The Creation And Maintenance Of An American Colonial Slave Society And Culture Essay

Slavery mostly started with the capture of prisoners from African raids, wars and uprising against colonialism. These prisoners were sold to white traders who would transport them across the Atlantic Ocean to colonial America. Once in America, the slaves were auctioned and sold to the highest bidder at various trading centers. The first slaves were considered as indenture servants who were treated with some dignity and even set free after their term of service, usually three to seven years, was over. Some of these indenture servants eventually went on to become landowners, business men and paradoxically, became slave owners themselves.
Colonial America had a poor labor resource and hence slavery became a very crucial economic activity with slave prices going higher with the economic progression of America. Slavery was now regarded as a lifelong service because it was necessary and paramount to the economic growth that was taking shape especially in the tobacco industry. Tobacco growth and processing was very labor intensive adding to the fact that the colonials had huge tracts of viable land which needed to be tended to. The much needed labor could only come from one source, slaves.
After the American Revolution slaves were still considered an important source of cheap and reliable labor and after the Civil War and the end of international slave trade, the number of slaves was limited because slaves could not be imported so the ones that were already in the United States became even more valuable. Slave owners depended on trade and natural reproduction to get more slaves to work on the now booming cotton business thanks to the industrial revolution that was taking place.
Domestic slave trade was then considered an important economic activity that was largely taking root in the south where cotton plantations were doing so well. Slave masters used to sell their surplus slaves to slave traders or nearby plantation owners. Slave trade was very much profitable as all the slaves were given was food, shelter and clothing. The cost of maintaining them was relatively low as compared to the revenues they were generating from their extensive labor. Also cotton prices and those of other cash crops were steadily on the rise with comparison to almost constant expenses of maintaining slaves. Thus the slave society and culture was inculcated into the new United States proving to be a key economical activity that well established the economy of the south and the whole country in general.