Did cultural differences cause the Civil War ?

[Wiregrass Willie]

I never was very good at book reports. But I really think a lot of
people interested in the Civil War would enjoy this new book.

American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of
North America ----- by Colin Woodard 2011

This is the best single book I ever read that deals with the cultural
differences that may have caused the Civil War. I've read dozens of
books in the past six years in order to answer one question for
myself. That was:

"Why did my ancestors support the CSA and fight and die for the large
slave owners."

Mr Woodard has pretty much summed it up in one book. Most people
make a mistake (in my view) is trying to point out the differences
between the North and South of 1861. Woodard does not make that
mistake.

According to him, there had always been about six overlapping
cultural nations that comprised the USA in that year. Yankeedom,
the Midlands, New Netherlands, Appalachia, the Tidewater and the Deep
South.

Yankeedom and the Deep South were the extremes. The other four were a
mix.

The eleven nations of Colin Woodards America can be seen here:

http://www.colinwoodard.com/americannations.html

Out of the books 28 chapters, four summed up what I wanted to know.
Chapters 4, 7, 9 and 21.

They are entitled -- Founding Tidewater, Founding the Deep South,
Founding Greater Appalachia and War for the West.

[Hugh Lawson]

Wiregrass Willie <wiregrass_...@yahoo.com> writes:


> I've read dozens of
> books in the past six years in order to answer one question for
> myself. That was:
>
> "Why did my ancestors support the CSA and fight and die for the large
> slave owners."

Suppose the question is rephrased.

Why not rephrase it, say like this.

Q. Why did Willie's ancestors fight for a government that meant to
protect the slavery system?

A. Because the CS government called them into arms.

Why doesn't that cover it?

[Wiregrass Willie]

On Fri, 06 Jul 2012 12:30:31 -0400, Hugh Lawson <hu.l...@gmail.com>
wrote:

That would cover a lot of it. But a lot of good men rushed out and
volunteered before the draft was instituted. Men who did not
benefit (financially) from slavery.

That book really shocked me, Hugh. I thought I knew something about
Southern history. But I had never heard that SC was colonized by
Barbadian slave owners. I thought all the South had been settled
by people directly from Britain. No wonder everything murderous or
evil seemed to originate in Charleston.

[Hugh Lawson]

Wiregrass Willie <wiregrass_...@yahoo.com> writes:


> That would cover a lot of it. But a lot of good men rushed out and
> volunteered before the draft was instituted. Men who did not
> benefit (financially) from slavery.

I've never had the slightest difficulty imagining why the rebels fought:
they thought the CSA was their country, and that they were defending it.

There were hardly any abolitionists in the slave states.

[MITO MINISTER]

On Jul 7, 8:15 pm, Hugh Lawson <hu.law...@gmail.com> wrote:

Perhaps because being one was illegal and subjected one to arrest and
extra-judicial murder? Or was it because abolitionist tracts, and free
speech, were banned? Just askin', Hughie.

[Hugh Lawson]

Wiregrass Willie <wiregrass_...@yahoo.com> writes:


> That book really shocked me, Hugh. I thought I knew something about
> Southern history. But I had never heard that SC was colonized by
> Barbadian slave owners. I thought all the South had been settled
> by people directly from Britain. No wonder everything murderous or
> evil seemed to originate in Charleston.

John C. Calhoun's father, I've read, migrated from Ireland to Virginia,
and later moved to South Carolina. I'd guess that the other Deep South
states were populated mainly by migrants from other US states. There was
a very strong migration from Pennsylvania down the Great Wagon Road all
the way to Georgia.

http://www.waywelivednc.com/before-1770/wagon-road.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wagon_Road

http://www.electricscotland.com/history/america/wagon_road.htm

[Hugh Lawson]

I'd also suggest an classic of long standing, Carl Bridenbaugh, Myths
and Realities: Societies of the Colonial South.

[MITO MINISTER]

On Jul 7, 1:30 am, Hugh Lawson <hu.law...@gmail.com> wrote:

Because they were hoodwinked.

[MITO MINISTER]

"Men who did not benefit (financially) from slavery."

But who hoped to do so in the future.

"That book really shocked me, Hugh.    I thought I knew something
about
Southern history.    But I had never heard that SC was colonized by
Barbadian slave owners.     I thought all the South had been settled
by people directly from Britain.    No wonder everything murderous or
evil seemed to originate in Charleston."

Yeah, right. Letting the South off the hook again by blaming a few
sinister Barbadan slavers. You Southern Scumbags never give up.

[MITO MINISTER]

On Jul 9, 1:41 am, Hugh Lawson <hu.law...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hugh Lawson <hu.law...@gmail.com> writes:

Let them all wither away and die, you Slaver!

[MITO MINISTER]

On Jul 6, 9:47 pm, Wiregrass Willie <wiregrass_willieO...@yahoo.com>
wrote:

The Civil War was caused by the South's leaving the Union over the
issue of slavery. It wasn't fought over the relative merits of
Southern Jug Bands versus New York City chamber quartets.