1. COTTON, SLAVERY, AND THE OLD SOUTH
CHAPTER 11
COTTON, SLAVERY, AND THE OLD SOUTH

2. THE COTTON ECONOMY Why was cotton so popular?
Tobacco exhausted land, fluctuated in price (upper South)
Sugar and rice cultivation was difficult (lower South/Gulf)
Industrial Revolution created a new, large, demand

3. THE COTTON ECONOMY Spread of cotton Southern Industry:
short-staple cotton
1850, cotton most dominant crop of the South
Deep South saw most production (AL, MS, LA)
Southern Industry:
Mostly agriculture
Some commerce developed, but it served the “plantation economy”
spread to (TX, AR)

4. THE COTTON ECONOMY Southern Industry: Mostly agriculture
Some commerce developed, but it served the “plantation economy”
growth of textile mills (GB and NE)

5. THE COTTON ECONOMY CONT.
South not industrializing
some industry in upper South
agriculture...profitable (“King Cotton”)
Capital was tied up in farming (“factors”)
market crops, lend money, etc...
inadequate infrastructure (RR’s, canals, etc.)

6. THE COTTON ECONOMY CONT.
James B. De Bow:
Warned of the dependence on the North
Favored econ. independence for South

7. THE COTTON ECONOMY CONT.
South not industrializing
traditional southern values
more refined, elegant than those nasty urban cities

8. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH

9. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH
problems with the success:
land butchery
flip this land
overspeculation
greatest capital expense...slaves (disease, running away, self-injury, etc...)
foreign markets
North profited greatly
little influx of European immigrants

10. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH
Roughly 1 out of 4 whites owned slaves
An even smaller portion owned plantations
Planter Aristocracy (“Cottonocracy”)
40+ slaves and 800+ acres
Those that did had tremendous power and influence
New Money
hard work got me here...worth defending
see this more in the “lower south”

11. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH

12. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH
You question my honor sir????
Sir Walter Scott idealized a feudal South
Southern men, code of chivalry
ethical and ideal, also public displays of challenging one’s dignity

13. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH
George Fitzhugh:
Southern writer, defended slavery and subordination of women

14. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH
Women had few opportunities at education
Those that did, focused on being “good wives”
little role in public activities (little access)
little education
higher birth rate/mortality rate

15. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH CONT.
The Plain Folk:
yoeman farmer
Mostly subsistence farming, some cash-crop
Few educational opportunities in the rural south

16. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH CONT.
“Hill People”/”Backcountry” (“Hillbillies):
Lived in the Appalachian Mountain region
Opposed the planter elite
Resisted secession leading to the Civil War
loyal to country, not sections

17. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH CONT.
Nonslave-holding whites relied heavily on planters
needed credit, sell goods, relatives
participated in politics...kind of
hope of improving their lot
if heirarchy of slavery falls, so will patriarchy

18. WHITE SOCIETY IN THE SOUTH CONT.
“clay-eaters” ("crackers," "poor white trash")
south’s poorest members
no profitable land
did not challenge southern society
still were white, ruling class, so you’re saying there’s a chance

19. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION”
In the mid-19th century, slavery was illegal in the Western world, except for US, Brazil, Cuba, and Puerto Rico
“Peculiar”- distinctive from other forms

20. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION”
Slave Codes:
Regulated behavior of slaves:
Could not own:
property
be out after dark
strike a white person
receive an education
less severe than other places
not uniformly enforced

21. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION”
majority of slave owners were small farmers
majority of slaves were on medium to large plantations
less intimate
Overseers:
In charge of slaves in fields, often harsh and brutal towards slaves

22. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Slave Life:
Living conditions were harsh
Women often worked in fields with men, then did housework
most lived on plantations with 10 or more slaves
worked in "gangs" under an overseer
dusk until dawn labor
chores completed at night
worked Mon-Sat (could earn extra on Sundays)
Xmas could be a 3-day celebration, could sometimes eat their fill

23. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
House Slaves:
Closer proximity to owners often led to more punishments
Often isolated from other slaves
Female house slaves were subject to harsh treatment from owners and white women
Slaves in Cities:
Fewer than in rural areas
sold to country (segregation)

24. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Free Blacks in the South (250,000 in 1860)
some earned freedom from earnings
some emancipated by the masters
many owned property (New Orleans)
William T. Johnson "the barber of Natchez"...owned slaves

25. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Free is relative ("third-race")...
could be highjacked
not able to work in all industries
could not testify against whites in court
Not truly free in the North either (250,000)
some banned from public education
most states denied them the right to vote?
immigrants hated them b/c they vied for menial jobs

26. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
The Slave Trade
International slave trade was outlawed in 1808
Domestic slave trade continued
too lucrative (smuggling)...2 billion dollar investment by 1860
Humiliating experience
Separated families

27. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Amistad
1839 slave revolt aboard a ship in Cuba
John Quincy Adams argued that the slaves should be freed
Former slaves were returned to Africa

28. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Resisting slavery:
Resistance took many forms:
Passive – working slowly, faking illness
Running away
Breaking tools

29. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.
Although slave revolts did happen, they were rare
Gabriel Prosser (1800):
Rebellion stopped before it occurred, Prosser and 35 others were hanged
Denmark Vesey (1822):
Planned a rebellion, but word leaked out
Nat Turner (1831):
Armed revolt, killing 60 people in Virginia
Led to restricting African Americans’ rights

30. SLAVERY: THE “PECULIAR INSTITUTION” CONT.

31. THE CULTURE OF SLAVERY
A unique language that combined English and African language developed (“pidgin”)
Music played a large role in daily life:
Way to communicate
Helped pass time in fields

32. THE CULTURE OF SLAVERY Religion: Slave family life:
Virtually all slaves were Christian
African American religion was often emotional
Slave family life:
Slaves could not legally marry (“‘til death do us part”)
1/3 of all families were broken up due to slave trade
A frequent cause of running away was to be reunited with family

33. THE CULTURE OF SLAVERY Slaves had a complex relationship with masters
dependence for material means, “security, and protection”
paternalism (labor exchanged for slave’s well-being) =white control