John Hope Franklin's "The Free Negro in North Carolina, 1790-1860", written in 1943, examines the growth, legal status, and economic and social life of the free Negro in North Carolina. Franklin's purpose was to clarify and explain the status of the free Negro in North Carolina...

When the states united to form a national government, they could not envision the far-reaching changes that would overtake the continent in the next 100 years. The seeds sown in colonial times resulted in cultures of people as different as the landscapes they inhabited. This and the incre...

In early America, the southern states quickly realized that crops such as tobacco and cotton were very much in demand. The land and climate were excellent for the growth of these crops and slave labor was perfectly suited for the jobs. Most importantly to the growers, slave labor was very cheap. ...

In the beginning, slavery was a very profitable commodity, but it was no more than that. Slavery was no more about human rights than the sugar trade was. It was categorized in trade with gold, iron, ivory and textiles and dismissed just as easily. However, as time passed, morals and ideals changed a...

How Economy Differences between the North and the South and the Pattern of Railroad Construction Fed Sectional Tensions before the Civil War. As the U.S. economy advanced and grew in size, each region of the country developed its own characteristics. The move toward industry made the regional di...

The first half of the nineteenth century saw rapid growth due to plentiful natural resources at the disposal of the country. The land person ration made food production sufficient to provide for much larger families and this led to a population explosion. The endless supply of wood for construction...

Slavery in the United States began in 1619 when slaves were imported from Africa to Jamestown, Virginia. The reason for importing black slaves from Africa was because, in some places, having Indians as slaves was illegal, but mostly because it was more difficult for the African slaves torun away. On...

Slavery played an important role in the economic growth of a young America. "It grew like a cancer, at first slowly, almost imperceptibly, then inexorably, as colonists eager for material gain imported hundreds of thousands of Africans to toil in their fields (Kolchin, 4)." Although eco...

The constitutional issues that pushed the civil war to happen were because of a big population growth; it caused many problems. Various sections of the country were divided by different economies and different ways of life. This gave rise to serious differences of opinion about the proper role of t...

The 17th century was an altering time in history. Britain's population had grown to an unmanageable amount and the poverty and unemployment were at an all time high. The poor needed a second chance in life. The word spread around Britain about a "New World" offering this second cha...

Despite the horror of the word slavery we have to admit that slaves have played a big role in rising big empires. For example the Egyptians used slaves to build their majestic pyramids, the Chinese and Indian used slaves for large-scale construction and agricultural and the Hebrews also used slave...

In Barbados and Jamaica (the sugar islands) sugar was a major crop. The owners of these sugar plantations were badly in need of laborers to work for them year round, and because the natives died off so speedily, they needed to bring in someone to do the grueling tasks for them. They tried to use ind...

During the Civil War, the country underwent tremendous transformation politically and economically. Republican politics played a major role in stimulating the economic growth of the North and the West. Six events that happened during the Civil War helped the country undergo these political and econ...

What is a slave? A slave is a tool, a total servant, and a possession. Being a possession, a slave is required to total obedience to a master who has the power to do anything to a slave. The so-called "freeman" really is a slave. Freedom means, to carry out ones own choices, actions wi...

The Life of Olaudah Equiano Olaudah Equiano was a figure in history that made a large impact on many people during his time and still on ours. He created an uprising for many anti-slavery advocates. He brought out many things that were not visible to the people that did not know how slaves wer...

Abraham Lincoln was assuredly one of the greatest presidents in American history. This is demonstrated by his persistence and determination, his effective administration during the Civil War, the creation of policies that benefited everyone in the United States, and the efforts that kept the United...

The extent to which the debate over slavery was not really about black people but about whites can be seen politically, socially, religiously and economically. Slavery affecting politics is demonstrated politically in the Lincoln-Douglas debates. The real arguments were over which side, the nor...

Abraham Lincoln was assuredly one of the greatest presidents in American history. This is demonstrated by his persistence and determination, his effective administration during the Civil War, the creation of policies that benefited everyone in the United States, and the efforts that kept the United ...