Secession Of The South
Essay Preview: Secession Of The South
Report this essay
From the early days of the United States, the North and South differed over various reasons. We started as thirteen states who all had their own way of government, culture, and economy. Essentially, thirteen small countries were being made. Eventually some unity came upon the states after gaining independence from Britain. The North and South began slowly separating from each other in more ways than less. The North was primarily focused on exportation of goods and the manufacturing system. The South consisted of farming and plantations. The geographic regions clashes as did the South’s adoption of slavery. Differences were present as the country was first established as independent.
The eventual split was inevitable after Lincoln’s election. The tension grew before with the debate over slavery and territorial lines. Government leaders fought for approval from both the North and South. As Lincoln wins the 1860 election, the South feels there is no need to live under a country ran Lincoln who the South saw as an abolitionist. The South was now in a growing economic business of farming cotton. Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin set off faster production, not to mention easier also. The North and South developed two contrasting societies. The North started an industry run economy that relied on cheap immigrant labor and wealthy entrepreneurs arose. On the other hand, a society of wealthy plantation owners developed alongside the poor white farmers who barely made a living off the little land they owned. The wealthy made decisions for the economy and politics similar to England. Most of these poor white farmers owned no slaves, which made cotton production difficult. The competition for the nation’s wealth grew and each side felt their economic status would give them the power in politics. As the United States started to gain new territories, each side wanted their share of land to develop