Class 32 The Southern Economy and the Institution of slavery

Opening Question: How did slavery shape social and economic relations in the Old South?
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/slavery/exp erience/education/feature.html

 Slavery led the South down a very different path of economic development than the Norths, limiting the growth of industry, discouraging immigrants from entering the region, and inhibiting technological progress. The South did not share in the urban growth experienced by the rest of the country Foner, Chapter 11 The Peculiar Institution

Announcements
M Mar 31
W Apr 2

GML, CHAPTER 11, THE PECULIAR INSTITUTION

GML, CHAPTER 12, AN AGE OF REFORM

F Apr 4

NO READING

Historical site/museum visit one-page report

M Apr 7

GML, CHAPTER 13, A HOUSE DIVIDED

W Apr 9

ATF, CHAPTER 7, THE MADNESS OF JOHN BROWN

GML, CHAPTER 14, A NEW BIRTH OF FREEDOM: THE CIVIL WAR NO READING NO READING TEST 3

ATF response opportunity (you can do a maximum of four of these for credit)

F Apr 11

M Apr 14 W Apr 16 F Apr 18

Test 3

1.

Which of these best characterizes Justice Marshalls belief about Indian sovereignty and removal?
Justice Marshall supported Georgias desire to regulate its state lands and remove Indians. Justice Marshall supported Cherokee sovereignty, and argued that only the federal government could negotiate with the Cherokee. Justice Marshall agreed with Jackson that since the government had to protect Indians, they should be moved to Indian country where the federal armies could better protect them from gold hungry settlers.

64%

2.

3.

25% 11%

1.

2.

3.

 Last class we looked at Jackson and the South, including Indian Removal Today we will look at the expansion of Cotton and the Institution of will look at Jackson and the South

Some Stats about the Southern Economy during this period of National Growth

Transformation of the South: The expansion of Cotton

Midwest = breadbasket North = industrial -- textiles South = COTTON!!!!

The Growth of Cotton Textile Manufacturing, 18101840 1 of 2

The Growth of Cotton Textile Manufacturing, 18101840 2 of 2

King Cotton
Without firing a gun, without drawing a sword, should they make war on us we could bring the whole world to our feet.No you dare not make war on cotton. No power on earth dares make war upon it. Cotton is king. James Henry Hammond, 1858

Eli Whitney and the Cotton Gin, 1793

Cotton 1820

Cotton 1830

Cotton 1860

Population 1820

Population 1860

Slave population

Test practice: What percentage of white southerners owned slaves?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 1% 5% 25% 50% 90%
26% 27% 25% 22%

1%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Slavery: the numbers

Slave ownership (another view) Why did non-slave owning whites support the planter class?

 Most poor whites made their peace with the planters in whose hands economic and social power was concentrated. Racism, kinship ties, common participation in a democratic political culture, and regional loyalty in the face of outside criticism all served to cement bonds between planters and the Souths plain folk. Foner, Chapter 11, The Peculiar Insitution

Average slaves per slaveholding

Primary Slave Occupations

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 cotton domestic tobacco sugar rice

Cotton in folk culture

Cotton as medicine
Cotton was chewed as a headache remedy Powdered cotton-root bark was used as a stimulate.

Cotton superstition (and love)

Young couples kept cotton bolls tucked away to symbolize their marriage. If the boll turned white, the marriage would be successful; if it turned to a creamy color, the couple would soon separate. To protect against financial difficulties, the couple had to sleep on a cotton mattress on their wedding night. The cotton Plant was believed to possess powers of incredible attraction. This happened with people and animals alike.

Cotton superstition (and work)

When going fishing young fishermen superstitiously carried 20 dried cottonseed to insure a successful fishing trip. It was very dangerous to find a boll with no cotton inside...the slaves believed that someone's kin would soon be sold before the night unless one dropped everything and slowly counted to ten.

The Slave System

Violence Planters Slave communities

A violent system

Bennet H. Barrow, Diary -- 1838 Louisiana

1838

Jan. 23 my House Servants Jane Lavenia & E. Jim broke into my store room - and helped themselves very liberally to every thing - I whipped [them] ... worse than I ever whipped any one before
Sept. 28 Dennis and Tom "Beauf" ran off on Wednesday - . . . if I can see either of them nd have a gun at the time will let them have the contents of it ... Oct. 12 [Tom ran off again] will whip him more than I ever whip one, I think he deserves more - the second time he has done so this year ... Oct. 20 whipped about half today

The Planters: Millford Plantation

Middleburgh Plantation

Middleburg Plantation Commissary and Jail

Southern Paternalism

Southern apologists:

 George Fitzhugh the negro slaves of the South are the happiest, in some sense, the freest people in the world. Explanation: all slaves responsibility and care was borne by their masters.

James Henry Hammond Cotton is King

US Rep -- 1835 to 1836 Gov. SC -- 1842 to 1844 US Senate -- 1857 to 1860. Slavery produced the highest toned, the purest, best organization of society that has ever existed on the face of the earth.

A few more quotes from Hammond:

"I firmly believe," said Governor J. H. Hammond, "that American slavery is not only not a sin, but especially commanded by God through Moses, and approved by Christ through his apostles." Governor J. H. Hammond once said: "I endorse without reserve the much abused sentiment of Governor McDuffie, that 'slavery is the corner-stone of our republican edifice;' while I repudiate, as ridiculously absurd, that much lauded but nowhere accredited dogma of Mr. Jefferson that 'all men are born equal.'"

James Henry Hammond

In the last will I made I left to youSally Johnson the mother of Loisa & all the children of bothI cannot free these people & send them North. It would be cruelty to themDo not let Louisa or any of my children be the slaves of strangers. Slavery in the family will be their happiest earthly condition.

The plantation mistress Mary Boyd Chesnut

The plantation mistress Mary Boyd Chesnut

God forgive us, but ours is a monstrous systemLike the patriarchs of old, our men live all in one house with their wives and their concubines, and the mulattoes one sees in every family partly resemble the white children. Any lady is ready to tell you who is the father of all the mulatto children in everybodys household, but her own. Those she seems to think, drop from the clouds.

Abolitionist critiques noted Amalgamation

Slave traders
According to the Constitution Congress could ban slave importations in 1808, which it did. Slaves imported illegally during first half of 19 C. approximately 1.2 million

The internal slave trade (or the second middle passage)

1 million slaves uprooted in internal trade 50% of all slaves

Slave traders
Mr. Haley from Uncle Toms Cabin