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Missouri Compromise
It was proposed that this bill would prohibit more slaves. This Compromise also upset the balance between the North and the South and gave the North more power. Later there was a proposition that prohibited slavery in the entire Louisiana purchase, but Missouri was already a slave state, which ended up leading to even more turmoil. -
New York State officially abolishes slavery
11% of the black population living in New York were freed, but if people were still under a indenture they had to stay a slave. New York was the first state to pass a law for complete abolition of slavery. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
During this rebellion 60 white men women and children were killed, thus leading to the execution of over 100 blacks. This lead to the fear of slave conspiracies and that renewed violence would spread. -
Wilmot Proviso
This bill wanted to prohibit slavery in territories acquired by Mexico. This debate resurfaced for years and years, but was unsuccessful, people that they should be able to bring their property, their slaves, to their new territories. This lead to the banning of slavery north of the line and permitting it south of the line. -
Mexican-American War
April 25-1846 to February 2, 1848 Peace was wanted to be purchased in Mexico, so it was amended that slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico would be prohibited. Then each territory to decide the status of slavery there, leading to the term "popular Sovereignty." -
Compromise of 1850
The fugitive Slave act was amended and the slave trade stopped in Washington D.C. California also was entered into the union and declared a free state. When CA was declared free there were no slave regulations. Which lead Northerners to return escaped slaves to the South. -
Fugitive Slave Act
It was part of the Compromise of 1850, it made sure slaves that had escaped to a free state had to be returned to their owners. This Act angered the south, and the polarization continued to increase. -
Kansas Nebraska Act & popular sovereignty
The Kansas-Nebraska act repealed the Missouri Compromise, and it allowed for "popular sovereignty". Which means that the government is controlled by the people. This event also lead to "bleeding Kansas" where proslavery and antislavery activists became violent. -
Bleeding Kansas
1855-1861 There were many outbreaks of guerrilla warfare between pro and anti slavery activists. 55 people were killed over the 4 years of fighting and was a key part in leading to the civil war. -
Brooks Attacks Sumner
Sumner was beat with a cane by his nephew Brooks because brooks liked slavery and was pro slavery where as Sumner was an abolitionist. This incident contributed to the country's already divided opinions over slavery. -
Dred Scott v. Stanford (aka Dred Scott Case)
Slavery was upheld in the US and denied the legality of black citizenship in America, this case also declared that the Missouri compromise was illegal. This cause the divide between the north and south to grow even more due to the topic of slavery. -
Lincoln-Douglas Debates
They were a series of debates between Lincoln and Douglas. Lincoln believed that slavery was immoral and had the votes of the north whereas Douglas believed that slavery wasn't all that bad, but sometimes he contradicted himself leading Southerners to not quite believe him. Without these debates Lincoln would have never become president, and then the south wouldn't have seceded. -
Raid on Harbers Ferry
Oct 16, 1859- Oct 18, 1859 John Brown lead a group to raid against a federal army, the goal was the destroy the institution of slavery. The stakes were raised for the presidential election of 1860 and the raid made north and south accommodating close to impossible. -
Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln won with 40% of the vote. He was against slavery but this election also presented the divisions throughout the US right before the civil war. The election of Lincoln really just pushed the people who agreed with slavery over the edge. Which caused the outbreak of the civil war. -
South Carolina's Secession
SC was the first state to secede. The election of Lincoln caused many slaveholding states, especially in the south, to want a disunion.