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The Invention of the Cotton Gin
The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney in 1793. The cotton gin is an engine that quickly and efficiently combed the seeds out of the cotton balls. The cotton gin showed that there was a bigger need for slavery; the more cotton being produced the more slaves needed and the longer slavery lasted. -
The Embargo Act
The Embargo Act of 1807 stopped between Europe and America by the orders of Thomas Jefferson. The goal of this was to get Britain and France to stop mistreating American trade. However,The Embargo Act hurt the American economy more than it hurt Britains. So in 1809 Thomas Jefferson repealed the act. -
The Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise questioned The Louisiana Territory and whether or not it should be a free or slave state.The Union wanted to maintain "The Delicate Balance" meaning an equal amount of free and slave states split by the Mason-Dixon Line. As a result,in order to maintain the delicate balance and delay the civil war by prohibiting slavery in the remainder of the Louisiana Territory, Maine was a free state and Missouri was a slave state. -
The Tariff of Abominations
The Tariff of Abominations increased the tariff of imported goods. The tariff set a law on duties and goods imported into the United States. As a result it created major economic problems in the South. This tariff was given its name because it outraged the southerns who felt the tax on the goods was excessive and unfair and targeted to their region. The South was basically forced into industrialization since it was not a manufacturing center, it had to either buy goods made in the North/import. -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 questioned the land in the Mexican Cession (California to Texas) and whether it should be admitted as free or slave states. As a result the North got California as a free state and the Slave trade was abolshed from D.C. The South introduced The Fugitive Slave Act. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was a book written by Harriett Beecher Stowe, dealing with anti-slavery issues. This book was a reaction to the recent fugitive slave laws. As a result this book had major influence on how others viewed slavery. -
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was when congress repealed the Missouri Compromise and made the Louisiana Territory come under question again. This act mandated Popular Sovereignty and whether or not slavery should be allowed in the new states. From this point on slavery issues were determined based on the vote by people through Popular Sovereignty. As a result conflicts arose between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers leading to Bleeding Kansas. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas was when settlers from both the South and North flooded into Kansas. After the Kansas-Nebraska Compromise repealed the Missouri Compromise violence broke out in Kansas between pro-slavery and anti-slavery activists, fighting for control of votes. -
South Carolina Secedes from the Union
South Carolina seceded because they felt their way of life which was slavery was threatened by Abraham Lincoln. Seven other states in the South also then seceded sparking the Civil War. -
The Election of 1860
In this election Abraham Lincoln won against Stephen Douglas and two other men. During this time tensions were still high between the North and South. The Republican Platform called for a ban on slavery in territories, internal improvements, a homestead act, a Pacific Railroad, and a tarrif. Lincoln won by carrying almost the entire North and with the electoral college with 180 votes. -
John Brown's Raid
Abolishonist John Brown led anti-slavery fighters in Kansas before his famed raid on Harpers Ferry. He led a small group to raid HArpers Ferry in an attempt to start a revolt and end slavery. However, the raid failed but it made tensions worse between the North and South, It also became an important determining factor in the Civil War. -
The Dred Scott Case
The Dred Scott Case was when a slave who lived with his owner in a free state returned to the slave state of Missouri argued that he should then be amancipated since having time spent in these locations. It was brought to the Supreme court and it ruled that no black, free or slaved, could claim citizenship. This decision increased the tensions between the North and South and was the most controversial event before the Civil War.
