African Americans in the Civil War

In 1860, both the North and the South believed in slavery and white supremacy.  Although many northerners talked about keeping the federal territories free land, they wanted those territories free for white men to work and not compete against slavery.  The two parts of the country had two very different labor systems and slavery was the economic system of the South.  Its four million slaves were valued between three and four billion dollars, in 1860.       

The South seceded from the United States because they felt that their slave property was going to be taken away.  When reading the secession documents, the primary reason for secession was to protect their slave property and expand slavery. 

Source:

American Battlefield Trust

By Steward Henderson

October 27, 2020; Updated February 1, 2022

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/african-americans-civil-war