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Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an agreement made to issue a solution to the free and slave soils and how they should become classified as free or slave. It stated that all states and territories north of the dividing line would be slave free while states south of the line would be slave states. It was proposed by Henry Clay in 1820 and balanced out the power between the slave and free states as it left 15 free states and 15 slave. -
The Wilmot Proviso
The Wilmot Proviso was a document that decided on the issue of how would they classify the Mexican Cession and how it would affect the slave and free state balance. It was made by David Wilmot and his speech was said in 1846 and passed the House of Representatives the same year. It said that all territories obtained from the Mexican-American War would not be claimed as slave states. This angered southerners and made them think it was used as an attack on slavery by the northerners. -
The Compromise of 1850
The compromise of 1850 was designed by Henry Clay to solve the controversy over slavery. It had a set of five laws saying California would be a free state, New Mexico and Utah would decide based off of popular sovereignty, the slave trade would be ended in Washington D.C., Congress would pass a strict fugitive slave law, and Texas would drop its claims to New Mexico in return for 10 million dollars. Some of it would please northerners while others would please southerners. -
Fugitive Slave Act
The fugitive slave act was emplaced as a result of the compromise of 1850. It required all northerners to send back any fugitive slaves that were caught and take them back to the south to slavery. This aggravated northerners and also made many of them realize how cruel slavery was, which divided the north and the south even farther apart. Many northerners refused to follow this law which led to more conflict. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe during the abolition movement before the Civil War. It was written as a way to show the true cruelty of slavery based off of real events. This novel created many northerners to go against slavery. The book spread all throughout the north to show how bad slavery was. Southerners tried to accuse her of libel and tried to make it seem fake and claim that it was fiction. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act allowed the people in these territories to vote on the issue of slavery through popular sovereignty. It was passed with the help of senator Stephen Douglas in 1854. As a result, many antislavery and pro slavery people moved into Kansas. It then had two separate governments, one pro slavery the other antislavery. Soon after violence broke out all over Kansas and had people of both sides terrorizing those who did not support their viewpoints. -
The Dred Scott Case
This was a case where Dred Scott, a slave, had sued for his freedom. His owner had move into the northern territory and had died. Since he was in the northern territory he claimed he was a free man. However the court did not rule in his favor and claimed that congress did not have the power to declare states free or slave. Northerners were angered by this because this went against the Missouri Compromise and meant that slavery could be practiced anywhere. Southerners were happy -
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates
The Lincoln Douglas Debate was a series of debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas when they were competing for secretary of state. It had several debates where Lincoln would claim Douglas supports the spreading of slavery and Douglas would claim Lincoln wanted full rights for slaves. Many crowds would gather to see them. Douglas later won to be secretary of state but two years later they would rival again to run for presidency. Abraham Lincoln won the presidential election -
John Brown's Raid at Harper's Ferry
John Brown was an abolitionist who believed in violence to solve the issue of slavery. To revolt he raised a group of followers and led an armed group in an attack at the federal armory in Harpers Ferry. They attempted to steal weapons to arm the slaves and lead on with the revolt. He and his men were defeated by Robert E. Lee and Brown was tried in court. He was accused of murder and treason and was then sentenced to death and was hung. He is remembered for his last words. -
Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln won the presidential election of 1860 against Stephen Douglas after the Lincoln Douglas debates. Lincoln was against slavery and felt it was unjust and wrong, while Douglas was pro slavery, owned slaves resulting in rivalries. Lincoln’s beliefs resulted in the development of the republican party. -
Southern Seccession
As conflict between the north and the south rose, the southern states threatened to secede from the union. North Carolina was the first state to secede and eventually led other states to follow. After the attack on Fort Sumter, the north and south were nearly completely divided.
