1830s American Cuba and Puerto Rico: Cultural Impact?

In the early US, there was a strong assumption that the US would get Cuba eventually by various American politicans. In the 1830s Spain was pretty much broke, so I don't think it'd necessarily be that outlandish for the US to have bought Cuba and Puerto Rico in the period.

The US had a population of around 17 million in 1840. Cuba and Puerto Rico together had a population of 1 million in 1840 and 288,000 in 1837 respectively. The US would suddenly be 7% Hispanic had a purchase gone through.

Had the US purchased Cuba and Puerto Rico in the 1830s, what would be the cultural impact upon the United States?
 
A much much more powerful confedracy.

Are the Catholic Cubans going to accept joining the Confederacy.

A) This isn't really a response to the cultural question

B) Odds are the Anglos who relocate to the island and integrated Criollo elites wouldn't have an issue being part of the CSA, but the public at large would get testy. It'd be a Kentucky situation, or perhaps the folks on the island would just revolt as soon as the island joins the CSA.
 
Depends on the nature of the Anglos who relocate to the islands. I could see, perhaps, an efflux from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Louisiana that might draw down the planter population of those states in the short term. That might trigger an influx to those states of otherwise-marginal slaveholders from the upper south; i.e., Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky; all bent on getting larger plantations and the like. Now you have an opportunity for northerners to move into the upper south, particularly in developing towns like Louisville and Richmond, perhaps tipping the politics away from slavery. It might also trigger a migration of the last larger slaveholders from Maryland and Delaware, where slavery was eroding (particularly in the latter case), yielding abolition in both in the 1840s.

Now you have a situation where Missouri might still be a so-called border state, but Maryland, Delaware, and Kentucky will be Union states. Further, Tennessee and Virginia become the border states, with (say) Richmond as a Union outpost to thwart Confederate thrusts to the north since it stands athwart the key rail lines and roads. Virginia as a border state also gives the Union control over the entire Chesapeake, making blockades of southern ports easier.

I could also see some internal strife in Cuba and Puerto Rico, wherein the Hispanic elite would resent the influx of Protestant Anglo southerners. On the basis of the enemy of my enemy is my friend, perhaps many if not most would throw in with the Union, meaning the two islands would be battlegrounds.

This all adds up, IMO, to a Confederacy that is more volatile / harder to keep together than the one IOTL. Jefferson Davis--assuming he's elected president--would have his hands full just keeping things more or less together while trying to fight a war. And if the Hispanic elite get the upper hand on either island (not inconceivable since they were there first and know the territory), the island(s) in question are out of the war and out of the Confederacy. You might have a somewhat shorter war, ending before the 1864 elections, in which case Lincoln is virtually a shoo-in for a second term. And the shifts described above would seem to butterfly away John Wilkes Booth's actions.

Almost forgot: if the Hispanic elite does throw in with the Union, that may well diminish anti-Catholic bigotry in the north, as well as leading to somewhat grudging tolerance of Hispanic culture (notice I did not say "acceptance"). The Deep South, on the other hand, would remain as fiercely anti-Catholic if not more so. (In fact, in that climate, I could see the Orange Order gaining a real toehold such that the Orangemen and Klansmen might well become allies.) In the long run, you might find a handful of isolated Catholic islands in the South--New Orleans and environs--but you'd have to look long and hard for a Catholic parish in, say, Mississippi or Alabama.
 
Depends on the nature of the Anglos who relocate to the islands. I could see, perhaps, an efflux from Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Louisiana that might draw down the planter population of those states in the short term. That might trigger an influx to those states of otherwise-marginal slaveholders from the upper south; i.e., Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky; all bent on getting larger plantations and the like. Now you have an opportunity for northerners to move into the upper south, particularly in developing towns like Louisville and Richmond, perhaps tipping the politics away from slavery. It might also trigger a migration of the last larger slaveholders from Maryland and Delaware, where slavery was eroding (particularly in the latter case), yielding abolition in both in the 1840s.

I'm not sure I agree with that for a couple of reasons. First there's nothing in the POD to make slavery in the upper South less profitable than in our history. Second, in 1830 Virginia has a much larger portion of the US population than it does in 1860 which will dilute any migration from North to South (something I'm not convinced will happen). Third, Cuba already has a wealthy and extensive agriculture and plantation system so there's not a vacuum for Southerners to step in and take over. I don't see that Cuba will steal any more of the Southern population than the US' existing westward expansion already is. If anything Cubans are going to be moving to the mainland.


