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Missouri Compromise
Missouri was admitted as a slave state which led to Maine becoming a state just so it could become a free state and balance out slavery. The 36'30 line was also enforced which meant states above the line had to become free states, but states below had the option to be slave states. This promoted sectionalism because Northerners were angered by the expansion of slavery while Southerners were mad that the North wanted to take away their slaves. -
Compromise of 1850
Henry Clay crafted a compromise stating that California would become a free state, the slave trade would become illegal in D.C., and Utah and Mexico had the option to become either free or slave states based on popular sovereignty. This compromise helped stop the expansion of slavery which pleased the North, but angered the South. This again promoted sectionalism. -
Fugitive Slave Act
The federal government agreed to pay bounty hunters that caught fugitive slaves. This allowed the hunters to go into free states to retrieve slaves that escaped from slave states. The North opposed this act because the hunters shouldn't have been allowed to go into free states and also because they would capture free Black men and women that were never slaves just for fun. This, of course, led to more disagreements between the North and South. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
This was a book written by Harriet Beecher Stowe about the horrors of slavery. This resulted in people questioning the morals of slavery which pleased the North, but angered the South and left them believing that it would cause a rebellion. -
Kansas/Nebraska Act
This act allowed Kansas and Nebraska the choice to be either a free or slave state. As soon as this started, people were racing to both states to try to sway the vote. This began "Bleeding Kansas" and the entrance of "Border Ruffians" who wouldn't allow any Northerners into the South. This left the North and South even more separated and hostile towards each other. -
Brown & Harper's Ferry
John Brown was very anti-slavery and wanted to make a movement. He raided a military stockpile and tried to start a rebellion. It failed, however, because he forgot to tell the slaves that there would be a rebellion, so no one showed up. After the fact, he was captured and hanged. The North saw him as a hero, while the South saw him as a threat. -
Election of 1860
This election resulted in Abraham Lincoln as the president. He was a Republican that believed slavery was wrong. Because of this, the North really liked him, but the South despised him. This created even more sectionalism and began the want for secession. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roNmeOOJCDY
