Notes on the New South: Tobacco, Textile, Coal, and Segregation in the Postbellum South

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts about tobacco, textiles, and postbellum Southern development from the notes.

Tobacco industry in the New South

A major Southern industry whose growth deeply shaped the region; especially Virginia, it provided economic sustenance but carried social and health implications.

Tobacco's role in Virginia

Tobacco was essential to Virginia’s survival as a colony; without it the colony might not have survived or would have been barely viable.

Machine-rolled cigarettes

Transition from hand-rolled to machine-rolled cigarettes; innovations led to more efficient production (1818 first machine to roll cigarettes; 1876 improved roll machine).

American Tobacco Company

A dominant tobacco monopoly that controlled a large share of the market; linked to the Duke family and later targeted by antitrust actions.

Taft-era antitrust action

Antitrust enforcement against large monopolies during President Taft’s administration, effectively aiming to break up monopolies like the American Tobacco Company.

The Dukes (Duke family)

Prominent family connected to the American Tobacco Company; key players in branding, advertising, and philanthropy, including Duke University funding.

Tobacco wealth philanthropy

Philanthropy funded by tobacco profits, including universities and public institutions, shaping the era’s philanthropic legacy.

Duke University funding

A major university funded by the Duke family’s tobacco wealth, emblematic of tobacco-era philanthropy.

Tobacco advertising and branding

National advertising campaigns and strategies by tobacco firms to popularize cigarettes and build brands.

Tobacco company cards

Advertising cards (including baseball cards) distributed by tobacco companies; collectible and historically valuable.

Washington Duke

North Carolina tobacco entrepreneur who helped promote cigarettes and branding, expanding Duke enterprises.

Rise of large-scale tobacco branding

Shift to broad national branding and advertising by tobacco companies, aided by improvements in rolling machines and marketing.

South-wide consumer culture

Cigarettes and tobacco wealth helped build a broad consumer culture across the Southern United States in the 20th century.

Textile industry in the South

Growth of textile mills in the South, leveraging cotton production and regional advantages.

Economic factors favoring Southern textiles

Cheaper Southern wages, lower taxes, and fewer regulatory burdens relative to the Northeast and Midwest.

Geography of mill towns and worker housing

Mill towns clustered near towns with company housing; limited highway access in early years; mobility increased postwar changing commuting.

Workforce composition in mills

Early textile mills employed mostly white workers; Black workers were present but more common in later periods.

Decline of the Southern textile industry

A downturn beginning in the late 20th century, notably during the 1980s–1990s.