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Details
Staple crops and expanding markets continued the profitability of slavery
90% of the 4 million slaves living in the South lived on plantations and produced 90% of the cotton and practically all
of the rice and sugar.
Slave populations represented at least 50% of the state in SC, GA, AL, MS, LA, AR and TX.
The original cash crop of the South was tobacco
Still main slave cultivated crop of upper South
Tobacco markets and soil were depleted
VA and MD diversified with use of fertilizer, grew wheat and corn
Sold surplus slaves to lower South
Slaves became the new cash crop for the upper South
Long staple cotton was a main crop in coastal SC and GA
Sugar and rice were also grown in lower LA
Short staple cotton emerged as the main cash crop in the Lower South
Invention of cotton gin (1793) made production profitable
Cotton required constant attention well suited to plantation growing
Made year round labor necessary
Only larger operations could afford both slaves and cotton gins
By 1850, the South produced 75% of the world supply of cotton
Individual economic success was not guaranteed
Prices fluctuated due to overproduction
Soil was quickly depleted and planters moved West
Markets stabilized and profitability increased from 1849-1860
The South became increasingly dependent upon cotton and slavery
The South grew more concerned about economic dependence
JDB DeBow called for the South to develop industry and manufacturing
5% of slave labor went for mining, lumbering, road construction, canals, and cotton mills
Planters feared the growth of a white industrial class, might lead to social conflict
Thus the South remained substantially dependent on slavery and one-crop agriculture
Efficient plantations were the most viable
Large plantation owners made the most money
Slave ownership determined your place in society in the South. Class, caste and race determined your social standing.
30% of Southern families owned slaves in 1850, 25% by 1860
12% of slaveholders, or 4% of the general population, owned more than 20
slaves in 1860
3% of slaveholders, or 1% of the general population, owned more than 50 slaves in 1860
This tiny percentage of plantation owners dominated economic and public policy
Many were former businessmen and slave traders
Slave owners considered their slaves to be members of an extended family
Slaves were referred to as our people
Seen as perpetual children in need of care and supervision
US slaves were generally well-provided for compared to those in Central and South America
1808 ban of slave trade made healthy slave production crucial
Field slaves were unlikely to have a personal relationship with their masters
Field slaves dealt mostly with overseers
Overseers were mainly concerned with meeting production quotas
Slaves had little protection against torture, rape or death
Small slave owners often worked side by side with their slaves
88% of slave owners had fewer than 20 slaves, most had fewer than 10
Small slave owners provided fewer material comforts than large
Large plantations also provided slaves with cultural and social opportunities
Many small slave owners were unable to support their lifestyles and sold their slaves
Next on the ladder of society were yeoman farmers
Most tolerated slavery and opposed abolition
Yeoman were not economic equals with planters but did share racial prestige
Support for gradual emancipation in the South declined sharply after Nat Turner
Apologists favored the theory of positive good Tenets:
Enslavement was the natural and proper state for those of African descent
Slavery was sanctioned by the Bible: Cain, Ham, St. Paul, etc
Slavery was consistent with humanitarianism that provided for the less able
George Fitzhugh argued that slavery was more humane than free-labor
Slaves were provided for in illness and old age
Slaves did not face strikes, destitution or starvation
Those who publicly questioned slavery in the South were in some danger
A few open rebellions
Gabriel Prosser Rebellion, Richmond VA in 1800
1811 rebellion in New Orleans
Denmark Vesey Conspiracy in SC in 1822
1823 Bob Ferebee Raids in Norfolk County, VA
Nat Turner in 1831
Some runaway slaves joined the Seminoles in FL
Runaways
Mostly young, single males
Most to gain, least to lose
Passive resistance
Working slowly
Sabotage
Occasional poisoning of the master and his family
Free Blacks
Could only vote in four New England states
Could testify in court against whites only in Massachusetts
Last hired most employers preferred immigrants
Excluded from most state-run public schools, passports and most government jobs
In South, required to have white guardians and had very few, if any, rights
Free blacks in the North publicly pushed for abolition
Frederick Douglass
Soujourner Truth, Charles Remond and others
FD published the North Star
Harriet Tubman and others operated the Underground Railroad
The cornerstone of African-American culture
Combined evangelical Protestantism and African religion
Focused on Moses, concepts of freedom and judgment
Richard Allen formed the African Methodist Episcopal Church
Independent, all-black churches were treated with suspicion
Most slaves attended services on the plantation at night in secret
Call and respond and music (spirituals) were important elements of services
Identification with the enslaved Israelites, deliverance and endurance were key
Developed a strong sense of kinship and lifelong bonds on large plantations
Small slave owner were less likely to keep slave families together
Kinship ties were not always based on direct blood relations in these cases
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