Chapter 13

The South1790-1860

I. Growth of the Cotton Industry

• Cotton was not a profitable crop – hard to take seeds out

• By 1790’s high demand for American cotton• Cotton Gin: Eli Whitney – 1793 – a machine

that removes seeds from cotton

The Cotton Boom

• Cotton gin revolutionized industry – Planters: large-scale farmers who held more than 20 slaves – southern planters abandon other crops – “cotton belt”

• Growing cotton requires large labor force – planters begin to use more slaves

• “Cotton is King”• Other crops – corn, tobacco, rice• Industry was small compared to North – southern

investors put money into land

II. Southern Society

• Only about 1/3 of white southern families had slaves

• Planters were wealthiest and politically powerful

• Most white southerners were Yeomen: owners of small farms

• Poorest white southerners worked odd jobs for money

Religion, Society, and Urban Life

• Most families saw each other at church events, revivals, and socials

• Largest, most important cities were located on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts– Charleston, South Carolina– Savannah, Georgia– New Orleans, Louisiana

Free African Americans

• Most free African Americans lived in countryside and worked as day laborers

• Constant discrimination from white southerners – laws limited rights

• White southerners believed free African Americans did not have ability to take care of themselves

III. The Slave System

• Worked in fields and homes• Some slaves had skilled jobs – carpentry and

blacksmithing • Slaves were bought and sold – families

separated • Property• Poor living conditions, simple clothes, small

food rations

Slave Culture

• Some slave owners treated slaves well, however many used harsh punishments

• Slave Codes: laws to control slave actions• Kept heritage alive with folktales: stories with

a moral• Religion was important – spirituals: emotional

Christian songs that blended African and European music

Wade in the Water• Wade in the water (children)

Wade in the waterWade in the waterGod's gonna trouble the water

If you don't believe I've been redeemedGod's gonna trouble the waterI want you to follow him on down to Jordan stream(I said) My God's gonna trouble the waterYou know chilly water is dark and cold(I know my) God's gonna trouble the waterYou know it chills my body but not my soul(I said my) God's gonna trouble the water

Slave Uprisings

• Slaves did rebel against system by working slower or running away

• Revolts were rare, but owners feared them

• Nat Turner: 1831 – a slave who believed God told him to end slavery – killed 60 white men, women, and children– Southern states pass

harsher slave codes