The correct answer is Supported believed Alaska would provide valuable natural resources, while detractors felt it was too cold and too far away.
The annexation of Alaska was a controversial topic in Congress during the mid 1800's. The decision to add it to the United States as a territory was decided by one vote in Congress. The individuals who voted against the annexation felt it was a waste of time and money. They gave it nicknames like "Seward's Folly" (named after Secretary of State William Seward) and "Johnson's Polar Bear Garden" (After president Andrew Johnson who approved of the annexation).
Answer:
The main advantages of the USA were:
A larger population, the USA had the majority of large cities of North America at the time, and a lot of immigrants, while the Confederacy was mainly rural, and not as populated. This larger population meant a more numerous army.
And a more powerful economy with some industry, which facilitated the production of arms and supplies for the military.
The disadvantage was that USA was the aggressor, and had to take up territory, while the confederacy only had to defend itself.
The confederacy main advantage was that as defenders, they knew most of the territory better, and had overall a more advantageous geographical position, at least at the start of the war. The main disadvantage for the Confederacy was precisely the smaller population -which means a smaller army- and the less developed economy, which was mainly agrarian, lacking almost any form of industry.
After the slavery was officially abolished in all of the US, the African Americans were quick to move out of the South and migrate massively toward the North. There were several factors as to why this happened. One big factor was that even though the slavery was abolished, the segregation and discrimination continued, so the opportunities in life were very limited. The South was not industrialized, while the North was heavily industrialized, thus the African Americans saw an opportunity to work in the factories instead in the fields. The atmosphere in the North was much better for them, as the majority of the people welcomed them and had no problems with them because of their skin color.
