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Compromise of 1850
The bills provided for slavery to be decided by popular sovereignty in the admission of new states, prohibited the slave trade in the District of Columbia, settled a Texas boundary dispute, and established a stricter fugitive slave act. -
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The fugitive slave act
made the hunting down of escaped slaves, even in free states, fully legal -
Uncle Tom Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe shared ideas about the injustices of slavery, pushing back against dominant cultural beliefs about the physical and emotional capacities of black people -
The kansas nebraska act
repealed the Missouri Compromise, created two new territories, and allowed for popular sovereignty. -
The pottawatomie massacre
marked the beginning of the bloodletting of the “Bleeding Kansas” period, as both sides of the slavery issue embarked on a campaign of terror, intimidation, and armed conflict that lasted throughout the summer. -
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The Dred Scott Decision
upheld slavery in United States territories, denied the legality of black citizenship in America, and declared the Missouri Compromise to be unconstitutional. -
John Brown Raid on Harpers Ferry
helped make any further accommodation between North and South nearly impossible and thus became an important impetus of the Civil War. -
The Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln (Republican) won the presidential election of 1860 in a four-way contest. Although Lincoln received less than 40% of the popular vote, he easily won the Electoral College vote over Stephen Douglas (Democrat), John Breckenridge (Southern Democrat), and John Bell (Constitutional Union). -
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The formation of the confederacy
In February 1861, representatives from the six seceded states met in Montgomery, Alabama, to formally establish a unified government, which they named the Confederate States of America. On February 9, Jefferson Davis of Mississippi was elected the Confederacy's first president.