It was July 4th 1776 and the very young United States had just signed the Declaration of Independence, giving their people freedom from the mother country Great Britain. Colonial families filled the streets of Philadelphia releasing joyous cheers into the sky, and celebrating their new independence. That day in history the United States was born. A great land where opportunities exceeded losses, where every man was created equal, and no matter who the person was if they were willing to work hard enough anything they wanted could be theirs. Sure that all sounded good, but who really did this young country appeal to? We all know that early American life did not treat all men equally. In fact, wealth, politics, and land ownership in early America came only to males. Women had no real freedoms. This new independence was limited to propertied white males, all others were excluded. During this landmark time in history a great nation was born, however during this time there was a great deal of conflict among the American people. Most of the southern states relied on slaves to farm the plantation fields, many northerners greatly disapproved, an issue that would eventually bring the United States to war. In this paper I will explain how slavery as a system and an institution conditioned the lives of both slaves as well as the master class.
Much of early American's economy came from agriculture. During the 18th and 19th centuries before industrialization there was no such thing as assembly lines, or manufacturing companies at least not what there like today, the only way to make a living was through farming. Because of harsh winters the northern states were limited to the type and time required to grow crops. However the southern state's climate made it possible to grow cash crops such as cotton, tobacco, rice, sugar, and hemp. Before the invention of the tractor and other machinery used in today's farming the plantation owner relied on salves to do the work.
