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Nullification Crisis
South Carolina tests the federal government's limits by nullifying, or declaring void, the tariffs of 1828 and 1832, arguing that these tariffs are unconstitutional. South Carolina also threatened to secede if customs officials attempted to collect the tariff duties. This event highlights the divisive nature of the issue of "states' rights," an issue that would continue to create conflict in the 1840s and 1850s and eventually become a major cause of the Civil War. -
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Ineffective Presidents
Zachary Taylor was moderate on the slavery issue, setting the stage for the Compromise of 1850, but he died of a digestive ailment after serving a year and 4 months. Millard Fillmore signed the bills of the Compromise of 1850 into law. However, he did not get re-elected. Franklin Pierce's term saw the divide over slavery intensify and he was not re-nominated by the Democrats in 1856. James Buchanan fell ill and was ineffective at keeping the Union together after Lincoln was elected. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850, engineered by Henry Clay, stipulated that California would be admitted as a free state, that Utah and New Mexico would be decided by popular sovereignty, that the Texas-New Mexico border dispute would be resolved, that the sale of slaves would be banned in Washington D.C., and finally, that there would be a stricter Fugitive Slave Act. It had to be passed in separate bills, however, because the whole thing together was too divisive to be passed. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe published Uncle Tom’s Cabin in 1852. This work stirred emotions in both the North and the South. It sold more than a million copies by the middle of 1853. Its message was that slavery was not just a political issue, but a moral issue as well.
Northern abolitionists respond to the work by increasing their protests against the Fugitive Slave Act. Southerners, on the other hand, criticize the book as an attack on the whole South. -
Bleeding Kansas
Once Kansas had enough settlers to hold election for territorial legislature, it was infiltrated by "border ruffians" from Missouri who voted illegally and established a fraudulent proslavery government. Abolitionists retaliated by organizing a rival government. They also founded Lawrence, which was "sacked" by a proslavery posse. John Brown retaliated by killing 5 proslavery men. This sparks dozens of incidents, wherein around 200 were killed. It became known as "Bleeding Kansas." -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott, a slave from Missouri, filed a lawsuit to gain his freedom. He argued that he should be free because he had lived north of the Missouri Compromise line for four years. The Supreme Court ruled that slaves did not have the rights of citizens, that Scott had no claim due to the fact that he had been living in Missouri when he began his suit, and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional because Congress could not forbid slavery in the territories. -
Lincoln's Election
The Democratic Party split over the issue of slavery. Northern Democrats supported Stephen Douglas, while Southern Democrats supported John Breckinridge of Kentucky. A new party, the Constitutional Union Party, which ignored slavery, nominated John Bell. Lincoln won the election, but received less than half of the popular vote, and no electoral votes from the South. The South interpreted his election as meaning that their voice no longer had any power in the federal government. -
Lincoln's Call for Troops
In 1861, the seven southernmost states formed the Confederate States of America. Confederate soldiers began taking over federal institutions, like forts. Fort Sumter was an important fort in Charleston harbor. Lincoln sends the fort, still controlled by the Union, "food for hungry men," which is followed by Confederate President Jefferson Davis ordering an attack on Fort Sumter. Lincoln then calls for 75,000 volunteers to serve for three months and receives an overwhelming response.
