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Period: to
1830’s-1850’s
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Second Party System
National Republicans became the Whigs. Northern Whigs were businessmen, while Southern Whigs were wealthy plantation owners. -
David Walker “Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World”
In the fall of 1829 he wrote and published a pamphlet entitled, “Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World.” In the pamphlet, Walker denounced slavery and encouraged enslaved people to fight for their freedom. David Walker was a free black from New York who argued against slavery through citation sof religion, and inspired a few Northerners to speak out against slavery. -
Congress Imposes “Gag Rule” (1836-1844)
Congress imposed “gag rule” on the slavery issue in 1836, because the slavery debate distracted from other political matters. -
Compromise of 1850
Henry Clay made another compromise, to but a bandage on the slavery issue. The fugitive slave act was amended, the slave trade in Washington was abolished, California was entered into the Union as a free state, and a territorial government was created in Utah. -
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
In 1852, Harriet Beacher Stowe published “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” which sold so many copies, it rivaled the Bible. The book was a huge success, not only in America, but Europe also. By the late 1850’s abolishionists were in the hundreds of thousands. -
Franklin Pierce’s Presidency
He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the United States of America’s unity. He signed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and enforced the Fugitive Slave Act. -
End of the Whig Party
During the mid-1850’s the Whigs became divided over the slavery issue and some split off into third parties. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Stephan Douglas organized the central plains. He appealed to the South by allowing for sovereignty in Kansas & Nebraska territories. The North transcontinental railroad would be built across it from Chicago to San Francisco. -
Ostend Manifesto
A document detailing the buying of Cuba from Spain, while implying that the US would go to war with Spain if Spain refused to sell. It was rejected when the North learned about this, as it was perceived as a way for the South the drag the US into a war supporting the expansion of slavery. It was rejected due to being too audacious and politically unacceptable. -
Emergence of the Republican Party
Issues over slavery in Kansas led to tension sin the territory, and in congress. During this incident, the Republican Party emerged, to combat the expansion of slavery into American territories. -
Dred Scott Supreme Court Ruling
From 1846-1857
In its 1857 decision that stunned the nation, the United States Supreme Court upheld slavery in United States territories, denied the legality of black citizenship in America, and declared the Missouri Compromise to be unconstitutional. In essence, the decision argued that, as someone's property, Scott was not a citizen and could not sue in a federal court. -
Abraham Lincoln wins 1860 presidential election
Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 election, and with a republican winning the presidency, South Carolina seceded, with many other southern states following. The president at the time, James Buchanan didn’t respond to the issue, and by the time Abraham Lincoln was sworn into office, 7 states had seceded from the Union.