Florida's economy underwent significant changes during Reconstruction. Before the war large plantations producing cotton with slave labour had been the most important aspect of the economy but this diminished in importance with the freeing of slaves as a result of the Civil War. Also when Florida became a state, it was considered a slave state. This was an important factor in Florida's part in the Civil War. Many states in the north did not believe in the practice of owning slaves and began to abolish slavery. By 1860, slavery was only found in the southern states and territories.
