed near Atlanta in the 1950s has created Lake Sidney Lanier, a popular spot for boaters and fishers.

1877: The South's agrarian tradition is changing as traditional plantation owners cannot afford to keep their farms any longer, and Northern industries move in.

Today: The South's economy has grown tremendously since the 1870s as high-tech industries have left the North to open manufacturing plants in the Sun Belt.

1877: Individual mills for grinding grain into meal can operate on the power of a water wheel, turned by a flowing river.

Today: The explosion of consumer electronics at the end of the twentieth century has made it difficult for the world's producers of petroleum, coal, nuclear, and hydroelectric energy to keep up with demand.

1877: People in rural areas like Georgia's Appalachian Mountains live in...