The Mason-Dixon line was initially created by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon to settle land disputes between Maryland and Pennsylvania. It later became a symbolic separation between states that permitted slavery and those that did not during the Civil War, and continues to represent discrimination against black Americans.
The Mason-Dixon line has two definitions. One refers to the land survey of Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon from 1763-1767. Other definition refers to the separation of states in the United States by states that have permitted slavery and states that have not, or states of the Union and the Confederates. This most common use occurred during the Civil War.
The initial purpose of this line drawn by Mason and Dixon was to settle disputes between landowners in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The boundaries of this land were disputed, and the land owning families, the Calverts and the Penns, were contentious about these boundaries.
Initially, the Mason-Dixon line ran east-west across the southern border of Pennsylvania and north-south between the borders of Maryland and Delaware. The lines were marked by stones each at the end of each mile. A large crown stone was also used every five miles.
The dispute over which areas of property belonged to Delaware and Pennsylvania led to a 1732 agreement of specific boundaries. However, discussions still existed about the boundaries of the colonies. Finally in 1760, the king of England forced the people of both areas to accept the agreement made in 1732 and Mason and Dixon, two astronomers, were commissioned to create the line.
Later, the Mason-Dixon line was defined as the separation between the states that seceded from the Union. The actual line, which had a truly symbolic purpose, is slightly more difficult to pin down. Border states such as Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and West Virginia are sometimes considered below the line. On other maps, border states are north of the line.
The Mason-Dixon line extends into Texas, which is often considered the westernmost of the southern states. In many ways, the continued discrimination against blacks in the Southern states was seen as continuing to walk the Mason-Dixon line. Although slavery was outlawed at the end of the Civil War, the Mason-Dixon line was thought of as a symbolic separation between states that continued to discriminate against blacks and those that did not to the same extent. However, it should be noted that states north of the line have often proved equally terrible in their treatment and valuation of black rights.
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