How did the economic, geographic, and social factors encourage the growth of slavery as an important part of the economy of the southern colonies between 1607-1775?.
Between the time periods of 1607 and 1775 the economic, geographic, and social factors were encouraged by the growth of slavery as an important part of the economy of the southern colonies. The first slaves were brought into the colony of Jamestown, Virginia in 1619, which began to significantly influence the society of America. .
On large plantations, slaves were inexpensive, and depended on by the plantation owners. Although slaves were low-priced, they were not, however easy to come by because of the high death rates in the middle passage. The middle passage brought enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean to North America and to the West Indies. By owning slaves, plantation owners also saved money because they didn't have to pay them, where as some slaves, such as indentured or white slaves had to be paid or they would eventually gain their freedom. During this time the tobacco prices dropped significantly, and were so low that the only way to make money was to have cheap labor, and owning slaves was the only way to make this possible. .
During this time people owned so much land that your closest neighbor might be miles away, which caused a problem when it came to getting help on the plantation due to the lack of plantation owners in the south. However the only way to have help was to "own" it. If you owned slaves, you could also grow more crops because you had more help to manage it. In the south, sometimes it was extremely hot and people couldn't bear to be outside in the heat, but by owning slaves you could make them work as long/hard as you want. .
Throughout this time, African Americans were thought of as inferior people, and it would "degrade" Americans to treat them as equals. People in the south also believed that African Americans were just put on this earth to "serve" them.
