What was the main economic activity in the Southern colonies?

The primary economic activity in the Southern colonies was agriculture, with a strong emphasis on cash crops such as cotton and tobacco. The climate and soil conditions in the South were particularly well-suited for these crops, leading to large-scale agricultural operations that became the backbone of the Southern economy. Plantations emerged, which relied heavily on enslaved labor to cultivate these crops efficiently and profitably. This agriculture-centric economy shaped not just the economic structure of the Southern colonies, but also had profound social and cultural implications, influencing land ownership patterns, labor systems, and the very fabric of Southern society.

While textile manufacturing, mining, and shipbuilding and fishing were important in other regions or even played a supplementary role in the South, they did not dominate the economic landscape in the same way that agriculture did. The Southern colonies' reliance on specific crops like cotton and tobacco established their economic identity and interlinked them with both domestic and international markets, especially with Great Britain, which eagerly sought these products.