Saturday, February 27, 2016

Why the North Won and Effects of the War

Dear Diary,
Looking back over the war, I have been thinking about why the North won. At the beginning, the South had a strong military, determination to protect their livelihood, and confidence. The North did not have many committed to the fight because they did not have to protect the only way they had ever lived. As the war went on, the North had more become involved with the war. They also had greater technological developments and more resources. The North's bigger population helped them find people to be soldiers. The Union was able to use their brilliant generals, who were willing to do anything they needed to to win the war. The Confederacy used up their resources far to early in the war and were not able to call upon fresh troops. The North also had the advantage of Lincoln's leadership. He was able to keep what was left of the nation together while they fought. The Emancipation Proclamation also helped the North by raising their sprits. Here is a picture of some of the Union soldiers with Lincoln:

 That's all for now Diary,
Rebecca
Union Soldiers with Lincoln. N.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2016. 
       <http://lincoln200.delaware.gov/images/photos/17_
       LincolnVisitingUnionTroops.jpg>.
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Dear Diary,
A lot has changed since the war ended. One way Congress started trying to help fix the economy before the war ended is by the Land Grant College Act in 1862. This act makes it where the money raised by the sale of public lands goes to states to establish universities that taught agriculture and mechanical arts. They also created a tariff that year that would protect the North's industrial industry and use it as a much needed revenue for the Union. This surge in manufacturing would continue even after the end of the war. After the war ended in 1865, the northern banks, factories, and cities underwent industrialization sweeping that would help make the United States a global economical power. It took much longer to rebuild the South after the war. Many cities that had been effected by total war lay in ruins. The South had to find ways to enter the modern cash society without their slaves and many of their factories. Agriculture would be their main center for the southern economy for many years to come. Northerners would often blame the South's slowness for their own shortcomings, forgetting all about Sherman's destruction of their assets.

The war also effected the society of the United States. Many Confederate soldiers returned home to find everything destroyed. There were millions of Southerners without home in 1865. Some of the Southerners thought God was punishing them. Some white southerners veiled that eventually the South would be redeemed. Although African Americans in the south were just as lost, they had the new hope that came with their freedom. Some African Americans would take advantage of the Homestead Act and move west. Sadly, many African Americans found out that their freedom was not all it was said to be.

The war also effected the government. There was still a lot of sectionalism in the government. It never again led to secession however. After the war, there were still debates about states' rights. Even though the war divided the states, it did not divided the national bond of the constitution. The increased amount of federal government helped Americans see themselves a more of a nation then just a bunch of states held together by a thin thread.

This will be my last journal Diary. It has been years since I wrote today. I am now an old lady who enjoys spending time with my children and grandchildren. I found you the other day in a box in the attic and figured I will tell you what happened after the war so many years ago. Here is a picture of me now,

That's all Diary,
Rebecca

Little Old Lady. N.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2016. 
       <https://whowerethey.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/
       kindface.jpeg>.

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