How Did The Civil War Affect The Economy

Economy played a crucial role in the start of the Civil War. When the Industrial Revolution started, it ignited the northern economy and caused a spike in the need for machines. One of these newly invented machines was the cotton gin, the engine cleaned as much cotton as fifty men in an hour. The cotton gin changed the southern economy from a tobacco industry to a cotton industry. Just as the cotton gin strengthened the southern economy the industrial revolution caused the north's economy to explode. The new wealth in the north scared the plantation owners in the south, because this would give the north more power. Increased power in the north would give them a larger say in the capitol which makes it easier for them to pass laws that

These immigrants came to the north as opposed to the south because of the opportunities the were brought by the factories. Since many jobs weren’t open to immigrants, and no one else would work hard in the factories and accept the low wage this was the job that newcomers were often left with. One of the few other opportunities open to them was mining in the west. Precious metals including gold, silver, and copper were discovered in California, Arizona, and a few other western states. California had also proven to be great for agriculture which threatened the south. The new western state of Texas was also a huge agriculture hub. These new states were also near the border of Mexico, this established a possibility of new trade routes. With trade items flowing in and out of the south west they were gaining wealth and therefore more power. The increase in economic power scared the south because this meant more power was being transferred to the new states. The added states were causing many imbalances in the government. As the new states declared whether or not they were a slave state, slave related laws become either easier or harder to pass. The economic power struggles were just the start of the problems

A key movement early on was warhawks. A group merchants in the north were fed up with England and wanted to declare war, because England was plundering the merchants’ ships. The north relied on these trade ships because their economy was based off importing. The south didn’t feel as strongly about the idea, because the sinking ships didn’t affect their agricultural economy. The south held most of the money and usually made most of the decisions. When the United States government declared war on England it made it seem that the north had more power than the south which shocked them. The education was the next to movement strike the north and shatter the south. This movement made public schools more popular and increased the level of education taught, which in turn made the northern population better educated. The north wasn’t just educating men though, they were also educating women and african americans. This was scaring the south because their economy heavily relied on the power imbalance of black slaves and white male plantation owners. Another place where the power imbalance due to race was being destroyed was in the utopian cities of the north. These “perfect” cities aspired to give everyone the same amazing life with no poverty, illness, and equality for all. Equality was something that women were constantly fighting for all over the north and west.