The Civil War changed America. It is one of the lower points in American history. While the change that this war brought to America cannot be disputed, there is a question as to its economic impact. Many numbers suggest that the Civil War, while it affected both Northern and Southern states, brought utter ruin upon the Confederate states. This war brought an end to slavery and razed much of the farmland and what little industry the South was dependant upon. However, the Civil War was not the end that it could have been for the South. Throughout this paper, I will discuss how the American Civil War caused mass inflation, a drop in Gross Domestic Product, and an all-around drop in economic growth for both Union and Confederate states. While it may be common knowledge that the war hurt the United States in many ways, some believe the war eventually led to the American Industrial Revolution which would make America the World Leader it is today. However, with this paper, I will show that while the war did cause many advances in both the Northern and Southern states, the war had a much more negative effect on the economy than many may believe.
             During the decade preceding the American Civil War, both the Northern and Southern states were experiencing remarkable economic advances. The expansion of the railways allowed the formation of a national system of communication. The railways also made the settlements of the western prairie states that much easier. Foreign commerce was unprecedented and immigration was increasing at a steady rate. These factors along with newly discovered mineral resources caused quite a boom in the iron and textile industries of the North. During the ten years preceding the Civil War, these Northern industries grew by two-thirds. Southern states were also growing at an astonishing rate in the years preceding the Civil War. Agricultural areas increased eighty percent and the value of farms rose two hundred and sev...