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Leading to the Civil War

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Throughout history, wars started because of tension between two parties that blew up into full-fledged wars. At times, it is political tension caused by differences in political views. Other times, it is differences in the way they make money, economic disparities. It can even be social disputes that cause the war. The Civil War started because of confrontations about slavery between Northern and Southern United states. It was likewise caused by the different economic styles of the two halves of the country.

The North and South had almost opposite economic systems. The North was industrialized, with factories and sweatshops, whereas the South had an agricultural society, with farming and plantations, with cotton as their main crop. To further exacerbate this divide, in the 1830’s and 40’s, the North experienced the Industrial Revolution, a breakthrough of power-driven machinery. The Industrial Revolution quickened the pace of manufacturing and transportation. Faster production led to an increase in capital. As Document 1a proves, by 1860, most Northern states had a much higher value of manufacturing than the South.

In addition to being less industrialized, the South, as the map in Document 1c shows, had fewer railroads. Railroads were a means for transportation; the Northern states used it to transport goods to sell. Only major Southern cities boasted this luxury. Less railroads caused immobility of people as well as products, something important for the industrial

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