What Was The Difference Between Southern Economy Between 1815 And 1860

The United States became increasingly divided between 1815 and 1840. The northern states and southern states developed independently from each other. America was more sectionalist than nationalist because the north and south disagreed over slavery, states’ rights, and economic policy.
Perhaps the most obvious sectionalist issue was the conflict over slavery. Northern states were open to abolition, while southern states wanted nothing of the sort. Abolitionist literature such as William Lloyd Garrison’s The Liberator took a somewhat radical approach in protesting slavery. He called for immediate emancipation of all slaves in the United States. Some northerners agreed with Garrison’s approach, while others saw risk in releasing millions of slaves

In the north, the economy was very diverse. There were manufacturing jobs as well as agricultural jobs. Factories in the north could be seen manufacturing textiles, guns, and many other products that can be internally traded. Unlike southerners, northerners supported the construction of railroads to move their products across the U.S. Southerners had already been using water systems to move their crops and had no desire to change. Free labor and immigrants fueled their economy. The north contained over twice the population than the south, which contributed to the spread of ideas, and a diverse economy. The southern economy was mainly agricultural. By exporting mass amounts of cotton, the southern economy was able to thrive. Although profitable, with one source of economic gain, southerners relied heavily on northern states and foreign countries such as Britain to buy their cotton. This is why the south was opposed to the Tariff Act. The Tariff act put restrictions on exports, but promoted the northern internal economy. With a diverse economy, education became more important to northerners who had an array of jobs to choose from. Southerners were often illiterate and placed into the same farming jobs. Sectionalism was strengthened by the independent development of the northern and southern