History-Alabama

[Date of Submission]

History-Alabama

Introduction

Alabama

Alabama is one of the 52 states which make up the United States of America, in its South Eastern side of the map. On the North it touches Tennessee, in the East Georgia, South Gulf of Mexico and to the West, the Mississippi.

Like majority of the Southern States, Alabama also faced economic difficulties since it's primary means of sustenance was agriculture. Even though was sudden growth of modern urban centers and industries, agriculture and farming remained its primary area of interest until 1960's.

Discussion

1820-1860

The Cherokee nations were pressurized by the white settlers who were taking over their lands slowly but steadily. During the 1813-17, the Cherokee's tried to save their remaining lands after the Creek of War 1813 by willingly ceding their territories in exchange for the lands in the west of the Mississippi River. They signed more treaties in 1817-1819, for the US Government's help in relocation of the natives. However, by the 1819's the remaining Cherokee had had enough and stopped the negotiation of further territories with the US. At this point the US government stopped negotiations according to the directions of President Andrew Jackson they started relocating the Cherokee people. The Congress also passed a new act in 1830, the Indian Removal Act thereby forcibly removing the Cherokee natives from the land. Finally in 1835 the last remaining Cherokee lands of the South East were given to the US Government for North Eastern Oklahoma.

In the 1839, the Cherokee's finally migrated towards the West. Their logistics were terrible and there were constant shortages of supplies. They were constantly hampered by solider attacks and were forced to keep on the move, not even giving them enough time to tend to their wounded or bury the dead. 11,000 of the original 15,000 natives made it to the Promised Land alive.

Life in Alabama

The average size of an Alabama farm in 1860 was 346.5 acres, in 1880, 138.8 acres. During the time of the settlements, when the Cherokees migrated, they were allowed American Citizenships and award 645 acres of land (William L. Anderson and Ruth Y. Wetmore, 2006). These were vast lands with the potential for vast farming, agriculture, poultry and dairy. It was the simpler times where the average families would consist of one man, one or two wives and multiple children, as many as eight or ten. Since the farmlands were so vast, initially the women also helped out in the farming, but the farmers usually took care of their short-staffing by creating multiple children, thereby increasing the number of helping hands per farms.

The farmlands were not irrigated or ploughed with tractors or canals. Instead the tools of the farmers included plows, carts and wagons driven all over their huge territories by beast of burdens and bovines. Ox-carts, horse-plows, donkey-cart/plows and mules were their technological assistance. Their farms were usually agriculture of the either food crops or cotton. They grew their fruits and vegetables; sold the excess in the major markets set up; where people who offered services ...