The Antebellum South

1
The South and Slavery
Chapter 10
2
Key Topics

• The Domination of southern life by the slave
  system
• The economic implications of King Cotton
• The Creation of African American communities
  under slavery
• The Social structure of the white South and its
  increasing defensiveness

3
Early Emancipation in the North
4
Missouri Compromise, 1820
5
Antebellum Southern Society
6
A fresh start for slavery

• How did cotton production after 1793 transform
  the social and political history of the South?
• How did the rest of the nation benefit?
• In what ways was it an international phenomenon?

7
Characteristics of the Antebellum South

1. Primarily agrarian.
2. Economic power shifted from the upper South to
   the lower South.
3. Cotton Is King! 1860? 5 mil. bales a yr.
   (57 of total US exports).
4. Very slow development of industrialization.
5. Rudimentary financial system.
6. Inadequate transportation system.

8
Southern Society (1850)
Slavocracyplantation owners
6,000,000
The Plain Folkwhite yeoman farmers
Black Freemen
250,000
Black Slaves3,200,000
Total US Population ? 23,000,0009,250,000 in
the South 40
9
Yeoman Farmers

• Who were the Yeoman Farmers?
• What was their interest in slavery?

10
Southern Population
11
Antebellum Southern Economy
12
Graniteville Textile Co.
Founded in 1845, it was the Souths first attempt
at industrialization in Richmond, VA
13
Southern Agriculture
14
Slaves Picking Cottonon a Mississippi Plantation
15
Slaves Using the Cotton Gin
16
Changes in Cotton Production
1820
1860
17
Value of Cotton Exports As of All US Exports
18
The South's "Peculiar Institution"
19
Slave Auction Notice, 1823
20
Slave Auction Charleston, SC-1856
21
Slave Accoutrements
Slave MasterBrands
Slave muzzle
22
The Ledger of John White

• Matilda Selby, 9, 400.00 sold to Mr. Covington,
  St. Louis, 425.00
• Brooks Selby, 19, 750.00 Left at Home Crazy
• Fred McAfee, 22, 800.00 Sold to
  Pepidal,Donaldsonville, 1200.00
• Howard Barnett, 25, 750.00 Ranaway. Sold out of
  jail, 540.00
• Harriett Barnett, 17, 550.00 Sold to Davenport
  and Jones, Lafourche, 900.00

23
Anti-Slave Pamphlet
24
Slave Accoutrements
Slave tag, SC
Slave leg irons
Slave shoes
25
Antebellum Southern Plantation Life
26
Slave-Owning Population (1850)
27
Slave-Owning Families (1850)
28
Tara Plantation Reality or Myth?
Hollywoods Version?
29
A Real Georgia Plantation
30
Slaves posing in front of their cabin on a
Southern plantation.
31
The Southern Belle
32
A Slave Family
33
US Laws Regarding Slavery

1. U. S. Constitution 3/5s compromise I.2
   fugitive slave clause IV.2
2. 1793 ? Fugitive Slave Act.
3. 1850 ? stronger Fugitive Slave Act.

34
Slavery Was Less Efficient in the U. S. than
Elsewhere

• High cost of keeping slaves fromescaping.
• GOAL ? raise the exit cost.

• Slave patrols.

• Southern Black Codes.

• Cut off a toe or a foot.

35
Slave Resistance Uprisings
36
Slave Resistance

1. SAMBO pattern of behavior used as a charade in
   front of whites the innocent, laughing black man
   caricature bulging eyes, thick lips, big smile,
   etc..

37
Slave Resistance

1. Refusal to work hard.
2. Isolated acts of sabotage.
3. Escape via the Underground Railroad.

38
Runaway Slave Ads
39
Quilt Patterns as Secret Messages
The Monkey Wrench pattern, on the left, alerted
escapees to gather up tools and prepare to flee
the Drunkard Path design, on the right, warned
escapees not to follow a straight route.
40
Slave Rebellions Throughout the Americas
41
Slave Rebellions in the Antebellum South
Gabriel Prosser1800
1822
42
Slave Rebellions in the Antebellum South
Nat Turner, 1831
43
The Culture of Slavery

1. Black Christianity Baptists or Methodists
   more emotional worship services. negro
   spirituals.
2. Pidgin or Gullah languages.
3. Nuclear family with extended kin links,where
   possible.
4. Importance of music in their lives. esp.
   spirituals.

44
Southern Pro-SlaveryPropaganda