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Cotton gin
The invention of the cotton gin could be viewed a cause for the civil war. The cotton gin increased the amount of cotton production that is done daily. The increased production created an increased need for cotton which in turn led to the need for more slaves and land. The increase in demand for land that would be used for slaves created the conflict between the North and the South leading to a number of events and ultimately the Civil War. -
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a law passed that up to a certain point states could not have legal slavery. The compromise allowed for the slave states to be checked and not given as much power. They were becoming agitated as they could not expand and get more power. Their frustration and inability to obtain more slave land causing them secede from the U.S. -
abolitionist movement
The abolitionist movement was a movement created by mostly New Englanders to outlaw slavery. Though New England had become very wealthy from slavery they still stood against it. Abolitionists existed in all parts of the U.S, in fact there were so many in South Carolina that they had to set penalties for anyone who was caught protesting slavery. The abolitionist and anti-abolitionist movement had gotten to such a high tension point that riots would break out. The abolitionists began their own pol -
Underground Railroad
The underground railroad was a system of houses and secret tunnels to help slaves escape to freedom in the North. One of the most famous “conductors” is Harriet Tubman, she helped roughly 300+ slaves escape to freedom . The underground railroad contributed to the start of the civil war because the abolitionists were violating the law and were taking away the south’s workforce, creating the two parties that would eventually attempt to secede. -
Dred Scott
Dred Scott was a slave born on American soil who had originally worked for his Master in southern states where slavery was legal. Upon his master’s will he was taken to Illinois, a free state at the time, and was still forced to perform the duties of a slave. In 1846 he decided to sue the government to become a U.S citizen and a free man, however he lost the decision in 1857. Throughout the process the Missouri Compromise, allowing for slavery to expand North. The thought of the expansion of sla -
Uncle Tom
Uncle Tom’s Cabin was an anti slavery novel published in 1852 that portrayed actual personal accounts on the horrors of slavery. The book was a bestseller for quite a long time and was able to open the eyes of those who were once blind to what slavery actually held. Uncle Tom’s Cabin’s contribution to the beginning of the civil war because it personalized the political and economical arguments about slavery. It made its readers think long and hard about what type of nation it wanted to be. -
Bleeding Kansas
In 1845 Kansas-Nerbaska Act turned over the Missouri Compromise and it was nullified. At this time there was a massive amount of open land in Nebraska. The nullfication of the compromise meant that Nebraska was neither fre nor slave territory. It's openess made it a desired place and whoever gets there first could claim it as a free or slave state. Both factions fought for the land and caused a quarrel between governments. -
election of 1860
In 1860 the election held had more parties than were typical of that time period. It contained a new ideal, republicanism. Republicanism at that time was anti-slavery based and believed that all of the western territory should be slave free. Their representative, Abraham Lincoln, won presidency and he intended to end slavery in those territories as planned. The south did not like the ideas and threatened to secede, creating havoc and eventually war. -
Southern Seccession
The Southern state’s secession led to the civil war due to it’s establishment of the confederacy. The confederacy was the party that was pro-slavery and had planned spread west and create an opportunity for more slaves to arrive and more land that is profitable. The official beginning of the civil war began when the Confederates conquered fort Sumter, which was filled with troops from the North.
