-
Period: to
Events leading up to the Civil War
-
Fugitive Slave Act
The Fugitive Slave Act was passed as a part of the Compromise of 1850. This Act was supposed to force people in the North to return slaves to their owners. This actually increased the abolitionist movement. It also increased the number of runaways using the underground railroad to move inot the Canadian territory -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. The book was written about the plight of the slaves in the South. For the first time the slaves were given a face and feelings, which started a fury on both sides. The North's abolitionist movement increased, while the South felt that the North was secretly trying to undermine their slavery empire. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
In 1854, the Kansas Nebraska Act was passed. This Act allowed these territories to decide for themselves as to whether they wanted to be a free or slave area.by 1856, this area become very violent as members of both sides poured into the are and fought over their rights. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was a slave living in a free state. He petitioned the Supreme Court for his freedom. The Supreme Court ruled that he could not petition the Supreme Court because he did not own any property. They went on to say that even though his owner had taken him into a free state, he was still a slave and slaves were considered property of their owners. -
John Brown's Raid
John Brown was a radical abolitionist. He was one of the individuals involved in the violence in Kansas. On this day he took a group of seventeen men, five of whom were black, to raid the arsenal in Harper's Ferry, Virginia. His goal was to capture the weapons and start a slave uprising. The men were surrounded by Colonel Robert E. Lee and his men. Most of the men were shot and killed. John Brown was tried and hanged for treason. -
Abraham Lincoln
Even though Lincoln's views on slavery were moderate, the southern states had said that if he was elected they would secede from the Union. His name was not on the ballot in most of the southern states. When he was elected, South Carolina and six other states seceded from the Nation. -
Civil War
Civil War breaks out as Southern soldiers attacked the U.S. miltary sight of Ft. Sumter on this date. This open act of aggression forced Lincoln to respond with force.
