In the early 1800s, people all across the United States started talking about something called “Alabama fever.” It wasn’t a sickness—it was a way to describe how excited settlers were to move to Alabama! People had heard that Alabama had rich soil that was perfect for growing cotton, and many wanted to move there to start new farms and businesses.
The main reason for this excitement was land. After the Creek War ended, huge areas of land in Alabama were taken from Native Americans and made available to settlers. This new land seemed like a great chance to make money, especially for farmers who wanted to grow cotton, which was a very valuable crop at the time.
As more settlers arrived, Alabama’s population grew fast. Towns and cities started to form, and businesses were built to support the new communities. Steamboats carried cotton down rivers, helping Alabama become an important part of the U.S. economy.
The rapid growth also changed Alabama’s politics. The people who moved in wanted to have a say in their new government. They worked to make Alabama a state, and in 1819, Alabama became the 22nd state in the United States. That same year, leaders wrote the Alabama Constitution of 1819, which created the state’s first government.
But this fast growth also had serious effects on Native American nations. As settlers moved in, Native Americans were pushed off their land, and many lost their homes and ways of life. Alabama’s new economy was also built on enslaved labor, as enslaved people were forced to work on the cotton farms that made the state rich.
“Alabama fever” brought lots of changes. It helped Alabama grow quickly in people, money, and power, but it also brought hardship for Native Americans and enslaved people who were hurt by these changes.