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Nat Turner's Revolt
It was a slave uprising in Southampton County, Virginia, led by Nat Turner, an enslaved preacher who believed he was chosen to free his people. Turner along with a group of followers went to farms, killing 60 white people before the rebellion was stopped. This rebellion caused slaveholders to be more fearful and harsh, along with increasing debates about slavery. Many people in the North saw it as cruel/unjust. New laws were passed to limit their movement, education, and gatherings. -
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Slavery in the South
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Pigg v. Pennsylvania
It was a Supreme Court case in 1842 about whether states could make their own laws about capturing escaped slaves. Edward Prigg started it all when he was charged in Pennsylvania for kidnapping after trying to return a woman who escaped slavery. The Court said that federal law superseded state legislation, which meant that states couldn't stop the capture and return of escaped slaves. This decision made it easier for slave catchers to return people to slavery, even in free states. -
Free Soil Party
The Free Soil Party was created in 1848 by people who didn't want slavery to spread into new western territories. They believed that new states should be “free soil”, free of slavery. This party never won major elections but played an important role in keeping the issue of stopping the spread of slavery in the spotlight. -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a set of laws passed to help settle disagreements between the North and the South about slavery. The Compromise of 1850 made California a free state, letting states like New Mexico and Utah decide for themselves, along with banning the slave trade in Washington, D.C., and strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act. -
"Uncle Tom's Cabin"
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a book written in 1852 by Harriet Beecher Stowe that showed how cruel slavery was. It made a big impact as it angered people in the South and made more people in the North oppose slavery. Pushing the country closer to the Civil War as well as widening the gap between the two sides. -
Dred Scott Case
The Dred Scott Case was a Supreme Court decision that said Dred Scott, an enslaved man could not sue for his freedom because African Americans were not considered U.S citizens. The ruling also said that Congress couldn't stop slavery in the territories. This increased the tensions over slavery, by angering the North and pleasing the South. -
John Brown's Raid
John Brown’s Raid was an attack on a weapons storehouse at Harpers Ferry, led by John Brown to start a revolt. The “revolt” failed and he was captured and executed. The raid scared people in the South, while people in the North saw Brown as a hero. -
Civil War
The Civil War fought between 1861 & 1865, was a conflict between the Northern states (Union) and Southern states (Confederacy) over issues including slavery. The war finished with the Union’s victory, leading to the abolition of slavery. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, declared that all enslaved people in the Confederate states were free. It didn't immediately free all enslaved people, Changing the Civil War’s focus to include the fight against slavery and allowing African Americans to join the Union Army. It weakened the Confederacy and helped end slavery in the U.S. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment, passed in 1865, abolished slavery in the United States. It made slavery illegal except as a punishment for a crime. This law freed all slaves and was a big step towards equality.