Final answer:
West African slaves brought with them the knowledge of cotton cultivation, transforming the South Carolina, and larger southern, economy. Cotton surpassed other crops like rice and tobacco in the antebellum South. This transformation was further accelerated by the invention of the cotton gin in 1793 which streamlined cotton production.
Step-by-step explanation:
West African slaves brought with them the knowledge that transformed the South Carolina economy through the introduction of a profitable staple crop. This crop was cotton. The growth of cotton immensely impacted the southern economy and reshaped its society, leading to the unfair increased dependence on enslaved people's labor.
It is important to note that initially, tobacco and rice were significant crops in the antebellum South; however, cotton surpassed these crops in economic importance due to its high profitability and global demand. It dominated the southern region to the extent of the area producing two-thirds of the world's cotton by 1860.
The success of cotton production would not have been possible without the cruel use of slave labor. The introduction of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 revolutionized cotton production. Whitney's invention, likely influenced by enslaved peoples' suggestions, separated cotton seeds from raw cotton, accelerating what was initially a labor-intensive process.
Learn more about Cotton Production and Slavery