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Missouri Compromise
Missouri wanted to join as a slave state, but that would disrupt the balance of states in Congress. To solve this, Henry Clay came up with a solution. Missouri would be admitted as a slave state, Maine would be admitted as a free state. Alongside that, any area in the Louisiana Territory North of Missouri's southern border would be free, and slave owners now had the right to pursue escaped slaves in free states. This temporarily solved the issue of slavery. -
Wilmot Proviso
Representative David Wilmot from Pennsylvania proposed a ban on all slavery in the Mexican Cession Territories. This event took place because politicians didn’t know if the new territory they gained from the Mexican- American war should be a free or slave territory. He took the idea to Congress, but it didn't make an impact because the bill passed in the House, but not in the Senate. Many southerners got very angry about the proposition, even if it didn’t go into effect. -
Compromise of 1850
After tensions rose again between the North and South, Henry Clay came up with a compromise. It stated that California would be admitted as a free state, the territories from the Mexican Cession would vote if they wanted to be a free or slave state, the slave trade would be ended in Washington DC, there would be a strict fugitive slave law, and Texas would give up New Mexico for 10 million dollars. The compromise was passed in Congress, and it made both sides calm down. -
Fugitive Slave Act
Henry Clay came up with the Compromise of 1850, and when he did the Fugitive Slave Act was born. This law allowed officers to arrest anyone accused of being a runaway slave, and it required the Northerners to help. Southerners were happy with this act, but it outraged the Northerners, especially the abolitionists who witnessed many free African Americans, and friends getting wrongfully captured and enslaved. It wasn't long before every African American soon had no safe place to go. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe, an abolitionist woman, wrote a book called Uncle Tom’s Cabin which highlighted the horrors of slavery. It quickly became a bestseller in the North, and it inspired a lot of people. Meanwhile, in the South, the book was banned and if someone was caught reading it they could be executed. The story spread like wildfire and even went worldwide. Later, in years to come, the book would be thought of the reason why the Civil War happened. -
Kansas Nebraska Act/Bleeding Kansas
Stephen Douglas created the Kansas Nebraska Act which allowed people in that territory to vote on the issue of slavery. This turned violent after people from the North and the South moved there to have a say in the matter (Pro or Anti-slavery). People died because of the violence, some of it lead by John Brown, and many people were hurt. This event came to be known as Bleeding Kansas. In the end, Kansas joined the Union a few years later but as a free state. -
Dred Scott Case 1857
Dred Scott, an African American slave, sued for his freedom after working as a slave in two free states. The case went to the Supreme Court where they decided that Scott had no right to sue because he wasn't considered a citizen of the US. The case didn't give Scott freedom, but it changed the rules of slavery. They stated that Congress had no power to prohibit slavery in any area. This angered abolitionists because their hopes to end slavery were gone, but the southerners were overjoyed. -
Lincoln Douglas Debate
Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas were running for state senator and at the time the held multiple debates focusing on the issues of slavery and popular sovereignty. This event took place in multiple locations all around Illinois. Both men had great arguments for their topics but in the end, Douglas won the election. However, Lincoln still came close and inspired many people, along with creating a more solid foundation for the Republican Party. -
John Brown's Raid
John Brown raided a federal arsenal with five of his sons and other men for weapons in Harper's Ferry, Virginia. They hoped that slaves would come and join the fight, but when they didn’t Brown and his group was overpowered and captured. Despite his good intentions to free slaves, he killed many innocent people and was hung for his actions. -
Lincoln's Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln was running for president and won despite only getting the support of 44% of the people in the popular election. In the electoral college, he won in every single free state while his opponents such as Breckinridge won in almost all slave states, while Douglas and Bell got the last few. Lincoln criticized slavery and wanted to ban it in the West. His victory made many people mad in the South, and South Carolina seceded not long after his election, and other states followed. -
Southern Secession
After Lincoln's election, South Carolina seceded from the Union. After that, Florida, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, and Alabama all seceded as well, and under the leadership of Jefferson Davis, they formed the Confederate States of America. They took over property, and at Fort Sumter, the Confederates tried to starve the Union army into surrendering. They attacked the fort when they didn't comply, therefore beginning a Civil War. After this event, more states joined the Confederacy.
