8th Grade Am. History Ch. 11 Sec. 3
How did life for free blacks in the South compare with life for free blacks in the North?
Free blacks in the North - some could vote & go to school Free blacks in the South - could not vote or go to school Both faced discrimination in employment
What was the impact of the Cotton Boom?
Increased wealth for planters, bankers, & ship owners; Plantation owners began to dominate southern society, and slavery began to spread into territories outside the "old South".
How did enslaved African Americans adapt to slavery and resist it?
Many found support in the Bible, African customs, & music; some worked slowly & badly on purpose; some turned to violence; and some escaped.
Why was there an increased demand for cotton?
The Industrial Revolution led to a growth in textiles.
How did cotton affect the social and economic life of the South?
The invention of the cotton gin made growing cotton more profitable, resulting in need for more workers & increasing the South's dependence on slavery.
What was the purpose of restrictions on free blacks in the South?
White southerners did not want free African Americans to have equal rights because white people wanted to stay in power.
How did the cotton gin make growing cotton more profitable?
Workers could process fifty times more cotton with the gin than by hand.
What was one way for an enslaved person to gain freedom?
purchase it
Why did slave codes make it illegal to teach enslaved workers?
Slave owners felt that they had more control over their slaves if the slaves were illiterate.
Why did cotton production and the number of slaves in the U.S. both increase at the same time?
Having more slaves allowed southern plantation owners to produce more cotton.
How widespread was slave ownership?
Fewer than half of white southerns owned slaves.
Why did most southern white people support slavery even though many of them did not own slaves?
Feared slave uprisings & violence; felt superior to enslaved people; resented the interference of the North; and believed that enslaved workers were better off than northern factory workers.
