Thursday, May 4, 2017

Dixieland

     Being an adopted son of the South, I occasionally get asked, “Where is Dixie?” and “Why do they call it that?”. 
     Well, out of the kindness of my heart, your ‘ol cousin Gary here is going to answer that question for you.

     As a definite geographic location within the United States, "Dixie" is usually defined as the eleven Southern states that seceded in late 1860 and early 1861 to form the new confederation named the Confederate States of America. They are (in order of secession): South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. Missouri and Kentucky were the 12th and 13th to secede, but were technically both union and confederate.

     However, the location and boundaries of "Dixie" have become, over time, more limited, vernacular, and mercurial. Today, it is most often associated with those parts of the Southern United States where traditions and legacies of the Confederate era and the antebellum South live most strongly.

     The word "Dixie" refers to currency issued first by the Citizens State Bank (located in the French Quarter of New Orleans) and then by other banks in Louisiana. These banks issued ten-dollar notes, labeled "Dix", French for "ten", on the reverse side. The notes were known as "Dixies" by English-speaking southerners, and the area around New Orleans and the French-speaking parts of Louisiana came to be known as "Dixieland". Eventually, usage of the term broadened to refer to the Southern states in general.

     There. Now you can go to sleep tonight happy in he knowledge that you have learned something more about the history of the good ‘ol U.S. of A.

Y’all are welcome. Have a Blessed day. 
 



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