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Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was a famous novel published by, American writer, Harriet Beecher Stowe. It was influenced by the Fugitive Slave Act. This novel would become famous because of its illustration of the brutality of slavery. This would increase the tensions between antislavery and pro-slavery forces. -
Kansas Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was formed by Stephen Douglas. The Missouri Compromise would essentially be repealed. What was left of the Louisiana Purchase was conflicted about being a slave or free state. This act would allow settlers to take slaves into the states and determine whether it should be a free or slave state. Introducing the concept of popular sovereignty. Douglas had intended for this act to have one state go free and the other go slave. -
Republican Party
Previous members of the Whig Party essentially focused on the topic of slavery expanding and formed a new organization called the Republican Party. This political party would have the main demand to end slavery in all territories. It would become very popular in the North -
Brooks-Sumner Incident
Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner had given a speech for 2 days "The Crime Against Kansas" turning into a slave state. He had criticized multiple Southern senators one being the uncle of Preston Brooks. He was a Congressman of South Carolina. Brooks charged at Sumner with his can striking him in the head. The cane had broken into pieces by the impact of his strikes. Many had praised Brooks and he was sent new canes. Sumner would appear as the hero for the North. -
Bloody Kansas
Northerners and Southerners came into the region from Missouri and tried to build a population to build a constitution. Nebraska was too far for some settlers so Kansas was the place to settle in. Proslavery and antislavery forces would come in constant conflict. Both forces would push for their ideas to come forth for the state to become free or slave. -
Election of 1856
The presidential election of 1856 consisted of James Buchanan(Democrat), John C. Fremont(Republican), and Filmore. This was the first election to be strictly divided along sectional lines. James Buchanan ended up winning the election and was known to be "the worst president" by some. This would be the last Democrat president in office for a while and would also be known as a "prime contributing" factor in the Civil War. -
Dred Scott (Scott v. Sanford)
Dred Scott was a Missouri slave and he lived in Illinois and in the Wisconsin Territory both free lands. Scott decided to sue his master's widow. He asked the court to state him as free because he had been living on "free soil". Scott appealed the case to the federal courts. The Supreme Court stated he had no right to sue in federal court, the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional, and that Congress had no right to limit slavery expansion. This would increase tensions before the Civil War. -
LeCompton Constitution
The LeCompton Constitution was around Bleeding Kansas. It was essentially a pro-slavery document that would turn Kansas into a slave state. This would eventually be turned down by the majority. -
House Divided Speech
The "House Divided" Speech was by Abraham Lincoln as he accepted the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate. The main purpose of the speech was to show our country how divided we were because of slavery. A famous phrase from this speech is "A house divided against itself cannot stand." -
Lincoln - Douglas Debate
The Lincoln and Douglas debate was seven debates between Stephen Douglas(Democrat) and Abraham Lincoln(Republican) essentially on slavery and expanding into new territories. Lincoln had regarded slavery as "an evil." He also believed that all legislation should be based off of restricting slavery but eventually abolished. As a result, Stephen Douglas would eventually win the battle as Senate. -
Harper's Ferry
John Brown was a Kansas abolitionist. Until the Kansas-Nebraska Act abolitionists would not use violence. He began to raise money and recruit men to invade the South. Brown intended to capture the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, and hoped to end slavery. His plan would not go correctly as townspeople had cut off his escape routes. -
John Brown
John Brown was executed on December 2nd. Before he was executed he was found guilty of treason, conspiracy, and murder. However, Brown believed he was only acting on the will of God as he also believed that all slaves should be free. -
Election of 1860
The Election of 1860 consisted of Northern Democrat Stephen Douglas, Southern Democrat John Breckinridge, John Bell from the Constitutional Union Party, and Abraham Lincoln from the Republican Party. This election illustrated how divided the country was again. In the North, it was Lincoln vs. Douglas and in the South it was Breckinridge vs. Bell. Lincoln had won the election receiving 180 Electoral College votes. -
South Carolina Secession
It is believed that the secession had been "triggered" by Abraham Lincoln winning the election of 1860. South Carolina had perceived this win as a threat. There was a convention that voted to secede from the Union. Other states such as George, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas left the Union. The secession of South Carolina would eventually form the Confederate States of America and lead to the Civil War. -
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Address
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Address was essentially a message for Southern states. He would promise not to interfere with their slaves and slavery as a whole. He also declared secession to be wrong. He stated that there would be no invasions or usage of force against Southerners.