Different climatic conditions divided British settlers into two societies. The mild climate of the Northeast was suitable for farming and crafts. In the South, plantation crops became profitable, requiring year-round agricultural cycle that led to the use of slaves. Plantation slave system played a crucial role in the development of the South.
The U.S. history before the Civil War was a history of conflicts and compromises between two regions. The first major confrontation between the North and the South was because of the admission of Missouri to the Union. On February 13, 1819 an amendment was proposed, which prohibited the importation of slaves. It was blocked by Southerners in the Senate. The clash between two regions passed to a constitutional dispute over the division of powers between the federal government and the states. In 1820 the so-called Missouri compromise was reached. Maine entered the Union as a free state and Missouri as a slave state that kept balance between two regions in the Senate. Later Southerners began to demand free trade. The fight over tariffs led to the second major conflict between the North and the South. In March 1833, Jackson signed a law on the gradual reduction of duties to 20%. In September 1850 laws were adopted, according to which the problem of slavery was solved by a compromise: California was accepted to the Union as a free state. In February, 1861 a peace conference was held. All projects contained provisions of the compromise, which included a return to the conditions of the Missouri compromise and consolidation of slavery in the slave states. However, none of the projects was passed by Congress because of opposition from Republicans.