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Slavery
Slavery started in the early 17th century and was practiced for many years. Most of the slaves who were used were often from Africa and they worked for the white, rich people. This was a very big issue because half of the Union agreed with this and the other did not. This led to a huge controversial issue of either tying to keep slavery or get rid of it and it ended up leading to the Civil War. -
Fugitive Slave Act & Underground Railroad
The Fugitive Slave act was a number of laws that were passed by Congress in 1793. These laws allowed for the capture and return of runaway slaves. The Underground Railroad consisted of secret passageways, safe houses and secret routes. These places helped the runaway slaves get to the Northern States for them to be free. The Southerners didnt like this so it started a conflict with the Northerners and it led to the Civil War. -
The Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives trying to balance out the power between the Northern States and the South states. Although this was a good thing for both states, it made the Northern states even more mad to know that the Southern states had no plan of getting rid of slavery. Both antislavery and pro-slavery people fought to keep the states so they won’t be taken over by the opponent. -
Uncle Toms Cabin
Uncle Toms Cabin was a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. This novel portrayed the reality behind slavery. Uncle Toms Cabin really shaped the peoples opinion in the 1850’s, especially the Northerners. They finally saw the truth behind how the Southerners treated the slaves. The impact of this novel was so real on the causes of the civil war that Abraham Lincoln once said “Is this the little woman who started this great war?” when he met Harriet. -
John Brown and Bleeding Kansas
John Brown was a man who believed that using violence was the appropriate form of trying to get rid of slavery. Bleeding Kansas was a period in time where many pro-slavery and antislavery people tried to take over Kansas so it can become what they wanted it to be. The violence between the two to make the state a free or slave state led to the Civil War because of all the murders and shots that were fired. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was an African-American who was not considered a citizen of the United States because of the color of his skin. He decided he wanted to fight for his citizenship. The United States Supreme Court denied his request and came to a conclusion that no African-American was or ever will be considered a citizen of the U.S. This event contributed to the Civil War because the decision that the Supreme Court made infuriated the Northerners and they went against the Repubilcan Party. -
The Election of 1860
The Election of 1860 was the year when Abraham Lincoln was chosen to be president. While running for president, he decided he would only hold the free states and not the state whom approved of slavery. This made the Southern states angry and some even threatened to leave the Union if he were to become president. The split between the Northern states and Southern states in the union led to the Civil War because of Lincolns decision to only hold the free states. -
Southern Secession
Secession meant that a few states had left the U.S. union to establish their own government. The states that left chose to leave because Abraham Lincoln became presdient. The states that left were from the lower and upper south. This caused the states that were leaving to have an issue with those who were still in the union to have a problem because they were still free states whom didnt approve of slavery and neither did the president. -
The Abolitionist Movement
The Abolitionist Movement was created by a group of people who wanted to put an end to slavery. These people wanted for all people to be treated equally. They not only wanted to put an end to slavery but they also wanted to end racial discrimination and segregation. This idea became very popular in the Northern churches and politics. The Northerners were against slavery but the Southerners were all for it. This caused an issue which led to the Civil War.
