Northern United States

==History==
===Early history===
{{further|Slave and free states}}
Before the [[19th century]] westward expansion, the "Northern United States" corresponded to the present day [[New England]] region. By the 1830s it corresponded to the present day [[Northeastern United States|Northeast]] and [[Great Lakes region]].

Before 1865, the North was distinguished from the [[Southern United States|South]] on the issue of [[Slavery in the United States|slavery]]. In Southern states, slavery was legal until the ratification of the [[Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|13th Amendment]] in 1865. Northern states had all passed some form of legislation to abolish slavery by 1804. However, abolition did not mean freedom for some existing slaves. Due to gradual abolition laws, slaves would still appear in some Northern states as far as the [[1840 United States Census]].<ref>Klein, Christopher. (Feb 5, 2019). [https://www.history.com/news/deeper-roots-of-northern-slavery-unearthed Deeper Roots of Northern Slavery Unearthed – HISTORY]. Retrieved Jul 28, 2020.</ref> [[History of slavery in New Jersey|New Jersey]] was the last Northern state to end slavery. Due to their states gradual abolition laws, slavery came to an end in New Jersey when the 13th Amendment was ratified in 1865.<ref>[https://nj.gov/state/historical/his-2021-juneteenth.shtml New Jersey, The Last Northern State to End Slavery – NJ.gov]. ''nj.gov''. Retrieved January 27, 2022.</ref>

===American Civil War===
{{main|Union (American Civil War)}}
[[File:US map 1864 Civil War divisions.svg|thumb|Map of the division of the states during the [[American Civil War]] (1861–1865); states in blue represent northern [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] states, those in light blue representing five largely Union-supporting border southern states that permitted slavery, known as [[border states (Civil War)|border states]], and both [[Missouri]] and [[Kentucky]], which had competing Confederate and Unionist governments, and states in red representing southern seceded states, known as the [[Confederate States of America]] prior to the end of the [[American Civil War]]]]
During the [[American Civil War]] (1861–1865), the Northern states comprised the U.S. states that supported the United States of America, referred to as the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]. In this context, "the North" is synonymous with the Union, while "the South" refers to the states that seceded from the U.S. in order to form the [[Confederate States of America]].

There is, however, some historical disagreement as to exactly which states comprised the North in the context of the Civil War as five [[slavery in the United States|slave-holding]] states largely remained with the Union: the southern [[Border states (American Civil War)|border states]] of [[Missouri]], [[Kentucky]], [[West Virginia]], [[Maryland]], and [[Delaware]], along with the disputed [[Indian Territory]], though [[Missouri]] and [[Kentucky]] had dual competing Confederate and Unionist governments with the [[Confederate government of Kentucky]] and the [[Confederate government of Missouri]] and the Confederacy controlled more than half of Kentucky and the southern portion of Missouri early in the war. The Confederacy largely lost control in both states after 1862; depending on the source, some of these states and territories may be included in either region.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/418524/the-North |publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica Online]] |title= the North (region, United States)|year=2009 |access-date= 2009-10-27}}</ref>