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Life in Antebellum America
Unit 4, Lesson 3
Essential Idea
• The North, West, and South had different cultures during the Antebellum Period.
Antebellum Period • Time Period: • Antebellum Period• Meaning:• Time in American
history BEFORE the Civil War (“antebellum” is Latin for “before war”)
• The North, West, and South were very different during the Antebellum Period
Life in the North• Northern Farming Declines:• Climate in the North was colder• Soil was rockier and less fertile• Farms were small due to high population• Small farms struggled to compete with large farms in the West• Results:• Result #1- Some farmers moved west to start bigger farms on fertile soil• Result #2- Some abandoned farming and moved to cities to work in factories
Urbanization
• Urbanization:• Many farmers in the North
moved into cities• Many immigrants moved
into cities • Both groups moved to
cities to work in FACTORIES • Urbanization- growth of
cities, which happened mainly in the North
Life in Northern Cities• Problems with Urbanization:• 1. Overcrowding:• Cities struggled to adjust to
the population boom• Tension grew between
Americans and immigrants• 2. Crime:• Rise in crime led to creation
of police departments• 3. Fire: • Crowded wooden buildings
were a fire danger, so fire departments developed
Life in Northern Cities • 4. Sanitation: • No sewers and horses
were used for transportation
• Human/animal waste and trash rotted in streets
• 5. Families:• Less close since men
left home to work in factories
• Poor working conditions led to alcohol abuse, hurting families
Northern Factories• Factory Conditions:• Bosses had a negative relationship with workers • Workers worked long hours for low wages• Conditions were unsafe and unsanitary
Working Conditions
• Lowell Mill System:• Textile mills employed
single women and children• Workers lived in dorms
built around the mill, creating a “company town”
• They were strictly controlled, worked long hours, and were paid even less than men
Early Unions• Unions: • Some workers formed unions to push for better conditions• Unions had little success, seen as bad or illegal • Commonwealth v. Hunt- Supreme Court ruled that unions were
legal
Life in the West• Farming:• Farming was common, where large pieces of fertile land existed• Psychological impact:• Isolated, lonely, fearful of conflict with Indians• Connection with Cities:• Farmers relied on internal improvements to trade with cities in the North
Life in the South
• The Cotton Gin and Slavery:
• The cotton gin caused slavery to expand throughout the South
• There were 4 MILLION slaves in America when the Civil War began
• The Growth of Slavery
The “Cotton Kingdom”
• “Cotton Kingdom:”• The South was called the
“Cotton Kingdom” because its economy was based on cotton and slavery
• Expansion and Sectionalism: • Southerners wanted slavery
to expand to the West, where more land was available
• This caused tension with northerners who did not want slavery to expand
Life in the South• Lack of industrialization:• Wealthy planters held the most political and economic power• Planters had little interest in industrialization since they made money from
plantations• Southern society remained based on cotton production
Society in the South• White Society:• MOST whites did NOT own slaves, but did
support it• Wealthy planters:• Smallest group, but had the most money,
power, land, and slaves• Yeoman Farmers:• Largest group, owned few if any slaves,
lived modestly, had little power• Poor Whites:• Owned little land and no slaves, but
supported slavery due to racism?• Freemen:• Some blacks were free, many had saved
money to buy their own freedom
Slavery• Slave codes:• Slave codes were laws that helped control slaves• Slaves could not own property, own guns, testify against whites, or become literate• Purpose:• Keep slaves at the bottom of society • Keep slaves too ignorant to be able to rebel• Slavery
Plantation Conditions
• Plantation conditions:
• Slaves were viewed and treated as property
• Most slaves worked hard from dawn till dusk
• Life for Slaves
Plantation Conditions• Slaves were motivated to work by the threat of
physical punishment• Slave auctions sold slaves and often
permanently separated families• Plantation Slavery
Slave Culture
• Slave culture: • Slave families were
strong despite oppression
• Songs were important and often contained hidden meanings
• Christianity was important to many slaves and gave them hope
Resistance and Rebellion• Resistance:• Passive resistance—slaves often sabotaged equipment and engaged in work
slow downs • Running away—slaves often ran away, often using the Underground Railroad
Resistance and Rebellion
• Rebellions:• Occasionally
slaves rebelled with violence
• Slave rebellions led to tighter slave codes