Economic Growth During the Postbellum Economy

  There are multiple examples of how economic growth occurred during the postbellum economy. In 1865 the Civil War had just ended. This allows one to look at two regions of the postbellum economy and understand the differences. For Southern states this period reflected the lowest income due to the abolishment of slavery and the negative effects of the Civil War. In contrast, one can look at the North as a high-income region. Comparing these two regions allows one to further understand most of the initial income inequality that occurred in the United States during the postbellum period. There are multiple contributing factors that led to the disparity between the two regions. There was low productivity in the South during the postbellum period. This can be attributed to a generally low level of education and a lack of sufficiently skilled labor force. This significantly impacted the process of industrialization in the South. One can look at human capital levels to further understand...