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John Brown
John Brown was a prominent abolitionist during the unrest before the Civil War. He was known for arming slaves in order to incite revolts as well as fighting and killing many slave owners and pro-slavers. one of his most notable acts was the attack on Harpers Ferry which was done to incite a mass slave revolt among the south. After this attack failed he was hanged for treason. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin was a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852, this novel was extremely popular at the time of its publishing. Uncle Tom's Cabin's popularity is likely attributable to the rising tension between the pro slavery south and abolitionist north. This novel also served to increase this tension by showing the atrocities of slavery in the south and also cementing the idea that the two ideologies were inconsolable. -
Republican Party
The Republican Party was formed in response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act because they believed that it should not make the spreading of slavery possible. The Republican Party was the party Lincoln ran under during the Lincoln-Douglas debates as well as his running and subsequent winning of the Presidential Election -
Kansas-nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was an act passed by congress that enacted popular sovereignty in the Nebraska and Kansas territories to decide if they would enter the union as free or slave states. The act also repealed the Missouri Compromise. -
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Bloody Kansas
Bloody Kansas was the time after Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed, enacting popular sovereignty in Kansas. the bloody aspect of Bloody Kansas refers to the pro-slavery and abolitionist groups that moved and settled in Kansas and then used violence to force people to agree with their beliefs. These acts of violence culminated into many bloody battles between pro-slavers and abolitionists, many people dying in these battles. -
Brooks-Sumner Incident
The Brooks-Sumner Incident occurred within the Senate Chamber in 1856. After a speech Senator Sumner gave in which he made several scathing criticisms of slave owners and specifically Andrew Butler who was a relative of representative Brookes, Brookes attacked Sumner with his cane. The attack was nearly fatal for Sumner and is considered to be symbolic of the breakdown of the relationship between the pro-slavery South and abolitionist North. -
Election of 1856
The election of 1856 was during the pre-civil war era and would be influential on how the government handled the rising tension between the North and South. the three candidates were James Buchanan, John Fremont and, Millar Fillmore. James Buchanan, under the Democratic Party won with 174 Electoral Votes. In the coming years Buchanan would have a great impact on the future of the Union, most notably by reaffirming the ruling of the Dredd Scott case which was a factor leading to the Civil War. -
The Lecompton Constitution
The Lecompton Constitution was a proposed constitution for the territory of Kansas which was heavily pro-slavery and slave holder rights. The proposed constitution was the second of four proposed constitutions and was rejected on January 4th 1858. -
Dred Scott V. Sandford
Dred Scott V. Sandford was an extraordinarily important Supreme Court case. The case's main questions were whether or not slaves were free if they entered a free state and if they could be considered a citizen and thus if they had the right to sue at all. the Supreme Court ruled in a large majority that slaves were property and thus could not be citizens and could not be freed and thus taken from their owners upon entering a free state. This case would have lasting impacts into the Civil War. -
House Divided Speech
On June 6th 1858 Senatorial candidate Abraham Lincoln gave a speech regarding the tensions between the North and the South and how the union could not stand with its regions in complete opposition. -
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Lincoln-Douglas Debates
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates were a series of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas between August and October of 1858 in an attempt from both of them to be elected to the Senate. Lincoln was the leading candidate for the Republican party while Douglas was the leading candidate for the Democratic party. The two debated on several topics, most prominently being slavery. Although Lincoln lost the debates gained him national notoriety which likely led to his presidency. -
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
on October 16th, 1859 John Brown and several other abolitionists began a raid on Harper's Ferry in order to take the US armory there and then create a slave revolt throughout the south. The raid was unsuccessful and lead to the death of almost the entire raiding party including John Brown. This event is often considered a precursor to the Civil War. -
Election of 1860
The election of 1860 was the last election before the Civil War and would eventually come to heavily affect how the war played out. the two most prominent candidates were Abraham Lincoln and John Breckinridge with John Bell and Stephen Douglas coming in 3rd and 4th. Abraham Lincoln, under the Republican Party won with 180 electoral votes. Lincoln would come to be one of if not the most prominent figure during the Civil War and eventually pass the 13th Amendment. -
Secession of the South
The secession of the South began with South Carolina followed by other Deep South states and then the border states after the fall of Fort Sumter. After the south seceded from the battle of Fort Sumter which then led into the Civil War. -
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Speech
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Speech was his first speech given as president. In the speech. The speech largely focused on the South and how to make concessions with them to ensure the stability of the Union. The speech also mentioned how rebellion would not be tolerated if the south refused to rejoin the union.