Southern Slavery Prior to 1877 History Essay Paper

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Southern Slavery Prior To 1877
America's southern states were, for a long time, the drivers of the country's economy. Tobacco, sugar cane, and cotton were the south's main commodities, and human slavery was the fuel behind their production. In the south, slaves were more valuable than gold or either of the aforementioned products. The salve economy was important to the south because it guaranteed production on a large scale and more profits for landowners. By the time of the Civil War, the south produced 75% of the world's cotton and created more millionaires than anywhere else in the Confederacy. This paper seeks to examine the growth and spread of southern slavery before 1877.
Building a commercially viable enterprise in the south required a lot of labor. Throughout the seventeenth century, American colonies were mainly agricultural centers, and the growth of crops was driven by indentured servitude. A majority of the laborers in America were Europeans who had migrated into the country in search of a better life. These European laborers took up jobs as laborers, and through indentured servitude, they received shelter, food, and rudimentary education in return. Towards the end of the seventeenth century, Britain's economy was booming, and jobs were opening up in plenty. Therefore, European laborers in American colonies left for Britain. Although this presented a dilemma for America's agricultural economy, slavery was becoming an acceptable practice, and as a result, the enslavement of Africans became a commercial necessity.
The land in the south was vast and unused. Also, there was a favorable climate, which enabled cash crops such as cotton an...