Sectionalism In The 1800s

Between Constitutional ratification and southern secession, the United States increasingly developed sectional tensions between North and South. Regional differences and territorial expansion created the conflict of interests between the states. Proslavery southern and antislavery northern states envisioned their economical and political future in different ways. The question of slavery during the westward expansion was decisive for politics of both sides because more slave states would create voting advantages for the slaveholding states in the Congress. Northwestern territories were occupied by the new settlers from New England who established urbanized culture and infrastructure in Upstate New York and the Upper Northwest. New settlers in the Lower South organized farms and plantations to develop agricultural sector. Slavery was the main labor force in the South. With technological and transportation development, it became easier to migrate in the search of new territories. In the first half of the nineteenth century, the North supported industrialization and manufacturing, while the South was mostly focused on the agricultural development. The whole economy of the southern states depended largely on the cotton production. For many years, the issues of slavery, human rights and racial inequality were the main topics for discussion by people, and the expansion of borders in the beginning of the nineteenth century intensified discussions around these questions. The

The Civil War in America led to many bloodshed battles and brought dispute between the the two sides-North and South-of the country. The North were anti-slavery, while the South supported the idea of having someone work for them. As many lands were bought to expand the country, sectionalism increased. Sectionalism is showing exaggerated loyalty to a particular country or region. As more states began to form, the South wanted many to be on their side, while North opposed. Big purchases, such as the Louisiana Purchase, Annexation of Texas, and the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo played key roles as to why expansion contributed to the idea of sectionalism. In conclusion, the two sides wanted more people on their side so if the war does occur, they

America was founded by multiple states, from different regions and subsequently different styles of life, which made the possibility of their union unstable and uncertain. But, because they were united by a common goal- to break free of Britain’s despotic sovereignty- the American colonies were able to win their independence from Britain and become the United States of America. This dichotomy between the states’ different styles of life and their shared goal laid the foundation for the forces of nationalism and sectionalism in the US. The two opposing forces worked hand-in-hand to manipulate Americans’ views of one another and the American political and economic systems, though the force of sectionalism outweighed the force of nationalism

Those who had moved westward toward the frontier also did not entirely approve of the national bank, for they looked far a way of easy credit, which was in the form of state banks. The westernmost and southernmost states were entirely based on agriculture, while the states toward the north-east coast were based on an industrial economy. The Protective Tariff of 1816 caused disagreements between these two sections of the United States, for the Tariff unfairly benefitted the manufacturers of the North-East.

The United States during the 1800s became primarily divided into two sections classified as North and South. In the early years of the 19th century, the market revolution advanced technology and industrialization in America, but impacted the north drastically while the south continued to promote agricultural society. The debate over slavery then became the leading cause to the sectionalism formed in America because most Northerners were opposed to the idea of slavery while many southerners used slaves to maintain economic stability. Sectionalism in the United States was a fundamental cause of the Civil War because of disputes over territorial expansion and increases in physical violence.

After Independence from Britain, the southern and northern sections of the United States began to separate as they aged, mainly due to conflicts of interests. Even during the creation of the Unites States constitution, the founding fathers debated slavery. Slaves were considered 3/5ths of a person when regarding representation based on population. This lessened the amount of seats southern states would hold in the House of Representatives, lessening their influence on political matters before the civil war. The Northerners had a heavier influence on laws, leading to the passage of laws in their favor. The Northern section of the United States of America became focused on manufacturing while the southern sections became dependent on agriculture, mainly cash crops harvested by slave labor. Although the States rights versus Federal rights conflict played a role in the cause of the Civil War, a major contributing factor was the institution of slavery and how it should be implemented in the United States.

The conflict between the ideas of nationalism and sectionalism came in part from the practice of slavery. In the Missouri Compromise is a key example of this the Missouri compromise Set boundaries

A sense of unity filled the United States of America after they gained independence by winning the Revolutionary War. This sense of unity, however, did not last forever. Rather than having disputes with Britain, the United States began to have disputes among its three "sections" - the north, south, and west. Starting with the War of 1812, sectionalism began as a small rift but grew into a huge gap that separated the north, south, and west.

During the early 1800’s in the United States of America, both the Early Industrial Revolution and the Westward Expansion contributed to the sectional tension between the North and the South. While the North had factories popping up everywhere, the South had more and more land dedicated to plantations. To stay at the pace of the North, the South decided it would be beneficial if they were to become their cotton suppliers. With the invention of the cotton gin, cotton was being mass-produced and sent to the North to be made into items such as clothing. Whilst this was going on, the point of slavery became a big issue and the debate over it began, dividing the North and South more and more over time. The North didn't support slavery and instead, hired workers to work in the factories (specifically low-wage woman), while the South supported slavery and used African slaves to work on plantations. This caused many problems as both sides wanted more land to promote their opinion on slavery for either plantations or factories. Due to each of the sides having contradictory points of view on slavery, the Missouri Compromise and the addition of other territories such as during the Louisiana Purchase, the Oregon Treaty, and the Annexation of Texas, much strife occurred in the Senate. The Westward Expansion led to the desire for more land, therefore the United States expanded their land from the East coast to the West coast. The Westward Expansion promoted the addition of new land and

