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Missouri Comprimise
Within the federal and local government, there was a split between people who were anti-slavery and proslavery. Missouri wanted to be a slave state so they would own slaves. In the Missouri Compromise, Congress finalized a 2 part compromise. They let Missouri be a slave state and decided that Maine would be a free state. Additionally, there was also an amendment which drew an imaginary line across the Louisiana Territory as a boundary between slave and free states. -
Compromise of 1850
Many things were put in place in the Conpromise of 1850. California became a free state, and there were no slave restrictions in Utah or New Mexico. Slave trading was illegal in D.C., but they could own slaves. Texas lost its border with New Mexico and got 10 million for it. The last event from the Compromise of 1850 was the fugitive slave law, which made northerners who saw a runaway fugitive slave to turn him in to be returned to his owner. This was a federal decision, changed in later years. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The federal government passed this act repealed the compromise of 1850 by letting Nebraska and Kansas decide on a local level whether their states were slave states of free, an where the borders were. This was putting power into the state government, which was more biased and less enforced. This act made the federal government less powerful and put power at the hands of the people, which lead to a civil war later. -
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry
John Brown, and anti-slavery activist, led an 18 person army to Harpers Ferry, Virginia. They stole federal armory, arsenal, and an engine house. He ordered people to get slaves to join him, however pro-slavery citizens and militia, and there was a fight. The tensions between northern and southerners rose even more, and his raid showed how little control the federal government had on John Brown and his men. -
Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln won the election of 1860 presidency. He had support from both the North and the South, and his view were not too biased. But he only had 40% of votes and 180 electoral votes, meaning 60% of the voters didn't select Lincoln. Because of this Federal split in election, South Carolina succeeded from the Union only weeks after his presidency. -
Secession of South Carolina
South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union. After South Carolina seceded, it sparked other states to want to secede too. In later years Lincoln gave a speech called "A House Divided" when he spoke that half of the country was anti-slavery and the other half was pro-slavery. The pro-slavery states wanted to continue using slaves for labor, and South Carolina was the first to secede. It showed how powerful state government were over federal, and didn't want to unify the nation. -
Attack on Fort Sumter
Fort Sumpter was one of the first attacks starting a civil war. South Carolina wanted to secede from the Union, and they surrounded Fort Sumpter. The two sides fought for 34 hours, until union forces from the government surrendered. The Federal government had less control than ever of the states and their armies. -
Homestead Act
The Homestead Act was put in place to encourage western expansion. They gave settlers 160 acres of public land all for a small fee and five years of residence before getting full ownership of the land. The Homestead Act gave a total of 80 million acres of public land away by 1900. This was an act by the federal government to convince people to leave the populated east coast and set up a new life, without as much conflict between southerns and northerners. -
Works Cited
History.com Staff. "Fort Sumter." A&E Television, 4 May 2009. 2 Aug. 2016.
History.com Staff. "Fort Sumter."A&E Television Networks, 4 May 2009. 2 Aug. 2016.
History.com Staff. "Missouri Compromise." History.com. A&E Television, 1 Feb. 2009. 2 Aug. 2016.
"Kansas-Nebraska Act." History Place, 2 Aug. 2016.
"Causes of Secession." American History. 2 Aug. 2016.
US Government. "Primary Documents." Homestead Act. 2 Aug. 2016.
UShistory.org Staff. "Compromise of 1850." Independence Hall, 2 Aug. 2016.
