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Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a set of bills to keep the nation united and prevent conflict between the north and south, which included that California was to be admitted as a free state, the slave trade was outlawed in D.C., the rest of Mexican Cession decided by popular sovereignty, and the Fugitive Slave Law was passed. The importance is that it was built to keep the north and south together to avoid the Civil War, however this was only a temporary solution. -
Fugitive Slave Law
The Fugitive Slave Law required U.S. citizens to help return escaped slaves. It was very iimportant because it was extremely controversial and deepened the divisions in the country over the issue of slavery. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin publication
This novel was a best selling book writen by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It was about an African American slave the horrible things that he ahd to go through. This touched many Americans and was important for helping the Abolitionist Movement and making Americans realize what is going on by allowing them to relate with a specific character. -
Birth of the Republican Party
Ater the Kansas-Nebraska Bill was passed, the Whigs began to disintegrate. Anti-slavery Whigs had begun meeting to discuss the formation of a new party.The importance of this new party is that it was formed to be against slavery and it's population grew rapidly. Also, the election of a Republican president (Abraham Lincoln) was the catalyst that made the South secede from the nation. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
This act created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska and made new land open for settlement, The importance was that it had the effect of repealing the Missouri Compromise of 1820 by allowing popular sovereignty to deicde whether they would allow slavery within each territory. -
Sumner attacks Brooks in Senate
While debating whether Kansas should be admitted as a free or a slave state, Brooks (against the abolitionist movement) violently attakc ks Sumner (pro-abolitionist movement) with a cane.The importance of this was that it signalled the end of an era of compromise and sectional accommodation in the Senate. -
Dred Scott v. Sanford
This case was a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court said that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, could not be American citizens and therefore had no standing to sue in federal court. This case is important because the Supremem Court deemed the 5th Amendment null and void and it is a monumental moment in civil rights history. -
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John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
John Brown is an abolitionist who lead a small group on a raid against a federal armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in an attempt to start an armed slave revolt. The importance of this was a big step for the abolitionist movement and it was an attempt to destroy the institution of slavery. -
Election of 1860
This election was very important because it was the Republican president, Abraham Lincoln. THe south had threatened to secede if a Republican president was elected, and he was. This was what finally made the south secede from the nation. Also it is the first time a president showed favoritism toward any of the north/south conflicts, such as slavery. -
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Shots fired at Fort Sumter, SC
Fort Sumter is most important for being the site where the first shots of the Civil War began. Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard bombarded Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Anderson and 86 soldiers surrendered the fort on April 13.
