When comparing the North and the South in the antebellum period, you must consider the differences in the main areas: climate, geography, population , cities, economy, culture and transport. The South has a generally warm and sunny climate, with long, hot, humid summers and mild winters with heavy precipitation. Additionally, the soil is abundant, rich and full of nutrients. These characteristics make the climate of the South ideal for large-scale agriculture and the ability to grow many different crops in large quantities. Geographically, the Southeast is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and has many wide, slow-moving navigable rivers. Cities developed along these rivers and as ports (for ships) along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The Atlantic Coastal Plain is an area of ​​fertile, rich soils and wetlands. To the west of the Atlantic Coast Plain is the Piedmont, another region of good agricultural and forest land. The population of the South consisted of Europeans (mostly of English and Scots-Irish origin) and enslaved Africans. In 1860, there were 4 million slaves in the American South, making the United States the largest slave republic in the world. In other words, the total population of the South reached 12 million, a third of whom were slaves. The South was a predominantly agricultural region, made up mostly of farmers. Most farmers lived in the hinterland (far from major cities) on medium-sized farms, while a small number of planters operated large farms or plantations. Only a quarter of the population of the South owned slaves, and most of these were planters who owned only a small number of slaves. The rest of the population consisted of independent (non-slaveholding) white farmers, tenant farmers (who rented land and paid landowners in crops or money), laborers, or frontier families who settled in the area for cheap land. As noted, most Southerners lived on scattered farms along the coastal plains (near the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico), as well as small farmers in the hinterlands. As the economy was based on agriculture, industries and cities grew at a slower rate than in the North. There were many small towns along the banks of rivers and coasts. Only a few large cities developed as commercial centers in the South (New Orleans, for example), but they were few in number and smaller than in the North. The plantations were so large and so far apart that they became almost self-sufficient, like small towns. Because the South's economy was based on agriculture, crops such as cotton, tobacco, rice, sugar cane, and indigo (a type of dye) were grown in large quantities. These crops were known as "cash crops", which were not grown for use by the farmer, but to be sold or exported for profit. They were raised in large numbers on large farms, known as plantations, which were maintained by slave labor. After Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in 1793, cotton became the “king” of the Southern economy. The cotton gin was a machine that separated the seed from the cotton fiber much more quickly than by hand. This increased thevalue of each slave and made slavery more profitable. To clear land and grow cotton, southerners began to rely increasingly on slave labor. Slavery was essential to the prosperity of the Southern economy. Thus, slavery and the cotton industry began to grow rapidly, spreading into many parts of the South. In 1793, Southern farmers produced about 10,000 bales of cotton, but by 1835, thanks to cotton ginning and the increased use of slaves, they were producing more than 1,000,000 bales. By the mid-1800s, cotton exports accounted for two-thirds of the total value of U.S. exports. As the South had few manufacturing industries, Southerners wanted cheap imports or goods from abroad. Likewise, because they themselves exported most of their cotton and tobacco overseas, most Southerners believed that high tariffs, or taxes on imported goods, would scare off foreign markets that bought their crops. For these reasons, the South was against tariffs. Culture and life in the South revolved around the small, wealthy planter class and the agricultural system they controlled. Planters belonged to the aristocracy, or upper class, of the South. They lived like the gentlemen of the countryside of England and directed the political and economic life of the South. Plantations were far apart and developed their own communities, much like small towns. Recreational activities included activities such as fox hunting, dancing, horse racing, and watching dog or chicken fights. There were few schools or churches in the South, because neither education nor religion was very organized. The most educated were often the sons of wealthy planters. On plantations there were sometimes small schools, and planters often hired private tutors for each of their children until they were sent to private schools. Small farmers had little or no education. Long-distance transportation methods, such as steamboats and railroads, affected the South because products could more easily be sold to more distant markets using them. By 1860, approximately 10,000 miles of railroads stretched across the Southern states. Although this was enough to more easily sell the South's crops, the railroad system was still not as extensive as the North's. Meanwhile, hundreds of steamboats transported crops from the South to the North and to European markets. When comparing the North and the South before the war, one must take into account the differences in the main areas: climate, geography, population, cities, economy, culture and transportation. The North has a climate characterized by hot summers and cold, snowy winters. Geographically, the terrain is rocky and hilly, making the soil poor for agriculture. These conditions, coupled with a short growing season, made farming difficult. As a result, most Northern farms were "subsistence" farms, or personal farms where farmers grew food or supplies for themselves or their families. Most of the forest consisted of trees intended for shipbuilding. There are many sheltered bays and coves on the Atlantic coast. Colonists discovered that ships could sail along wide rivers to many of these bays. Most rivers are fast, shallow and difficult to navigate. At some point, called.