American South (colonial and early national periods)

E4184

historical region region of the Thirteen Colonies region of the early United States

The American South (colonial and early national periods) refers to the Southern British colonies and early U.S. states from the 17th century through the early 19th century, characterized by plantation agriculture, slavery, and the region’s formative role in the American Revolution and the early republic.

Aliases (3)

Southern Colonies ×4
Southern backcountry of the American colonies ×1
antebellum United States ×1

Statements (76)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	historical region → region of the Thirteen Colonies → region of the early United States →
alsoKnownAs	Southern British colonies → early American South →
conflictInvolved	American Revolutionary War → French and Indian War (Seven Years’ War in North America) → War of 1812 → Yamasee War →
constitutionalIssue	Three-Fifths Compromise → slave trade clause in the U.S. Constitution →
culturalInfluence	African cultural traditions → English colonial culture → Native American cultures →
demographicFeature	high proportion of enslaved people in coastal lowcountry → rapid growth of enslaved population after 1700 →
dominantDenomination	Anglicanism → Baptist churches → Methodist churches →
dominantReligion	Protestantism →
economicRelationship	Atlantic slave trade → British mercantilist system →
economicTransition	rise of cotton economy after invention of the cotton gin →
followedBy	Antebellum South →
geographicFeature	Atlantic coastal plain → Mississippi River valley → Piedmont region →
governedBy	British colonial governors (before independence) → state governments of the early United States →
hasEconomicBase	export-oriented cash crops → plantation agriculture →
hasSocialStructure	large enslaved population → limited urbanization → planter elite dominance → small yeoman farmer class →
hasTemporalExtent	17th century → 18th century → early 19th century →
ideologicalDebate	slavery and natural rights → slavery and republicanism →
includesTerritory	Alabama → Georgia → Kentucky → Louisiana → Maryland → Mississippi → North Carolina → South Carolina → Tennessee → Virginia →
inventionImpact	Eli Whitney’s cotton gin →
keyEventRole	American Revolution → American War of Independence → formation of the early American republic → ratification debates over the U.S. Constitution →
laborSystem	indentured servitude → race-based chattel slavery →
legalFramework	Black codes (early forms) → slave codes →
majorCashCrop	cotton → indigo → rice → tobacco →
migrationPattern	forced migration of enslaved people to the cotton frontier → westward expansion into the interior South →
partOf	British America → United States →
politicalOrientation	agrarian republicanism → states’ rights ideology (early national period) →
precededBy	pre-contact Indigenous societies of the Southeast →
producedLeader	George Washington → James Madison → James Monroe → Thomas Jefferson →
reliesOn	African American slave labor → enslaved Africans →

Referenced by (7)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
Province of South Carolina ("Southern Colonies") → Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War ("Southern Colonies") →	locatedIn
Patriot (American Revolution) ("Southern Colonies") →	basedIn
Middle Colonies ("Southern Colonies") →	borderedBy
American South (19th and early 20th centuries) →	precededBy
Battle of Kings Mountain ("Southern backcountry of the American colonies") →	region
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave ("antebellum United States") →	timePeriod