Time before the Civil War from Agriculture was the basis of life in SC By 1860 SC had the highest percentage of slaveholders in the nation Most South Carolinians lived on family or subsistence farms and owned few slaves Few slave owners owned large plantations After the invention of the cotton gin in 1793 more cotton plantations grew and so did slavery Although the importation of slaves was outlawed in 1808 it still grew in the South Planting cotton wore out the soil, and planters did not look for new crops instead they moved to new lands This increased the expansion of slavery westward Plantations were self-sustaining communities Slaves did the work in the fields and in the plantation house Men, women, and children worked in the fields under the supervision of a driver or overseer Slaves with skills might be hired out by the master Slaves were considered a financial investment Treatment of slaves varied from plantation to plantation Slaves were denied their freedom and were provided with the minimum necessities The law did not recognize slave marriages and slave families were often separated It was against the law to teach a slave to read or write Planters wealthy slave owners who dominated society and politics Master and mistress were responsible for making the plantation work Small Farmers largest white population, might own a slave or two, were often family farmers who worked alongside one or two slaves Poor Whites live in the Up Country had very little often looked down on by both blacks and whites Free Blacks- often skilled workers such as blacksmiths and carpenters Slaves- forced laborers broken into house slaves and field slaves Southerners often claimed that slavery was an economic necessity and were better cared for than factory workers in the North This argument contributed to the growing sectionalism (loyalty to ones area) that divided the nation