in 1905, after a local planter, Hillery Brooks, who contributed greatly to the construction of the railroad and a much needed depot. During the Civil War, the town sent many young men to fight in the Confederate Army. Several of these men were killed during the war. Economy Past By the 1900s Brooks began to grow due to the railroad. According to Daniel Langford Jr. several stores were built, including a bank, a drugstore, cotton gins, grist mills, and blacksmith shops. Although businesses were on the rise in the small town, the main source of economy for the town was farming. Cotton was the number one crop for a long time until 1921 when the boll weevil appeared, quickly destroying crops, placing the town into an economic depression, and causing it to lose its charter. By the time the Great Depression struck the country, Brooks had been suffering for eight years. The town began to come out of the depression in 1939 after electricity was installed in the town. Around this time Brooks received its town charter again. Another factor in the growth of the town was due to the rise in the airline industry. Airline employees from Atlanta began to buy large tracts of farmland. Farming also changed as the focus switched from cotton to cattle. Present Today Brooks is still considered rural, but agriculture is no longer the main driver of the economy. Much of the town is being divided into lots ready for the construction of homes. Brooks is now a residential area that many people are moving to since it is still considered to be rural. Many townspeople commute to work in Fayetteville or even Atlanta. Stores in town now include a women's hair salon and tanning shop, a barber shop, a deer processor, a storage center, and several convenience stores. Education Brooks' education falls under the Fayette County Board of Education. Middle school students attend Whitewater Middle, and high school students attend Whitewater High in Fayetteville, both of which are of recent construction. Liberty Tech Charter school is using the old Brooks Elementary School building; there has been a school at this location since 1909. Brooks Elementary closed in 2013. Activities Besides activities at churches and schools, there is a youth recreational park which has baseball fields and football fields for the Brooks youth league. Brooks' roadways are often filled with bike riders, and many