1. A GRICULTURAL C HANGES IN THE S OUTH

2. T HE G ROWTH OF C OTTON Southern Agriculture began to decline after the American Revolution. Prices for Cash Crops fell. RICE, INDIGO, TOBACCO

3. Farmers began to rely on cotton to make money! Need for Cloths PROBLEM: Cotton seeds were hard to remove by hand and it was a SLOW process. T HE G ROWTH OF C OTTON

4. Cotton Gin: Machine for removing seeds from cotton – revolutionized the industry. T HE G ROWTH OF C OTTON LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COTTON GIN (Click Here)

5. By 1860, southern states east of the Mississippi River produces 2/3 of all U.S. cotton Cotton Belt: Land stretching from SC to Texas. Slave labor demand is going up!!!! T HE C OTTON B OOM

6. T HE S OUTHERN E CONOMY Increased trade in cotton led to growth of port cities Savannah, GA New Orleans, LA Charleston, SC Transportation Revolution didn’t have a wide enough impact on the South How could they travel? Using What? Other crops in demand: Corn, Rice, wheat, tobacco, sugarcane.

7. T HE S OUTHERN E CONOMY Southern Factories: Served the needs of farmers Lumber industry / Rope Industry Most were built to process crops. Southerners poured money into the development of the plantation system, not southern industry

8. S OUTHERN S OCIETY - P OPULATION Planters Wealthiest members of society Only 1/3 of population by mid-1800’s Yeoman (owned small farms) “Middle-Class” Majority of population Poor-Whites Didn’t own land 10% of population

9. Free African Americans 2% of population Some became financially successful, but faced constant discrimination. S OUTHERN S OCIETY - P OPULATION

10. S OUTHERN S OCIETY - C ULTURE Religion was central to social life. Some southerners used religion to justify slavery – saying God created some people to rule over others. Urban South Similar to cities in the North – Industrialized. Slaves did much of the work in cities Maids, worked in mills, shipyards, ect.