Historians generally identify slavery as the main cause of the American Civil War. The conflict emerged from deep-seated economic, social, and political disagreements between the Northern and Southern states. The Southern economy heavily depended on slave labor for agricultural production, while the North experienced industrial growth and increasingly opposed the institution of slavery. Tensions heightened with issues such as states' rights and westward expansion, leading to secession after Abraham Lincoln's election in 1860. The war, which lasted from 1861 to 1865, ultimately sought to preserve the Union and resulted in the abolition of slavery.