By late 1861, the Union had launched more than 250 warships, with dozens more under construction. The Union had a small but well-organized navy. In addition, the Union had a larger railroad network for moving troops and material. With mechanized factories and a steady flow of European immigrants seeking work, the Union could produce more ammunition, arms, uniforms, medical supplies, and railroad cars than the Confederacy could. The densely populated urban areas of the Northeast supported a wide variety of manufacturing. Most of the nation's coal and iron came from Union mines, and the vast West was a source of gold, silver, and other resources. The industrialized North was far better prepared to wage war than the agrarian South. By contrast, the Confederacy had a population of only 9 million, of whom 3.5 million were enslaved African Americans. Some 22 million people lived in the states that stayed in the Union. The North enjoyed a tremendous advantage in population.
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