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Wilmot Proviso
Many Northerners suspected that Southerners wanted to take land from Mexico to extend the amount of Slavery. The Northerners feared that this would unbalance the number of slave states and free states. To stop this, the North proposed a bill lead by Wilmot Proviso to outlaw slavery in any territory that the USA might aquire from Mexico. The Southerners weren't happy with this, so they went to congress, and they declined the law. -
Compromise of 1850
When the USA received the land from Mexico, the South and the North both wanted California because hundreds of thousands of people lived there. The Compromise of 1850 was a line seperating Slave States from Free states. When California was coming in to be a state, California decided to become a free state. That angered the South. >>These are the free and slave states. If the North got Calif. it would be unbalanced again. -
Fugitive Slave Act
This was when Northerners had to recapture any runaway slaves in the North. It went well for the South since they claimed that slaves were their property. But, Northerners were outraged since they didn't believe in slavery. It caused many Northerners to become abolitionist against slavery. This picture is a document stating the law of the fugitive slave act. Any runaway slaves had to be returned back to their owners. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe was so outraged by the fugitive slave act that she published a book called Uncle Tom's Cabin. The novel represented how cruel and immortal slavery was. She tried to inspire the South how cruel slavery was, but it wasn't a sucess down South, but it broke people's hearts in the North. This is an image of the cover of Uncle Tom's Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
This was a bill proposed by Senator Douglas to propose to divide the territory into two parts of Kansas and Nebraska. To get the Southern support for the bill he used popular sovereignty. The south liked this bill because people would be able to vote for slavery if they wanted it. This bill angered the North because no one knew that Kansas would turn out to be a violent and bloody battleground. This is an image of how the Kansas-Nebraska Act was accomplished. Kansas was open to be anything. -
Formation of Republican Party
After the South left the whig party, they formed a Democratic party. Meanwhile, the North formed a Republican party. Much of the North supported the Republican party, while the South pretty much controlled the Democratic party. In the 1856 presidential election John C. Fremont ran for the Republicans, but ended up losing to James Buchanan. This is an image of John C. Fremont who was the first republican to run for president. -
Bleeding Kansas
During the March 1855 election, the pro-slavery representatives voted illegally, and by the end of the election the legislative was filled with pro-slavery representatives. In response, John Brown (extreme abolitionist) led a massacre on five of his proslavery neighbors. As news of the massacre spread, a civil war broke out, and Kansas was named Bleeding Kansas because of the violence. This is a picture of one of the battles that took place during Bleeding Kansas. It's also a cover on a book -
Caning of Charles Sumner
Charles Sumner was a Senator from Massachusettes who spoke against pro-slavery forces in Kanasas. In his speech, he insulted A.P. Butler, a senator from South Carolina. Preston Brooks was a relative of Butler who heard the speech, and he attacked Sumner with his cane until he was unconscious. People in the South cheered on Brooks, but in the North, they were shocked by the senate violence. This is the scene of when Brooks beat Sumner unconscious with his cane. -
Dred Scott Case
When Dred Scott's slave owner died, Scott thought he was then a free man since he had lived in territories were slaves were illegal. Scott, his daughters, and his wife sued the supreme court for his freedom. In 1857, the court ruled against Scott because they said he was not a U.S. citizen. Since Dred Scott was black, he wasn't considered a U.S. citizen. This is one of the documents that Dred Scott used in his case with the Supreme Court. -
Attack on Harper's Ferry
John Brown, who had murdered a few pro-slavery Kansans was off to provoke another incident at Harper's Ferry. He and 18 followers captured the arsenal at Harper's Ferry. Then he went out to arm local slaves, but no slaves joined the fight. the U.S. marines captured Brown, and six others with ten men killed. Brown was sentenced to get hung, and on the date of his death, abolitonist's fired guns and rang bells in his sallute. This is John Brown who led the attack on Harper's Ferry. -
Election of 1860
In the 1860 election, the South wanted a president that allowed slavery, while the North wanted a president that opposed slavery. In the North, they favored Abraham Lincoln, and in the South they favored John Breckinridge. The outcome made it clear that the nation was tired of compromise, showing that Lincoln won. Southerners took this as a threat to their way of life because they thought Lincoln would abolish slavery. This is a map of how the 1860 election played out. -
Secession
Even before Lincoln became president the South said that if he won they would drop out of the U.S.A. They then formed the Confederate States of America in 1861. They made their own Confederate Constitution which modeled the U.S. constitution. The North considered the secession unconstitutional. In an effort to bring the nation together again they made another compromise but failed to pass. Now the South was officially thier own country. This is a map of the Confederate States of America.
