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Invention of the Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney invented the Cotton Gin at an attempt to humanize the cotton harvesting process for slaves. Previously, harvesting cotton was torturous, and slaves could only harvest about one pound of cotton per day. With the cotton gin, each individual slave could produce 50 pounds of cotton a day. More than ever before, slavery was profitable; it could make a slave owner very wealthy in a short amount of time. Unexpected to Whitney, slave numbers increased, and slavery was again popular. -
Fugitive Slave Act
Under the Compromise of 1850, the North received CA as a free state, but the South had the chance to make a new Fugitive Slave Act. The South knew of states such as PA who had not been enforcing the act before. PA had even gone to court in Prigg v. PA, arguing that they did not have to spend their resources on holding slaves or sending them back to the south. The new act was stricter and more cruel, angering the North as they had recently read "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and had a new sense of slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
In 1820, the Missouri Compromise allowed Missouri to enter as a slave state and Maine as free. There was balance between slave and free states, but the Kansas-Nebraska Act formally nullified the peace. Based on popular sovereignty, the people of the states would decide the state's status. Thus, "Bleeding Kansas" began, and abolitionists and southerners flooded into Kansas. Violence pursued as two constitutions were created, and border ruffians blocked entrance. Tensions turned to bloodshed. -
The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad, lead by Harriet Tubman, helped over 300 slaves escape. Tubman had a $40,000 bounty as she guided slaves into Canada; Great Britain had already abolished slavery in their country. The Underground Railroad worked based on a code system of train-related terms such as conductor and passengers. They sent the coded message over telegraph lines, and the memo got through without suspicion. Tubman's symbolism of revivalism and rebellion caused many others to fight slavery. -
Dred Scott Vs. Standford
Dred Scott v Standford was the case to "settle slavery once and for all." Scott was a slave to be inherited when his owner died; however, the new owner lived in a free state. When Scott was brought into Illinois, he claimed to be free. At the time, the South had managed to gain 6/9 Supreme Court Judge positions. As a result, the judge ruled that Illinois had no right to deny the owner's property and that states can't prohibit slavery. This ruling outraged abolitionists, but supported the South. -
Brown and Harper's Ferrry
John Brown was an abolitionist who moved to Kansas after the Kansas-Nebraska Act. He believed that God had intended him to end slavery. Consequently, he heightened tensions in an event known as Brown & Harper's Ferry. Brown planned to raid a federal arsenal, steal the weapons, and give them to the slaves to revolt. Unfortunately, Brown did not communicate with the slaves, and when no one came, he had no way off the island. In the end, Brown elevated the violence, helping lead to the Civil War. -
Election of Lincoln
Lincoln won the election of president in 1860. He ran as a Republican, a recently formed party based on the beliefs of several groups. The Republican platform planned to enforce the protective tariff, gaining support from the North. They also wanted rights for immigrants and internal improvements. Most influential, they ran with the intention to abolish slavery. When the South heard the election results, they realized the inevitable abolition of slavery and didn't hesitate to leave the country.
