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Protective Tariffs 1816
1816: protective tariff on cheap textile imports to protect American industry. 1824: protective tariff on expensive textile imports. North and West support, South oppose. Cheap textiles used to clothe slaves. Now more expensive and slavery less profitable. Expensive textiles to clothe themselves. Strongly favored New England. South viewed it as a federal law that favored one region of the country, causing the beginnings of animosity between the two regions. -
Indian Removal Act 1830
Indians on good farming land. Southerners trying to increase farmland. Treaties were proposed & Indians resisted. Many tried assimilating to American culture to prevent their removal. 1830: President Jackson proposed the Indian Removal Act. Under this, the tribes living east of the Mississippi would be moved to reservations west of it. Passed by 2 votes. Government began forcibly removing Native Americans from their land - Trail of Tears. South support, North oppose. Division grows because this. -
Railroad Revolution 1850s
Tens of thousands of miles of railroad track built throughout the United States. Trains had become dominant mode of transportation. Interstate travel and commerce on the rise. Made shipping and transportation faster, easier, and cheaper. North and West strongly connected by railroad and canals. The South routinely left out and was not as connected to the rest of the country. This caused an increase in sectionalism between the North and South. -
Fugitive Slave Act 1850
1840s: Northern states had personal liberty laws - didn't enforce the Fugitive Slave Clause, which requires states to return runaway. Changed in 1850 with the Fugitive Slave Act. Under this, the Federal government was the enforcer & appropriated money to it. Took fugitive slave cases from the state level to the federal level. Judges paid twice as much to say a black brought to court was a fugitive. North oppose, South support. Creates larger divide. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkHK8qDrTTM -
Uncle Tom's Cabin 1852
Harriet Beecher Stowe writes Uncle Tom’s Cabin to show how horrific slavery was. She writes about slavery in a familial sense - people could relate to a mother losing her children. It was very influential. It was banned in Southern states. Greatly increased animosity between North and South because now the entire country better understood what slavery was and how slaves were treated, causing more to speak out against it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPtX2kRBBLk -
Bleeding Kansas & Caning in Congress 1854
With the Kansas-Nebraska Act, abolitionists and slave supporters went to vote on the status of slavery. Caused a ‘civil war’ between parties. 1000 people died. Senator Charles Sumner accused Congressman Brooks of committing crimes against free state groups. Brooks then walks in and beats him with his cane. Brooks is dismissed & later receives 100+ canes from Southerners. Gave the message “It’s for the next Northerner.” Sectional tension increased. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCbXM_pt2qY -
Dred Scott vs. Sandford 1857
LA slave Dred Scott was inherited by owner’s relative in IL. Scott sues for his freedom. It was decided that Scott could not sue for his freedom because he was not a citizen & Illinois could not deny an inheritor property. Chief Justice added an obiter dictum stating, ‘Furthermore, this case is irrelevant because a black man has no rights like a white because they are so inferior.’ Made Northerners irate, animosity between the 2 regions increased. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OML9AVR10PQ
