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Harriet Tubman Escaped From Slavery to Philidelphia
Harriet Tubman was an abolitionist slave who helped other slaves escape captivity through the Underground Railroad. In 1849, she used it to escape from slavery herself. -
The Fugitive Slave Act
Stated that escaped slaves in the North could be hunted and brought back South with their owners, meaning that no black person was safe anywhere in the Union. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin Was Published.
Uncle Tom's Cabin, an anti-slavery novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, was published. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Stated that the states of Kansas and Nebraska could decide as a state whether or not they wanted to be slave states, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise. -
Dred Scott Decision
The supreme court case Scott vs. Sandford, it was decided that Dread Scott, a slave who sued his owner for his freedom, was still a slave, and could not file a lawsuit because he was not an American citizen. -
Lincoln-Douglass Debates
A series of 7 presidential debates between the Republican nominee Abraham Lincoln, and Democratic nominee Stephen Douglass. -
John Brown Attacks Harpers Ferry
John Brown, a radical abolitionist, raided Harpers Ferry with the hopes of starting a slave rebellion, but was quickly stopped, and was soon after hanged for treason. -
President Lincoln Gets Elected
The first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, is elected into office. However, he is not received well by the South. -
South Carolina Recedes From the Union
South Carolina became the first southern state to recede from the Union. -
The Confederate States of America is Formed
The Southern states leave the Union and form their own nation: the Confederate States of America.