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Wilmot Proviso
This bill aims to outlaw slavery in territories taken from Mexico. The bill passed in the House of Representatives but was defeated in the Senate thus causing a division in Congress. Although not a success, it led to the formation of the Free Soil Party. -
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Nation Breaking Apart
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Compromise of 1850
Since the Congress was divided on California being a state, Senator Henry Clay proposed the Compromise of 1850. The compromise was designed to please both the North and the South. Senator Stephen A. Douglas succeeds in winning the passage of plan. Many believed the compromise would bring peace, but it actually led to many conflicts. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Stephen A. Douglas drafts bill for governing the Nebraska Territory which divides the Territory into two, Kansas and Nebraska. The bill stated the slavery would be decided by popular sovereignty and it allowed vote for slavery in the area where the Missouri Compromise was banned. The south supported the bill and it became law. As result, the civil war called "Bleeding Kansas" began. -
"Bleeding Kansas"
The Kansas-Nebraska Act didn't bring any peace. Proslavery and antislavery settlers rushed into the Kansas Territory to vote for territorial legislation. Missourians voted illegally, antislavery settlers boycotted and formed their own government, and violence broke loose. These were all the conflicts that created the civil war. -
Dred Scott v. Sanford
Dred Scott, a slave, sues for his freedom. His argument is that he is a free man because he lived in the territories where slavery is illegal. His case reached Supreme Court where Chief Justice Roger B. Taney ruled against him stating that Scott is not a citizen, therefore he cannot sue, and that he is bound by the Missouri slave code because he lived in Missouri. Southerners cheered the Court's decision and Northerners were outraged. -
John Brown Attacks Harpers Ferry
John Brown was an extreme abolitionist. He wanted to inspire slaves to fight for their freedom. Therefore, along with 18 followers, he captured the Harpers Ferry arsenal and killed four people in the raid. Brown was then convicted and sentenced to hang. His actions and enraged Southerners and they were also horrified by Northern reactions to his death. This event raised slavery issues to a breaking point. -
Election of 1860
The four candidates of the election were in two different races. Lincoln and Douglas were supported in the North, and Breckenridge and Bell were supported in the South. Lincoln won the election because there are more people in the North than the South. Lincoln's victory led to the secession of Southern States. -
Southern States Secede
Before the election of 1860, Southerners had threatened to secede if Lincoln won because they felt that he was a threat to their way of life. Supporters of the secession argued that states had voluntarily joined the Union and should also be able to voluntarily leave. South Carolina was the first state to secede, followed by six others.
