Oxford Historian On The 1619 Project: ‘A Preposterous And One-Dimensional Reading’ Of American History

Hotair.com ^ | 1-2-20 | John Sexton

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In 1860 eleven states in the South produced 5.3 million bales of cotton. The vast majority grown by slave labor. Cotton was the largest export of the United States. Banks in the North made big money supporting cotton agriculture with loans, insurance and shipping. The vast majority of railroads in the South were built and maintained by slave labor. Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond (3 largest iron works in U.S.) 40% of the work force were slaves. Up until 1860, slavery was a very important part of the Southern Economy. The North made plenty of money off of that cotton agriculture. That agriculture rested on slave labor.

A very selective reading of the facts.

The Southern railroads were virtually destroyed in the Civil war, and had to be rebuilt.

The Tregedar Iron works only introduced slave labor in 1847.

They were the only major iron works in the South.

They may have been the third largest in the nation, but the South, in total, produced about 10% of the industrial production of the North.

The non-slave north produced 92.5% of the total value of annual product in the country, in 1860, at the start of the war.

Yes, cotton was the primary export of the United States. It simply did not contribute all that much to the national economy. Most of the value was consumed by slaves and their owners.

The wealth of the South was primarily in Slaves. That wealth was destroyed in the Civil War.

From Industry and Economy During the Civil War The North, by contrast, was well on its way toward a commercial and manufacturing economy, which would have a direct impact on its war making ability. By 1860, 90 percent of the nation's manufacturing output came from northern states. The North produced 17 times more cotton and woolen textiles than the South, 30 times more leather goods, 20 times more pig iron, and 32 times more firearms. The North produced 3,200 firearms to every 100 produced in the South. Only about 40 percent of the Northern population was still engaged in agriculture by 1860, as compared to 84 percent of the South. Even in the agricultural sector, Northern farmers were out-producing their southern counterparts in several important areas, as Southern agriculture remained labor intensive while northern agriculture became increasingly mechanized. By 1860, the free states had nearly twice the value of farm machinery per acre and per farm worker as did the slave states, leading to increased productivity. As a result, in 1860, the Northern states produced half of the nation's corn, four-fifths of its wheat, and seven-eighths of its oats.

Slavery contributed little to the United States economy and growth. The wealth created by Slavery was primarily in producing more slaves.