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The Missouri Compromise
Missouri applied for statehood to the Union in 1819, upsetting the political power between the North and South. As a solution Henry Clay told the Senate to allow Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. Jesse B. Thomas then proposed an amendment banning slavery rest of the Louisiana Purchase territory above the 36°30' line. The compromise was passed in 1820 and made both the North and South happy, but did not solve the tensions between both sides.This led to the Civil War. -
Nat Turner Rebellion
In August of 1831, a slave named Nat Turner encouraged a violent slave rebellion that spread through several plantations in Southerner Virginia. He and his followers killed sixty white men, women, and children before being overpowered by state and federal troops. After Nat Turner and his followers were killed, Virginians took away some civil rights slaves possessed during that time. This led to the Civil War. -
Wilmot Proviso
In 1846, while the Mexican War still ongoing, representative David Wilmot introduced an amendment that banned slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico. The Wilmot Proviso passed the House but the Senate rejected it. The amendment was brought up and debated for years and it also prompted the first serious discussions of secession among the South.This led to the Civil War. -
Compromise of 1850
In January 29, 1850 Henry Clay proposed a series of resolutions in order to seek a compromise between the North and South. As part of the resolutions, California would be admitted as a free state, allowed formation of territorial governments in lands acquired from Mexico, the end of the slave trade, and a new, more effective fugitive slave law. The compromise was passed with the help of Stephen Douglass, but it did not settle the tensions between the North and South. This led to the Civil War. -
Fugitive Slave Law
Northern resistance to the Fugitive Slave Act increased quickly after 1850, when southerners started to appear in northern states to chase people they claimed were runaway slaves. Groups then formed in some northern cities to prevent enforcement of the law, and many northern states also passed laws in order to circumvent the Fugitive Slave Act. This made Southerners angry against the North.This led to the Civiln War. -
"Uncle Tom's Cabin" by Harriet Beecher Stowes
“Uncle Tom's Cabin” (Published in 1852) is a fictional story about a harsh life of a slave. Readers across the North then became aware about the horror of slavery in a whole new level, while Southerners protested that it was false and malicious. Due to this, the divisions between the North and the South widened even further. This led to the Civil War. -
The Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was a Virginian slave,trying to sue for his freedom in court, but he couldn't because the Supreme Court ruled that he had no rights or recognition to a human being. The classification of slave as mere property made the government authority to adjust the institution much more ambiguous. This event only increased the tensions between the North and South. This led to the Civil War. -
John Brown Raid at Harper's Ferry
In October 16, 1859 John Brown and his followers hijacked an U.S arsenal and killed several people at Harper's Ferry, Virginia. The reason he did this was to spark a slave uprising. After his plan failed, John Brown was captured and executed in December 12, 1859. John Brown then became a martyr for the abolitionist cause, but in the South, Southerners feared from future abolitionists attacks so they began to prepare themselves. This led to the Civil War. -
Abraham Lincoln's Election
When Abraham Lincoln won presidency in November — despite only getting two-fifths of the popular vote— , many white Southerners felt that they no longer had a place in the Union. On December 20, 1860, a little over a month after the polls closed, South Carolina left the Union and a few weeks after other Southern states left the Union as well. This led to the Civil War. -
Fort Sumter
In April 12-13, 1861 Confederate warships under order of General P.G.T. Beauregard, commenced an bombardment against Fort Sumter, South Carolina. Then on April 14, Anderson surrendered the fort. Once Abraham Lincoln heard of this attack he immediately began to mobilize the North for war. This led to the Civil War.
