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The Cotton Gin 1793
Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin, which suddenly made the south able to harvest cotton many times faster than before, which not only boosted their economy but also made slavery even more important than before. -
Wilmot’s Proviso
David Wilmot introduced legislation calling for the prohibition of slavery in the lands acquired from Mexico. He did this to prevent competition for white men from “slave labor”. -
Popular Sovereignty
Lewis Cass introduced the term “popular sovereignty” which was the idea that the people of the territories should get to decide if slavery should be allowed. -
The Compromise of 1850
California became a state and was declared a free state, while Utah and New Mexico were declared to have no slavery restrictions. Texas was given ten million dollars, Washington D.C. allowed slave holding but not slave trading, and the Fugitive Slave Law was passed. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Kansas and Nebraska were organized as territories and the Kansas-Nebraska act allowed it to be open to popular sovereignty even though it was north of the 36°30' line. -
Border Ruffians
1,700 men from Missouri went into Kansas to vote that it be a slave state. This was the beginning of a lot of violence in the Kansas territory. -
Abraham Lincoln Elected
When Lincoln was elected despite the fact that he hadn’t received the popular vote and he was anti-slavery, the south became very upset. -
The South Secedes
The country was split into two pieces, north vs. south and each had strengths and weaknesses. -
Works Cited
"What Caused the Civil War?" About.com Education. Web. 03 Aug. 2016.