All Topics  
Old South

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Old South
 
 
  Topics Old South Topic Home

Geographically, Old South is a subregion of the American South
Southern United States

The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive region in the southeastern and south-central United States....
, differentiated from the "Deep South
Deep South

The Deep South is a descriptive category of cultural and geographic subregions in the Southern United States. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the antebellum period....
" as being the Southern States represented in the original thirteen American colonies, as well as a way of describing the former lifestyle in the Southern United States. Culturally, the term can be used to describe the antebellum
Antebellum

"Antebellum" is an expression derived from Latin that means "before war" .In United States history and historiography, "antebellum" is commonly used, in lieu of "pre-Civil War," in reference to the period of increasing sectionalism that led up to the American Civil War....
 period.

Southern Colonies were Virginia
Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
, Maryland
Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic States of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the Washington, D.C. to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east....
, North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
, Delaware
Delaware

Delaware is a U.S. state located on the East Coast of the United States in the Mid-Atlantic States region of the United States. The state takes its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, a British nobleman and Virginia's first colonial governor, after whom Cape Henlopen was originally named....
, South Carolina
South Carolina

South Carolina is a U.S. state in the Southern United States of the United States. It borders Georgia to the south and North Carolina to the north....
, and Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
. Despite Maryland's early association as a Southern colony and later as a state, based on customs, economy, and slave ownership, its failure to secede during the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
 has resulted in a modern disassociation with the area known as the "Old South," a disassociation even more pronounced in the similar case of Delaware.

The "Old South" is usually defined in opposition to the Deep South
Deep South

The Deep South is a descriptive category of cultural and geographic subregions in the Southern United States. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the antebellum period....
 including Alabama
Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the Southern United States of the United States of America. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west....
, Louisiana
Louisiana

The State of Louisiana is a U.S. state located in the U.S. Southern States of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans....
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
 and Mississippi
Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson, Mississippi is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Anishinaabe language word misi-ziibi ....
, and it is also further differentiated from the inland border states
Border states (Civil War)

In the context of the American Civil War, the term border states refers to the five slave states of Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, and West Virginia, which bordered a Free state and were aligned with the Union ....
 such as Kentucky
Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a U.S. state located in the East Central United States of America. Kentucky is normally included in the group of Southern United States , but it is uncommonly included, geographically and culturally, in the Midwestern United States....
 and West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
 and the peripheral southern states of Florida
Florida

Florida is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the northeast....
 and Texas
Texas

Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
.

The "Old South" also refers to the tradition of Southerners voting the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party . It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world....
 ticket.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Old South'
Start a new discussion about 'Old South'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Geographically, Old South is a subregion of the American South
Southern United States

The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive region in the southeastern and south-central United States....
, differentiated from the "Deep South
Deep South

The Deep South is a descriptive category of cultural and geographic subregions in the Southern United States. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the antebellum period....
" as being the Southern States represented in the original thirteen American colonies, as well as a way of describing the former lifestyle in the Southern United States. Culturally, the term can be used to describe the antebellum
Antebellum

"Antebellum" is an expression derived from Latin that means "before war" .In United States history and historiography, "antebellum" is commonly used, in lieu of "pre-Civil War," in reference to the period of increasing sectionalism that led up to the American Civil War....
 period.

Geographic usage

The Southern Colonies were Virginia
Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia is an United States U.S. state on the East Coast of the United States of the Southern United States. The state is known as the "Old Dominion" and sometimes as "Mother of Presidents", because it is the birthplace of Lists of United States Presidents by place of birth#By state....
, Maryland
Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic States of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the Washington, D.C. to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east....
, North Carolina
North Carolina

North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
, Delaware
Delaware

Delaware is a U.S. state located on the East Coast of the United States in the Mid-Atlantic States region of the United States. The state takes its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, a British nobleman and Virginia's first colonial governor, after whom Cape Henlopen was originally named....
, South Carolina
South Carolina

South Carolina is a U.S. state in the Southern United States of the United States. It borders Georgia to the south and North Carolina to the north....
, and Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
. Despite Maryland's early association as a Southern colony and later as a state, based on customs, economy, and slave ownership, its failure to secede during the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
 has resulted in a modern disassociation with the area known as the "Old South," a disassociation even more pronounced in the similar case of Delaware.