Long term one of the biggest cultural changes is going to be a significant shifting of religion in US slave populations. With the undoubted movement of slave populations to the mainland a noticeable percentage of African Americans in the US South are going to be Roman Catholic. Between this and the Cuban landed classes also being Catholic it's also going to make anti-Catholic sentiment a bit harder to maintain long-term.

Also, Cuba is likely to see somewhat more immigration from Europe than it did in our history.
 
Are the Catholic Cubans going to accept joining the Confederacy.

Hell, CAN they effectively be part of the Confederacy with Federal supremacy on the high seas? Particularly if the profits to be made from more expansive cultivation of sugar and the power of King Corn causes the Cuban elite to turn over more of their land to cash crops and develop stronger dependence on mainland agriculture. Integration into the American market is going to change the economic incentives of the islanders quite significantly.

Speaking of which, another cultural change one would see is the earlier/greater adoption of mass sugar consumption in the US, since she now has a major domestic source who're likely to make a strong push to increase sales. This could cause some real changes to the culinary traditions of the coastal south and New England
 
Well for one they will push to make the Spanish a Official Language of Cuba and Puerto Rico, as they will be a proper state
and this could do a backlash in other states to make English the official language of said state.

Another the Cuban Elite don´t have so closed racist system as the Plantation elites one, they don´t have a one drop rule, they have a important Free black population and a colorism based caste, but no a closed one as the USA, after all the Money buy the Color of your skins as is said in Latino america. So both slave holding societies will have strong cultural diferences

Another ones is that the case of The Amistad v/s United States will be a no case, as the Slaving ship stop in cuba was doing to wash the origin of the slaves, and this loophole will be closed
 
Hell, CAN they effectively be part of the Confederacy with Federal supremacy on the high seas? Particularly if the profits to be made from more expansive cultivation of sugar and the power of King Corn causes the Cuban elite to turn over more of their land to cash crops and develop stronger dependence on mainland agriculture. Integration into the American market is going to change the economic incentives of the islanders quite significantly.

Well, somewhat change them, as sugar was already a huge and very modern industrial business for Cuba utilizing steam mills and narrow gauge railways. This changes their market focus though as there are now zero tariffs on Cuban trade with the US and US sugar consumption was already skyrocketing. Louisiana's sugar harvest rose from 2,500 tons in 1802 to a high of 224,500 tons in 1853 most of which was shipped to the east coast. Meanwhile Cuba's sugar production increased from 55,000 tons in 1820 to almost one million tons in 1895. In 1850 sugar accounted for 4/5 of all Cuba's exports and 1/3 of the world's sugar production.

In Louisiana the sugar cane fields were one of the most profitable slavery industries and vast numbers of slaves died in production. American Cuba is only going to increase the nation's appetite for slaves.


Speaking of which, another cultural change one would see is the earlier/greater adoption of mass sugar consumption in the US, since she now has a major domestic source who're likely to make a strong push to increase sales. This could cause some real changes to the culinary traditions of the coastal south and New England

I think Americans were eating sugar as quickly as possible but I can certainly agree with an additional increase if the price drops noticeably. I would be interested to see if any Cuban dishes reach the mainstream as Americans have always been surprisingly conservative when it comes to foreign foods.
 
Well for one they will push to make the Spanish a Official Language of Cuba and Puerto Rico, as they will be a proper state
and this could do a backlash in other states to make English the official language of said state.

Another the Cuban Elite don´t have so closed racist system as the Plantation elites one, they don´t have a one drop rule, they have a important Free black population and a colorism based caste, but no a closed one as the USA, after all the Money buy the Color of your skins as is said in Latino america. So both slave holding societies will have strong cultural diferences

Another ones is that the case of The Amistad v/s United States will be a no case, as the Slaving ship stop in cuba was doing to wash the origin of the slaves, and this loophole will be closed

The one drop rule wasn't the rule until the 1890s IIRC. Until then and the rise of Jim Crow, there was a much larger number of people who identified as mixed-race. When being mixed or pretty much all black didn't make much of a difference, folks just identified as black. "Money Whitens" may be a more common expression in the US here the way it is in Latin America.

TTL maybe people will continue to identify as mixed-race, leading to interesting racial-social outcomes.
 
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