The South

The South

Southern States

Capitals
Arkansas Little Rock
Louisiana Baton Rouge
Kentucky Frankfort
Tennessee Nashville
Mississippi - Jackson
Alabama Montgomery
Virginia Richmond
North Carolina Raleigh
South Carolina Columbia
Georgia Atlanta
Florida - Tallahassee

General characteristics

Because of its warm

climate and rich soil,
the South economy is
based on export crops
like cotton.

These crops were

grown on farms worked
by slaves from Africa.

General characteristics

In the last few

decades, the South
has become more
industrial and urban.

Some parts of the

South are among the
fastest growing areas
in the country.

General characteristics

The South also

preserves its
traditions good
cooking and
slower, more
hospitable way of
life.

The South Before the Civil

War

Souths economy
depends on agriculture.

It produced and
exported rice, sugar
and especially cotton.

The South felt no need

to develop factories,
and it remained rural.

New Orleans was its

only large city.

Slavery

Slavery was the basis for

the Souths economy. It
was what made the
South different from the
rest of the country.

Crops were grown on

plantations which
required large labor
force.

For this, the old South

depended on slaves
brought from Africa.

Slavery

Slaves lives differed

greatly, depending on
their masters.

They had no control

over their lives.

They worked for long

hours and received
insufficient food,
clothing and shelter.

Slavery

Slaves were able to

survive because
they developed a
strong culture which
combined African
and American
elements.

Songs, stories,
religion, community

Whites

Very few whites

lived the elegant life
on plantations.

Most whites were

small farmers who
did not own any
slaves.

The North and the South

For a long time the North

and the South developed
differently, but without
conflicts.

The conflicts began when

the nation started
expanding west.

Southern states said that

the new areas should allow
slavery. Northern states
disagreed.

They were not able to

reach a compromise.

The Civil War (1861 1865)

The War

The conflicts worsened

and the Southern states
seceded from the Union
and formed a new
nation: the Confederate
States of America.

The Northern states

refused to accept this.

War was inevitable.

The War

The war lasted four years.

More Americans died in this

war than in all other wars
combined.

The North had advantages

over the South: larger
population, factories and
banks.

But it also had disadvantages:

the more difficult task conquest rather than defense,
and the best military leaders
were from the South.

Effects of the War

The South was

devastated.

The end of slavery:

black Americans were
made citizens and were
given the right to vote.

The nations economy

was transformed: more
factories and better
transportation system.

Civil Rights in the South

The Rise of Segregation

The Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments (18651870) ended slavery, made blacks citizens, and gave black
Americans the right to vote.

But blacks did not become equal with the whites: they had no
property and racism was widespread.

Whites used violence against blacks: lynching and hangings

became common.

Southern states passed laws to keep blacks from voting.

By the early 20th century, all Southern states had laws imposing
segregation.

Segregation: blacks and whites were separated in schools, parks,

trains, hospitals and other public places.

The Rise of Segregation

The Civil Rights Movement

Gained strength in
the 1950s, after
WW2.

Rosa Parks

The Montgomery
bus boycott 1955

The Civil Rights Movement:

Martin Luther King, Jr. (19291968)

Minister of a Baptist
church

Advocated non-violent
protest: sit-ins, marches,
registration drives

Assassinated on April 4th

1968 in Memphis,
Tennessee

The Civil Rights Movement

Civil rights workers met with

violence: they were jailed,
beaten and even murdered.

By the mid-1960s, Congress

passed laws making
segregation and job
discrimination illegal and
strengthening voting rights.

The movement had achieved

many of its goals.

Nevertheless, these changes

were not enough. There was
still much discrimination and
prejudice.

The Mississippi River

The Mississippi River

The Indians called it the Father

of the Waters.

Its name means big water in

Algonkian Indian.

Its called the Big Ditch.

The Mississippi River is the

most important geographical
feature in the eastern US.

It runs 2300 miles from

Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico.

With its tributaries, the

Mississippi drains 31 states.

Early History

The Louisiana Purchase:

In 1803 the United States
bought the land between the
Mississippi and the Rocky
Mountains from the French.

This gave the US control of

the Mississippi and the ability
to expand west.

Many boats soon traveled

down the Mississippi,
bringing cotton and other
goods to New Orleans. But
the return trip was
impossible.

Steamboats

The steamboat New

Orleans was introduced
to the Mississippi in
1811.

It made a successful trip

from Pittsburgh to New
Orleans and back.

Steamboats were a great

success and became
large and luxurious.

Commerce and Memories

Today, the river is more

important than ever for
commerce. Boats carry
bulk cargo that trains
cannot transport.

The Mississippi is also

a river of history and
memories.

Steamboat from
Pittsburgh to New
Orleans still exists.

Mark Twains River

Mark Twain (18351910)

The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn

Elvis Presley

New Orleans

New Orleans
New

Orleans is an unusual American

city because its main business is
pleasure.

History

For a long time, New

Orleans was more like a city
of the French Caribbean
than of North America.

It was founded by the

French in 1718 and became
a part of the United States
in 1803.

New Orleans has taken

elements from many
cultures and created its
own unique culture.

Sightseeing

The French Quarter

(Vieux Carr) was
the original city of
New Orleans.

Unique system of
giving directions

Food

caf au lait with

beignets

boiled crawfish

Monday tradition: red beans and rice

gumbo

Music and Festivals

Jazz and blues

started in New
Orleans.

There are still

many jazz clubs on
Bourbon Street in
the French Quarter.

Music and Festivals

New Orleans Jazz and

Heritage Festival

Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday)

the citys most famous
festival. It takes place the
week before Lent. There are
many parades organized by
special groups, or krewes.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina
hit New Orleans on
29th August 2005.

The city has not

recovered yet.

Florida

Americas Vacationland

Walt Disney World

near Orlando, Florida
Disneys Magic
Kingdom

Disneys EPCOT Center

Kennedy Space
Center (Cape
Canaveral)

Ringling Brothers
and Barnum and
Bailey Circus
(Venice)

Sports

Baseball players
practice in Florida

Polo is played in
Palm Beach

St. Augustine
founded by
Spaniards the
oldest city in the US

Miami a lot of
Cubans settled here
after the Cuban
Revolution

Fort Lauderdale and

Daytona Beach are
favorite places for
college students on
their spring
vacation.

The Florida Keys a

series of coral and
limestone islands

Okefenokee Swamp

Okefenokee Swamp

The Okefenokee
Swamp is in Florida and
Georgia.

Okefenokee is an
Indian word for land of
trembling earth. It has
islands made of peat
decaying plant matter.
When stepped on,
these islands seem to
tremble underfoot.

Okefenokee Swamp

It provided a hiding
place for all sorts of
people: Indians fighting
back against the whites
who took their land,
escaped slaves, and
moonshiners.

Now Okefenokee
Wildlife Refuge provides
a home for many
endangered species.

Atlanta, Georgia

Capital of the New South

After WW2, the South

experienced rapid
industrialization and
economic growth.

No city grew more than

Atlanta.

Improved relations
between blacks and whites

Cultural center

Cosmopolitan, but has also

kept its Southern Charm