The Effect of the Expansion of Cotton Culture on Slave and Native American Population

Overview: To understand the effect of the expansion of cotton culture on slave population.
Intro: Cotton was a profitable crop, but was not grown on a large scale because of the slow and difficult process of removing seeds from cotton bolls in order to produce a usable fiber. Plantation owners determined slave labor was needed to operate the southern plantations. It took a great deal of labor to plant, tend, and pick the cotton. Even more work was required to separate the seeds from the fibers and then to bale the cotton fibers. Planters bought slaves to do the labor. The invention of cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 changed this situation. Cotton culture expanded, as did slave populations. The effect of the cotton expansion improved production and slave population all across the South.

I: Cotton Production Increases. A. After the cotton gin was invented, cotton production increased tremendously. 1. In 1790, America produced 1,500 pounds of cotton. By 1800, production had increased to 35,000 pounds. By 1815, production had reached 100,000 pounds. In 1848, production exceeded 1,000,000 pounds.
II: Slave Population Increases A. At the same time cotton production increased, slave population increased. 1. Slavery spread across the Deep South. In 1790, the slave population was concentrated in Virginia on the tobacco plantations and along the coast of South Carolina and Georgia on the rice plantations. In 1820, slavery had spread westward to Mississippi. By the Civil War, about 4 million slaves lived in the South. 2. Slaves now labored on ever-larger plantations where work was more regimented and relentless. As large plantations spread into the Southwest, the price of slaves and land inhibited the growth of cities and industries. In the 1850s seven-eighths of all immigrants settled in the North, where they found 72% of the nation's manufacturing capacity. The growth of the "peculiar institution" was affecting many aspects of Southern life. III: Native American Population Decreases. A. As cotton became a beneficial cash crop, farmers required more land for the cotton to grow. 1. Native Americans were driven of their land by farmers. Conclusion: Cotton was a profitable crop, but was not grown on a large scale because of the slow and difficult process of removing seeds from cotton bolls in order to produce a usable fiber. Slave labor was needed to operate the southern plantations. This was also true for the cotton plantations. It took a great deal of labor to plant, tend, and pick the cotton. Even more work was required to separate the seeds from the fibers and then to bale the cotton fibers. Planters bought slaves to do the labor. The invention of cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 changed this situation. As cotton culture expanded, slave populations increased tremendously. The effect of the cotton expansion improved production and slave population all across the South.