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Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was a novel written by Harriet Stowe about a fictional slave in Kentucky. The novel was staunchly anti-slavery and showed the cruelty and inhumanity of American slavery. The novel quickly became on of the best selling novels in American history. The novel was praised in the North for its criticism of slavery. The south regarded the novel as an inaccurate depiction. -
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Bleeding Kansas
Following the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the establishment of popular sovereignty in Kansas and Nebraska abolitionists and slavers moved into Kansas to try and swing the state to their side. The two side eventually came to violence as each side tried to force the other out of the state. -
Republican Party is created
After the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska act and the resulting fights in Kansas over slavery the northern abolitionists were dissatisfied with the political opposition to slavery and formed the new republican party to oppose the expansion of slavery anywhere in the U.S.. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
This act repealed the Missouri compromise and opened up the potential for Nebraska and Kansas to be slave states by popular sovereignty. The act further polarized the nation over slavery as pro and anti slavery forces attempted to gain control of the two states. The increasing polarization lead to the creation of the republican party as an anti-slavery party. -
Brooks-Sumner Incident
Charles Sumner, a Republican Senator, held a speech about the violence in Kansas that demanded for the admittance of Kansas as a free state and insulted the writers of the Kansas-Nebraska act. Preston Brooks, a pro-slavery democrat, responded by assaulting Sumner with a cane in the senate. The attack severely injured Sumner who was unable to preform his duties for 3 years as a result of the attack. Preston Brooks received a 300 dollar fine for the attack and no other punishment. -
Election of 1856
The Democratic party nominated James Buchanan instead of the incumbent Franklin Pierce due to Pierce's unpopularity in the North for his support of slavery. His replacement Buchanan handily won the election against republican John Fremont. The candidate from the Know-Nothings also received a significant number of votes, but the party dissolved after this election as most of the abolitionists moved the the republican party. -
LeCompton Constitution
This constitution written to protect slavery and exempt blacks from its bill of rights. The constitution initially passed a rigged referendum, but was shot down in a subsequent referendum. The eventual Kansas constitution would outlaw slavery and Kansas would become a free state. -
Dred Scott Vs. Sanford
In this case the supreme court ruled that slaves that lived in states where slavery was abolished were not free. They further decided that black people had no rights under the constitution and could not bring a case to the courts. Finally the court decided that the federal government could not forbid slavery in the territories. -
Lincoln-Douglass Debates
Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglass held a series of debates in Illinois to win the senate race. In the debate at Freeport, Illinois Lincoln pressed Douglass on the issue of outlawing slavery in the territories. Douglass stated that the people of the territories could effectively outlaw slavery by not creating laws to protect it. This "Freeport Doctrine" allowed Douglass to be reelected in Illinois however southern democrats were upset by this and split the democrat ticket in the 1860 election. -
A House Divided Speech
After winning the nomination of the Republican party for the senate race in Illinois Lincoln delivered this speech in which he emphasized the need to bring the country back together. Lincoln argued in his speech that the U.S. would eventually abolish slavery or legalize slavery throughout the entire country. His speech became instantly famous and would be a defining point of his career. -
John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry
John Brown, a radical proponent for the abolition of slavery, took a band of 22 men to a federal arsenal in Virginia with the intent to seize weapons to arm slaves. While Brown had managed to take control of the Armory at Harper's Ferry he attracted the attention of the white people in town who quickly began to arm themselves in preparation for a slave revolt. Soon after U.S. marines led by Robert E. Lee attacked the armory and killed or captured all of the raiders. -
John Brown
John Brown was an anti-slavery abolitionist who sought to bring about the end of slavery in the U.S.. He participated in several battles between pro and anti slavery forces in Kansas including the killings of several slavery advocates. He died in Virginia by execution after his raid on a federal arsenal to start a slave insurrection. -
Election of 1860
After the democratic party split their ticket between two candidates Lincoln easily managed to win enough states to win the election. The election led to the secession of the southern states who feared the emancipation of slaves in their borders. -
South Carolina Secedes from the Union
The legislature of South Carolina declares its intent to secede in opposition to the election of Abraham Lincoln. The legislature argued that Lincolns support for the rights of Blacks was opposed to the views of South Carolina and therefor had the right to secede. -
Abraham Lincoln's Inaugural Address
Following his victory in the election of 1860 Lincoln delivered an inaugural address to attempt to assuage fears that he would attempt to abolish slavery. The speech emphasized how Lincoln execute the laws of the United States and would not attempt to overstep his boundaries. The speech had little affect on the south who quickly made plans to secede from the union.