1. Causes of The American Civil War
A Nation Divides
Causes of
The American Civil War

2. SECTIONALISM: Instead of looking at the nation as a whole, southerners, westerners and northerners began to identify themselves regionally and not as Americans. So, the people would put the needs of their region over the needs of the nation.

4. The North
Economy based on industry
Used cheap immigrant labor

5. The South
Economy based on agriculture
Used slave labor

7. States’ Rights
Southern states felt state laws carried more weight than federal laws and therefore, state laws should be followed first. In addition, they argued that the federal government only has limited power under the 10th amendment.
                                                        

8. Balance of Power in Congress Shifts
As the population grew in
the North, so did its
political power
The North now was able
to pass laws that helped
the North but hurt the South
This made the South feel like their government
was no longer working for them

9. Slavery Only a very small percentage of Southerners owned slaves.
Its supporters felt that it was an economic
issue, not a moral issue.
Many of people who disagreed with it still felt that abolishing it would
destroy the Southern economy.
Many Southerners felt that the North had no right to claim
the moral high ground because of how immigrant
laborers were treated in Northern factories.

10. Protective Tariffs A Tariff is a tax placed on goods imported from foreign countries.
Tariff of 1816 – placed a 20-25% tax on all foreign goods
Tariff of There was 35% duty on imported iron, wool, cotton, and hemp.
Tariff of Taxes increased to nearly 50%

11. Who benefitted from the protective tariffs? Who opposed them? Why?
Think about this:
The 1828 Tariff of Abominations was the third protective tariff implemented by the government. The protective tariffs taxed all foreign goods, to boost the sales of US products and protect Northern manufacturers from cheap British goods.

12. Compromise of 1850 California is admitted as a free-state.
Washington DC abolishes slave trade
Texas boundaries are established
Fugitive Slave Act- Northern states had to enforce the return of run-away-slaves
Popular Sovereignty- slavery in the Mexican Cession lands is decided by popular sovereignty.

13. Fugitive Slave Act
Required Northerners to return runaway slaves to their masters.
Made the Federal government responsible for catching slaves and trying them before “special commissioners”. The slaves could not speak and the commissioners were paid more if they returned the slave to the south.

14. Lincoln Wins!
Lincoln won a majority of the votes, even though he did not appear on the ballot in most Southern states.
He won every Northern state.
He won 180 of 303 electoral votes, but only 40% of the popular vote.

15. After Lincoln was elected…
South Carolina seceded (left the country)
Within 6 weeks, 5 other states left the U.S. (Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi & Louisiana) to form the Confederate States of America
Texas Legislature approved convention to vote on secession
Northern leaders considered this an act of war
against the United States

16. TEXAS VOTES: Texas voted to secede
The Constitution of 1845 was changed to reflect secession, defending “States’ Rights” and slavery
Texas is accepted into the Confederate States of America
Secession convention required taking new oath
Sam Houston refuses to take oath
The office of governor was declared vacant.

17. STATES RIGHTS VS STRONG FEDERAL GOV’T.
The Southern states felt that they had the right to leave the
Union and choose its own government.
The Northern states felt that all of the states had signed a contract
when the US Constitution was agreed on, and that no state had the
power to leave.

18. NORTH SOUTH More diverse population Higher population Larger cities
Industry and business
Small farms
Groups of abolitionists trying to end slavery
Agriculture as basis of economy
Cash Crops: Cotton, tobacco, rice, and sugarcane
Slave labor
Few factories, little industry

19. Cotton is King!
In 1790 (before the invention of the cotton gin) there were about 750, 000 slaves in the south and 3000 bales of cotton produced per year.
By 1860, the number of slaves was over four million, who produced almost four million bales of cotton per year