Lesson 11.2 – Cotton and the Plantation System Today’s Essential Question: How did the cotton...

Lesson 11.2 – Cotton and the Plantation System

Lesson 11.2 – Cotton and the Plantation System

Today’s Essential Question: How did the cotton boom make life harder for slaves?Today’s Essential Question: How did the cotton boom make life harder for slaves?

Vocabulary

• boom – rapid growth in value or popularity

• agrarian – related to farming• divisions – parts of something that is

divided• society – the ways in which a group of

people who live together relate to each other

Check for Understanding

• What is today’s Essential Question?• What would happen during a

construction boom?• Name something that is organized into

divisions.• What does the term ‘society’ refer to?• What is an agrarian society?

What We Already Know

By introducing the use of inter–

changeable parts, Eli Whitney

revolutionized the manufacturing process in the

North.

What We Already Know

• Planters• Planters

• Small farmers & businessmen

• Small farmers & businessmen• Poor whites• Poor whites

• Free blacks and slaves• Free blacks and slaves

• Southern society was a stratified (layered) society.

• Southern society was a stratified (layered) society.

What We Already Know

Cleaning the cotton fibers by hand was a tedious, even painful process for slaves.

Why is it important to understand the connection between the cotton

boom and slavery?

• The cotton boom caused slavery to spread in the South.

• The spread of slavery led to tension between Americans.

• This tension will be an important cause of the Civil War.

The Cotton Boom

Textile mills in Britain and New England had created a huge

demand for cotton, but much of the cotton that grew in the South was

hard to clean by hand.

Textile mills in Britain and New England had created a huge

demand for cotton, but much of the cotton that grew in the South was

hard to clean by hand.

All cotton must be cleaned, which means separating the seeds from the fibers.

All cotton must be cleaned, which means separating the seeds from the fibers.

All cotton must be cleaned, which means separating the seeds from the fibers.

All cotton must be cleaned, which means separating the seeds from the fibers.

Long-fiber cotton is easier and quicker to clean than short-fiber cotton, but it only grows in the

cooler areas of the South along the coast.

Long-fiber cotton is easier and quicker to clean than short-fiber cotton, but it only grows in the

cooler areas of the South along the coast.

Short-fiber cotton could be grown in most parts of the South, but it was

hard to clean by hand.

Short-fiber cotton could be grown in most parts of the South, but it was

hard to clean by hand.

• A worker could clean just one pound of this cotton in a day.

• To clean it in large quantities required the use of many slaves, making cotton very expensive.

The Cotton Boom

In 1793, Eli Whitney invented a machine for cleaning cotton after

visiting a Georgia plantation.

Whitney’s cotton gin (short for “engine”) made

the cotton-cleaning process far more efficient.

The Cotton Boom

With the new machine, one worker could now clean as

much as 50 pounds of cotton a day.

The cotton gin made it

economically possible to grow cotton as a cash

crop.

The Cotton Boom

Check for Understanding

• B ask A: What does it mean to clean cotton?

• A ask B: How is long-fiber cotton different from short-fiber cotton?

• B ask A: Where was long-fiber cotton grown?

Be sure to re-state the question in your response!Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

12. Who was Eli Whitney?

A. He invented the steam–powered boat.

B. He invented the telegraph.

C. He invented the cotton gin.

D. He invented the steel plow.

What did the cotton gin do to cotton?

A. It removed the tough seeds from cotton fibers.

B. It made it easier to ship cotton to market.

C. It cured raw cotton more efficiently than before.

D. It turned cotton fibers into cotton cloth.

The Cotton Boom

The cotton gin changed Southern life in four important ways.

1. It triggered a vast move westward, beyond the Atlantic coastal states

where only long-fibered cotton could grow.

The Cotton Boom

2. Planters grew more cotton instead of other crops, and cotton exports increased.

2. Planters grew more cotton instead of other crops, and cotton exports increased.

3. Native Americans were driven off their land as plantations took it over.

The Cotton Boom

4. Slavery grew, because cotton cultivation required

a large work force.

The Cotton Boom

Slavery ExpandsSlavery Expands

• From 1790 to 1860, cotton production rose greatly.

• As cotton cultivation grew, so did the number of enslaved people in the South.

Slavery Expands

Millions of bales of Southern cotton went to the textile mills of

Britain and New England each year.

Slavery Expands

• In 1820, the South earned $22 million from cotton exports.

• By the late 1830s, earnings from cotton exports were nearly ten times greater, close to $200 million.

Slavery Expands

As cotton earnings rose, so did the price of slaves, tripling by the late 1830s.

As cotton earnings rose, so did the price of slaves, tripling by the late 1830s.

Slavery ExpandsSlavery Expands• The expansion of slavery had a major impact

on the South’s economy.• But its effect on the people living there was

even greater.

