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The 3/5th Compromise
Counted 3 out of every 5 slaves towards the population of a state. Benefited slave states, as they had more population counted which gave them more representatives in Congress, and gave them extra power over the North. -
The Northwest Ordinance
Created a government for the Northwest territory, and established the process of admitting new states. Outlawed slavery in the new territory, setting up the argument of whether or not slavery should continue in new additions to the United States. -
Fugitive Slave Act
Gave slave owners the right to have their slaves returned to them after escaping. Many southerners did not think it was strict enough, especially later on around 1850 before the next Fugitive Slave Act was passed. -
Invention of the Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, making cotton farming much easier than it was before. This invention caused a huge resurgence of slave labor, as many plantation owners in the south used slaves to farm and produce the cotton. -
Ban on Slave Importation
Banned international slave trade into the United States, though it did not ban slavery itself. Since the sale and labor of slaves was still legal, the slave trade did not stop, rather become more local. This also boosted chattel slavery, as slave's children were owned by their masters as well. -
Missouri Compromise
Made it so that there would be an equal balance of slave states and free states as more were added to the United States. Put off the issue of slavery, and later caused tensions to rise between the North and South when states like California were added, disrupting the balance. -
Nat Turner Rebellion
Nat Turner, a slave, led a rebellion of slaves killing nearly 60 whites, This caused for many innocent slaves to be killed in retaliation, as well as scaring the slaveholders and creating harsher laws around slavery. -
South Carolina Nullification Crisis
After South Carolina attempted to declare a tariff passed by the Federal Government, even threatening to secede. Jackson eventually had to send troops to the state so they would comply. This greatened tensions between the north and the south, and set up the secession of the southern states in the Civil War, with South Carolina being the first. -
Organization of Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad is formed by free slaves and abolitionists. It will help many slaves escape slavery and make it to the Northern States and Canada for several years after its formation. -
Wilmot Proviso
The Wilmot Proviso was a proposal to end slavery in all territories captured form the Mexican-American War. While unsuccessful, it raised tension between abolitionists in the north and slave owners in the south, -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Ended the Mexican-American war, with Mexico ceding its territories which would become states later on. With such a large area being acquired, it would cause for further debate and division between the north and south when deciding whether they should be free or slave states. -
Compromise of 1850
A series of bills passed in relation to slavery, it made it so the rest of states admitted would be popular sovereignty, reinforced the fugitive slave act, and called for an end to slavery in D.C. This benefitted and angered both sides, as some things worked in their favor while others didn't, It did not work as a solution that it might have been intended to be. -
"Uncle Tom's Cabin" Published
Written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom's cabin tells the story of two slaves, Tom and Harry, and details the horrors and oppression of slavery. This book massively increased abolition movements in the north, while being banned in the south for its anti-slavery views, furthering the divide between the states. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Created the two new territories of Kansas and Nebraska, making both of them popular sovereignty and repealing the Missouri Compromise. This angered the north as they could then become slave states despite being northern, and caused the "Bleeding Kansas" uprising. -
Bleeding Kansas
A series of uprisings and violence in the territory, as many people from the north and south flooded into the territory in hopes of securing it as a slave/non-slave state. Some raids sparked by John Brown, a strong abolitionist. Heavily divided the north and south as violence was spreading throughout the people from both areas after moving to Kansas. -
Charles Sumner Attacked
After Charles Sumner went against slavery, he was attacked by another member of senate- Preston Brooks,- with a cane until he was left unconscious. This furthered the tensions between the north and south and showed the nearing of the Civil War, as now even members of Congress were becoming violent over their views on slavery. -
Dred Scott Decision
A slave, Dred Scott, argued to the Supreme Court that he should be free as his master had willingly brought him into a free state, instead of escaping. However, the court ruled against him, saying that he wasn't even able to argue in court since he was "property." This enraged abolitionists in the north, as it took away any legal rights slaves could have had, while southerners were happy as it was, again, protecting their "right to property." It was a major decision both overall and to the war. -
John Brown’s Raid at Harper’s Ferry
John Brown attempted to spark a slave uprising in Harpers Ferry by rallying slaves with weapons from a federal arsenal. The slaves denied in fear of punishment, and he was eventually captured by Robert E. Lee. He was convicted of treason and hanged, believing himself to be a martyr. Many in the north felt sympathetic for him, seeing him as misguided but well meaning, while the southerners were angry and thought he was trying to infringe on their "rights to property." -
Abraham Lincoln's Election
Abraham Lincoln was elected president after beating the other candidates, Douglas and Breckinridge. His election angered the south as he was anti-slavery, and would eventually lead to South Carolina's secession from the union, beginning the Civil War which Lincoln would lead the north throughout. -
South Carolina Secedes from the Union
After the election of Abraham Lincoln, who was very anti-slavery and seen as a "threat", South Carolina seceded from the Union over concerns about the ability to continue slavery in the south. South Carolina's secession sparked many more in the south, and began the Civil War by eventually forming the Confederacy among the southern/slave states.