For example, there was a high tariff placed on foreign goods. This was beneficial for the north because it increased the chances of Americans purchasing the goods produced in their factories. However, this was disadvantageous for the south. Since slaves were viewed as objects, imported slaves were considered imported goods and were sold with high tariffs attached to them. The three regions were becoming more sectionalist because they were becoming increasing concerned with problems facing their own area, and not the country as a whole. The sectionalism that emerged during this time period did so within a short period of time. This is easy to see in the election maps of 1820 and 1824. Within these four years, the United States went from being uniformly supportive of one candidate (Monroe in 1820), to having support for several candidates. While much of the south was in support of Andrew Jackson, the first president who did not have a formal education and supported the “common man”, much of the north backed John Q. Adams, the eventual winner. These maps illustrate the regional differences that eventually led to the lack of a majority vote. Sectionalism became quite prominent with the emergence of different factions within the Republican Party and eventually the creation of new parties. Each region was sectionalist in that they voted for the candidate who would be the best advocate for their area, rather than leader for their country.

The North and South often disagreed with each other. They did not get along and they were often stubborn when it came to making decisions as a nation. In the North were the Federalists and in the South were the Republicans, the nation seperated by political parties. The North and South argued on topics such as the national bank, what started the war of 1812, and the Missouri compromise dealing with slavery. The National Bank was one of the earlier problems between the North and the South.

Sectionalism was a big problem after the War of 1812. According to document 1, Congress should only have power to regulate commerce, and not raise taxes to raise revenue. It basically shows the economic differences between the two regions; northern factories vs. southern farmers. It shows how farmers are becoming poor while manufacturers are becoming wealthy. The Tariff of Abominations was laid to protect northern industries in the US, which were being driven out of business by low-priced imported goods. The Tariff of 1816 however protected the American manufacturing from British competition. The map in document 5, illustrates that the population was greater in the northeast than the south and west. Also, the population in the north was because of industry and immigration. The west was still being settled down. Henry Clay’s, American System, was the most historically significant examples of a government-sponsored program to balance the nations agriculture, commerce, and industry. It reinforced a tariff to protect and promote American industry. This is why the north had much more population because it was industrialized. In document 2, John C. Calhoun tells us that rapid industrialization would lead to the division of the North, South, and West. Building more roads and canals, methods of transportation, would encourage offsetting disunion. He fears sectionalism but thinks that binding the regions would bring nationalism. The American System, reinforced

In the early years of the 19th century, slavery was more than ever turning into a sectional concern, such that the nation had essentially become divided along regional lines. Based on economic or moral reasoning, people of the Northern states were increasingly in support of opposition to slavery, all the while Southerners became united to defend the institution of slavery. Brought on by profound changes including regional differences in the pattern of slavery in the upper and lower South, as well as the movement of abolitionism in the North, slavery in America had transformed from an issue of politics into a moral campaign during the period of 1815-1860, ultimately polarizing the North and the South to the point in which threats of a Southern disunion would mark the beginning of the Civil War in 1861 (Goldfield et. al, The American Journey, p. 281).

Southerners held agreed with many of Jefferson's views. The Anti-Feds and Republicans believed in strict interpretation of the constitution, peaceful foreign relations, and a reduction of the role of the federal government in the lives of average citizens. They were opposed to a strong central government and felt states should hold the power to govern. The Federalists believed that the constitution should be loosely interpreted and that America should follow the spirit of it to make laws and judgments. Federalists wanted to organize the states so a strong federal power could govern over them in order to keep enough power for the economy, war and ruling. Many were opposed to this form of government because it so closely mimicked that of Great Britain. Between these two diverse groups, their followers split the nation. The United States was geographically split North from South. The North was home of manufacturers and industry. Farming was not the North's economic base as was manufacturing. Crops would not grow year around due to freezing weather; therefore slaves were of no need during off-seasons in farming. Here, it was not economically safe or resourceful to own slaves, because of the fact that they were expensive to acquire and maintain. Since slaves were mostly used in manual labor, their use in the North was almost nonexistent. Blacks were not used in factories

For the longest time in history states were always separated by their beliefs, some wanted slavery to exist and others didn’t so they split them up. The ones in the North did not feel slavery was useful to them while in the South they were the complete opposite, they wanted slavery to be around since people would work for free. The author Bruce Levine wrote the novel Half Slave and Half Free to inform the transformation throughout history and show us the differences between the two sections (North and South) and how their issues eventually brought us up to the civil war that almost tore America apart.