The "Old South" is usually defined in opposition to the Deep South
Deep South

The Deep South is a descriptive category of cultural and geographic subregions in the Southern United States. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the antebellum period....
 including Alabama
Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the Southern United States of the United States of America. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west....
, Louisiana
Louisiana

The State of Louisiana is a U.S. state located in the U.S. Southern States of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans....
, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
 and Mississippi
Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Deep South of the United States. Jackson, Mississippi is the state capital and largest city. The state's name comes from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, and takes its name from the Anishinaabe language word misi-ziibi ....
, and it is also further differentiated from the inland border states
Border states (Civil War)

In the context of the American Civil War, the term border states refers to the five slave states of Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, and West Virginia, which bordered a Free state and were aligned with the Union ....
 such as Kentucky
Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a U.S. state located in the East Central United States of America. Kentucky is normally included in the group of Southern United States , but it is uncommonly included, geographically and culturally, in the Midwestern United States....
 and West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
 and the peripheral southern states of Florida
Florida

Florida is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the northeast....
 and Texas
Texas

Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
.

The "Old South" also refers to the tradition of Southerners voting the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major party contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party . It is the oldest political party in continuous operation in the United States and it is one of the oldest parties in the world....
 ticket. During the Reconstruction period after the Civil War, many Democrats lost their ability to vote. This led to a Republican South until 1877, when southern Democrats returned to power. Recently this Democratic dominance has eroded, yet the south maintains its conservative stance. The majority of the southern population now identifies with the Republican party.

Cultural usage

After the Civil War, many southern whites
White American

White American is an umbrella term officially employed by the United States Census Bureau, Office of Management and Budget and other U.S. government for the classification of United States citizens or resident aliens "having origins in any of the original peoples of Ethnic groups of Europe, the Ethnic groups of the Middle East, or Ethnic gro...
 used it with nostalgia
Nostalgia

The term nostalgia describes a longing for the past, often in idealisation form. The word is made up of two Greek roots , to refer to "the pain a sick person feels because he wishes to return to his native home, and fears never to see it again"....
 to represent the memories of a time of prosperity, social order, and gracious living. A majority of blacks
African American

African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the Black people populations of Africa....
 saw it as being a reference to the past times of slavery
Slavery

Slavery is a form of forced labor where a person is compelled to Labor for another . Slaves are held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase, or birth, and are deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to receive Remuneration in return for their labor....
 and the plantation
Plantation

A plantation is usually a large farm or Estate , especially in a tropical or semitropical country, like Brazil or Nicaragua on which cotton, tobacco, lice coffee, sugar cane and the like are cultivated, usually by resident laborers....
. It is the adversus to the "New South
New South

New South or New South Creed is a phrase that has been used intermittently since the American Civil War to describe the Southern United States, in whole or in part....
"

Once those with personal memories of the antebellum South were largely deceased, the term continued to be used. It was used even as a marketing
Marketing

Marketing is defined by the American Marketing Association as the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large....
 term, where products were advertised
Advertising

Advertising is a form of communication that typically attempts to persuade potential customers to Purchasing or to consume more of a particular brand of Product or Service ....
 as having "genuine Old South goodness" and the like.

Certain groups now wish to rescue the term from racist
Racism

Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that Race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race....
 connotations by stating that they desire to celebrate only the things about the Old South which might be considered good, such as Southern chivalry
Chivalry

Chivalry is a term relating to the medieval institution of knighthood. It is usually associated with ideals of knightly virtues, honor and courtly love....
.

See also

  • Antebellum
    Antebellum

    "Antebellum" is an expression derived from Latin that means "before war" .In United States history and historiography, "antebellum" is commonly used, in lieu of "pre-Civil War," in reference to the period of increasing sectionalism that led up to the American Civil War....
  • New South
    New South

    New South or New South Creed is a phrase that has been used intermittently since the American Civil War to describe the Southern United States, in whole or in part....
  • Deep South
    Deep South

    The Deep South is a descriptive category of cultural and geographic subregions in the Southern United States. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the antebellum period....
  • Border States
    Border states (Civil War)

    In the context of the American Civil War, the term border states refers to the five slave states of Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, and West Virginia, which bordered a Free state and were aligned with the Union ....
  • Solid South
    Solid South

    Solid South refers to the electoral support of the Southern United States for the Democratic Party candidates for nearly a century from 1877, the end of the Reconstruction era of the United States, to 1964, during the middle of the African-American Civil Rights Movement ....
  • Middle America (United States)
  • Merry England
    Merry England

    "Merry England", sometimes archaised as "Merrie England", refers to a utopian conception of English society and culture based on an idyllic pastoral way of life that was allegedly prevalent at some time between the Middle Ages and the onset of the Industrial Revolution....


External links

  • . A digital publishing initiative that provides numerous documents and information about the South of the United States before and after the American Civil War
    American Civil War

    The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
    .