Slavery and Its Impact on American History, Research Paper Example

Slavery had a tremendous impact on the history of the United States. Slavery was one of the chief causes of early economic prosperity, and one of the most important causes behind the Civil War. Slavery’s impact is still felt today as, arguably, the U.S. is still to come to terms with its past. Overall, slavery is one of the most important aspects of history in the United States.

While slavery in the early colonial south was always important, there were profound changes to slavery between 1815 and 1860. Firstly, the development of the cotton gin in 1793 reinvigorated slave agriculture in the South (Pierson 25). As the demand for export cotton increased so to did the demand for slaves. Between 1915 and 1850 the number of slaves in the South increased from 700,000 to an estimated 3.2 million (Smith 82). The increase in the number of slaves alone was to dramatically change the way the practise was viewed throughout the Union.

Slavery had a cultural and economic significance to the Old South, and it was this importance that, arguably, led to the most important and divisive event in U.S. history: the Civil War. War came because there was conflict over the expansion of slavery into the new opened western territories. Many in the north wanted to keep these new states free, while many in the south wanted to export slavery into the new territories. War soon followed as the disagreement expanded into arguments concerning state versus federal rights of governance. However, the slavery issue touched on every point of contention; consequently, it had a tremendous impact on American History.

Overall, slavery has had a tremendous impact on the history of the United States. It was the chief cause of the Civil War, yet it was also one of the reasons the early colonies succeeded economically where so many others failed. Overall, slavery and issues of race are still important today. Consequently, slavery is one of the most important issues in U.S. history.