The number of enslaved African Americans in the Border South greatly decreased by 1860 because cotton could not thrive there.

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Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This is true. The Border South, which included states such as Missouri, Kentucky, Virginia, and Maryland, had a less favorable climate for growing cotton compared to the Deep South, where most of the enslaved African Americans were concentrated. As a result, slave labor was less economically profitable in the Border South, and many slaveowners either sold their slaves to Deep South cotton plantations or emancipated them. By 1860, the Border South had a much smaller enslaved population than other regions of the South.

The Number of Enslaved African Americans in the Border South