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Wilmot Proviso
The idea of this bill was to outlaw slavery in territories taken from Mexico. It passed in the House of Representatives but was defeated in the Senate therefore causing a division in congress. Although, not a sucess it led to the formation of the Free Soil Party. -
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The Nation Breaking Apart
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Compromise of 1850
The reason for this compromise was that Congress couldn't decide if California should become a state due to slavery. The compromise made both the North and South satisfied by admitting California as a free state and forbidding slave trade in Washington D.C. Although, in the territories won from Mexico, there would be no laws to abolish slavery, and slaveholders would be able to recapture their runaway slaves more easily. This compromise was meant to bring peace but had failed to do so. -
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
The act left the issue of slavery to be decided by popular sovereignty. In the areas where the Misouri Compromise had banned voting for slavery, it was allowed. The bill soon became a law. -
"Bleeding Kansas"
The cause of "Bleeding Kansas" was the states for slavery and the states against slavery, fighting over the election. States were voting illegally which led to a big argument. The result of the fight was a Civil War breaking out in Kansas. -
Canning of Sumner
Senator Charles Sumner gives a speech which insults A.P. Butler and the people who were proslavery. Preston Brooks attacks Sumner in the senate. Southerners were pleased that Brooks had defended them. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford
Dred Scott was a slave who was taken to a free state by his owner but soon returns back to Misouri. Scott sues for his freedom but Chief Justice Roger B. Taney was against Scott because he wasn't a U.S. citizen so he couldn't sue the U.S. courts. Also, since he lived in Misouri, he had to follow Misouri's slave laws. This resulted in slavery being able to spread anywhere in the United States and citizenship was denied for free African Americans. -
Attack on Harpers Ferry
This occured because John Brown wanted to encourage slaves to fight for freedom. To do this, he and eighteen others planned to take the weapons in the U.S. arsenal at Harpers Ferry. No slaves Joined Brown on his attack. -
The Election of 1860
The Election of 1860 became two different races. One took place in the North and one in the South. Abraham Lincoln ended up winning in the North and John Breckenridge in the South. Lincoln recieved the most votes (electoral and popular) and thus won the election. This resulted in South Carolina and six other states seceding from the Union. -
SECESSION
