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Forestry activities, such as timber production and processing, are important economic activities in many rural communities. Yet the research on the relationship between forest dependence and community economic well‐being is inconclusive. This article examines the relationship between forest dependence and county per capita income and poverty in rural Georgia. Forest dependence is conceptualized according to Averitt's theory of the dual economy. Core dependence, in other words, dependence on well‐capitalized, pulp and paper firms, is expected to affect county‐level economic well‐being differently than dependence on periphery forest industry or high timberland concentrations. Regression analyses show that core forest industries are positively related to county per capita income, while periphery industries have no significant effect and timberland concentration is negatively related to per capita income …