Check for UnderstandingCheck for Understanding

A ask B: How did cotton production

affect slavery in the South?

As cotton production expanded, so did

slavery in the South.

A ask B: How did cotton production

affect slavery in the South?

As cotton production expanded, so did

slavery in the South.

Be sure to re-state the question in your

response!

Be sure to re-state the question in your

response!

Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

13. How did the cotton gin change Southern life?

A. Slavery expanded across the South.B. People moved westward away from

the coast.C. Native Americans lost their land.D. Planters grew cotton instead of other

crops.E. The value of Southern tobacco fell on

world markets.

A. Slavery expanded across the South.B. People moved westward away from

the coast.C. Native Americans lost their land.D. Planters grew cotton instead of other

crops.E. The value of Southern tobacco fell on

world markets.

Choose the answer that is NOT true!Choose the answer that is NOT true!

Lesson 11.2b –Slavery in Daily Life

Lesson 11.2b –Slavery in Daily Life

Today we will examine the daily life of slaves in Southern society.

Today we will examine the daily life of slaves in Southern society.

Southern life was based on an agrarian economy.

An agrarian economy is one that is based on farming.

• Even though almost all Southerners earned their living from the land, they could be separated into two groups.

Slavery Divides the South

• Slavery divided white Southerners into those who held slaves and those who did not.

• Slaveholders with large plantations were the wealthiest and most powerful people in the South, but they were relatively few in number.

• Only about one-third of white families owned slaves in 1840, and only about one-tenth had 20 or more slaves.

Check for Understanding

Be sure to re-state the question in your response!Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

•A ask B: What fraction of white families owned slaves in 1840?

• Only about one-third of white families owned slaves in 1840.

• Only about one-third of white families owned slaves in 1840.

Slavery Divides the SouthSlavery Divides the South

• Most white Southern farmers who owned few or no slaves still supported slavery.

• They hoped someday to buy slaves, raise more cotton and become rich.

• Most white Southern farmers who owned few or no slaves still supported slavery.

• They hoped someday to buy slaves, raise more cotton and become rich.

Slavery Divides the SouthSlavery Divides the South

Slavery had become necessary for increasing profits.

Slavery had become necessary for increasing profits.

Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

14. How did slavery divide white Southerners?

A. They were divided into landowners and renters.

B. They were divided into those who owned slaves and those who did not.

C. They were divided into pro-slavery groups and anti-slavery groups.

D. They were divided into agriculturalists and industrialists.

A. They were divided into landowners and renters.

B. They were divided into those who owned slaves and those who did not.

C. They were divided into pro-slavery groups and anti-slavery groups.

D. They were divided into agriculturalists and industrialists.

African Americans in the South• Slavery also divided black Southerners into

those who were enslaved and those who were free.

• Slavery also divided black Southerners into those who were enslaved and those who were free.

• Enslaved African Americans formed about one-third of the South’s population in 1840.

About half worked on large plantations with white overseers.

Most plantation slaves were field workers.

B ask A: What fraction of the South’s population were slaves in 1840?

B ask A: What fraction of the South’s population were slaves in 1840?

About one-third of the South’s population were slaves in 1840.

About one-third of the South’s population were slaves in 1840.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

City slaves did not face the back-breaking conditions of plantations.

• In cities, enslaved persons worked as domestic servants, skilled craftsmen, factory hands, and day laborers.

• Sometimes they were hired out and allowed to keep part of their earnings.

• Compared with a slave on the plantation, a city slave was almost a freeman, but they were still enslaved.

In 1840, about 8 percent of African Americans in the South were free.

• They had either been born free, been freed by an owner, or bought their own freedom.

• A significant number of free blacks in the South overcame great obstacles to become skilled workers.

In 1840, about 8 percent of African Americans in the South were free.

• Some did well enough to become planters.• Many others lived in cities such as Baltimore and

Washington, D.C.

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

B ask A: What percentage of Southern blacks were free in 1840?

In 1840, about 8 percent of Southern blacks were either been born free, had been freed by an owner, or bought their own

freedom.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

Free blacks faced many problems.Free blacks faced many problems.

• Some states made them leave once they gained their freedom.

• Most states did not permit them to vote or receive an education.

• Many employers refused to hire them. • But their biggest threat was the

possibility of being captured and sold into slavery.

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

Check for Understanding

A ask B: How did free blacks earn a living in the South?

Free blacks earned a living in the South either as skilled workers in cities, or as small farmers.

A ask B: How did free blacks earn a living in the South?

Free blacks earned a living in the South either as skilled workers in cities, or as small farmers.

Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

15. How did slavery divide black Southerners?

A. Slavery divided them into free blacks and slaves.

B. Slavery divided them into landowners and renters.

C. Slavery divided them into sharecroppers and craftsmen.

D. Slavery divided them into plantation slaves and city–dwellers.

Finding Strength in Religion

An African-American culture had emerged on plantations by the early 1800s.

An African-American culture had emerged on plantations by the early 1800s.

Finding Strength in Religion

Religion helped slaves endure the brutal conditions of

plantation life, by offering them hope of a life in heaven.

Religion helped slaves endure the brutal conditions of

plantation life, by offering them hope of a life in heaven.

Finding Strength in ReligionFinding Strength in Religion

• Some slaveholders tried to use religion to make slaves accept their treatment.

• Some ministers stressed such Bible passages as “Servants, obey your masters.”

Finding Strength in Religion

• But enslaved people preferred Bible stories like that of Moses leading the Hebrews out of bondage in Egypt.

• But enslaved people preferred Bible stories like that of Moses leading the Hebrews out of bondage in Egypt.

• Slaves expressed their religious beliefs in religious folk songs called spirituals.

Finding Strength in Religion

• These spirituals often contained coded messages about a planned escape or an owner’s unexpected return.

• These spirituals often contained coded messages about a planned escape or an owner’s unexpected return.

• African-American spirituals later influenced blues, jazz, and other forms of American music.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

A ask B: Why was religion important to

slaves?

A ask B: Why was religion important to

slaves?

• Religion was important to slaves because it helped them endure the brutal conditions of plantation life.

Get your whiteboards and markers ready!

16. What was one of the few sources of comfort available to slaves?

A. The hope of someday escaping to freedom

B. The knowledge that their children would one day be free

C. Religion and spiritual life

D. Alcohol and medicinal herbs

A. The hope of someday escaping to freedom

B. The knowledge that their children would one day be free

C. Religion and spiritual life

D. Alcohol and medicinal herbs

Families Under SlaveryFamilies Under Slavery

Perhaps the cruelest part of slavery was the sale of family members

away from one another.

Perhaps the cruelest part of slavery was the sale of family members

away from one another.

Families Under Slavery• When slave families could manage to be

together, they took comfort in their family life.

• Slave children lived with their mothers.

•Families Under Slavery•Families Under Slavery

• They married, though their marriages were not legally recognized.

• They married, though their marriages were not legally recognized.

Families Under Slavery

Parents often lived on other plantations, and sometimes stole away to visit their children,

even at the cost of a whipping.

Parents often lived on other plantations, and sometimes stole away to visit their children,

even at the cost of a whipping.

A ask B: What was the cruelest part of slavery?

A ask B: What was the cruelest part of slavery?

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

• The cruelest part of slavery was the selling of family members away from one another.

Slave RebellionsSlave Rebellions

• Occasionally, slaves rose up in rebellion against their white masters.

• Gabriel Prosser planned an attack on Richmond, Virginia, in 1800.

Slave Rebellions• In 1822, a free minister

named Denmark Vesey planned a revolt in Charleston, South Carolina.

• His plot to liberate several thousand slaves was discovered, and he was hanged along with more than 30 others

The Nat Turner RebellionThe Nat Turner Rebellion

• Nat Turner was a slave preacher who could read.

• Turner believed that God wanted him to free the slaves, even if by armed rebellion.

The Nat Turner Rebellion• In Virginia in 1831, Turner and 70 followers

killed 55 white men, women, and children.

• In Virginia in 1831, Turner and 70 followers killed 55 white men, women, and children.

• When Turner was caught, he was tried and hanged.

• Turner’s rebellion spread fear in the South. • Whites killed more than 200 African

Americans in revenge.

Southern states passed harsh laws.• Free blacks and slaves could not own weapons or

buy liquor.• Slaves were required to

carry a pass any time they were away from white supervision.

• Slaves could not hold religious services unless whites were present.

• After Turner’s rebellion, the grip of slavery grew even tighter in the South

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

• Be sure to re-state the question in your response!

A ask B: How did enslaved people resist

slavery?

Enslaved people resisted slavery by putting coded

antislavery messages into their spirituals,

making secret visits to family members,

escaping to the North, or participating in

rebellions.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

B ask A: What did Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vesey, and Nat Turner

have in common?

B ask A: What did Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vesey, and Nat Turner

have in common?

Prosser, Vesey, and Turner were all hanged for trying to lead slave

rebellions.

Prosser, Vesey, and Turner were all hanged for trying to lead slave

rebellions.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding

A ask B: How did Turner’s rebellion

change life for Southern blacks?

A ask B: How did Turner’s rebellion

change life for Southern blacks?

States passed laws that kept free blacks

and slaves from having weapons or

buying liquor.Slaves could not hold

religious services unless whites were

present.Slaves had to a have a written pass any time

they moved about without white supervision.

•Check for Understanding•Check for Understanding