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Missouri Compromise
From 1820-1821 Maine was admitted as a free state and Missouri as a slave state. The rest of the Louisiana Territory was split into two parts. The dividing line was set at 36°30´ north latitude. South of the line, slavery was legal. North of the line—except in Missouri—slavery was banned -
The Liberator
The Liberator was a newspaper written by William Lloyd Garrison, a white radical abolitionist. It was an anti-slavery paper used to demand the immediate emancipation of slaves. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Turner and more than 50 followers attacked four plantations and killed about 60 whites. Whites eventually captured and executed many members of the group, including Turner. -
The North Star
The North Star was another anti-slavery newspaper written by Frederick Douglass. It was named after the star that guided runaway slaves to freedom. It was used to denounce slavery, but to fight for the emancipation of women and other oppressed groups as well. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was five separate bills passed by the United States Congress that defused a political confrontation between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired in the Mexican–American War. California was admitted to the Union as the 16th free state. In exchange, the south was guaranteed that no federal restrictions on slavery would be placed on Utah or New Mexico. The Compromise overturned the Missouri Compromise and left the issue of slavery unsettled. -
Underground Railroad
Free African Americans and white abolitionists developed a secret network of people who would, at great risk to themselves, hide fugitive slaves. The system of escape routes they used became known as the Underground Railroad. Conductors on the routes hid fugitives in secret tunnels and false cupboards, provided them with food and clothing, and escorted or directed them to the next station. -
Fugitive Slave State
Under the law, alleged fugitive slaves were not entitled to a trial by jury. In addition, anyone convicted of helping a fugitive was liable for a fine of $1,000 and imprisonment for up to six months. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin is an anti-slavery novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It is about Uncle Tom. He is being transported by to an auction in New Orleans and saves a younger girl named Eva. Her father is grateful and purchases him. Tom and Eva become great friends. -
Kansas- Nebraska Act
The Kansas- Nebraska Act created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska so each territory could decide whether or not to allow slavery. It was drafted by Senator Stephen A. Douglas. -
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry
John Brown gathered 21 men, black and white, to attack Harpers Ferry, Virginia in efforts to seize the federal arsenal and start a slave uprising. Troops put down the rebellion and Brown was later executed. -
Formation of the Confederacy
Confederate states included Mississippi, South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, and Texas. They "protected and recognized" slavery. The president of the Confederacy was Jeffery Davis. -
Attack on Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the bombardment of Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina by the South Carolina militia, and the return gunfire and subsequent surrender by the United States Army, that started the American Civil War. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation did not free all slaves in the United States. Rather, it declared free only those slaves living in states not under Union control. ... It also tied the issue of slavery directly to the war. -
Surrender at Appomattox Court House
Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. Agreements: allowing the men to return to their homes and letting the officers, cavalrymen, and artillerymen keep their swords and horses if the men agreed to lay down their arms and abide by federal law. -
Thirteenth Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment to The United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
