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Louisiana Purchase
Thomas Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon for 15 million dollars. The land bought was about 827,000 square miles, and it doubled the size of the U.S. This increased tensions between the North and South because of the problem of how to divide the land. -
Missouri Compromise
Henry Clay created the Missouri Compromise that would enter as Missouri as a slave state while Maine would enter as a free state, keeping the balance between the free and slave states. Any states north of the 36’30” line would be free states, prohibiting slavery. This increased tensions between the North and the South because the South did not like Congress could ban slavery in the territories while the North did. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Nat Turner, an American slave, led the only successful slave rebellion in Southampton County, VA. He believed God was telling him that he was destined for greater, so he got help to get weapons and start the rebellion. The rebellion killed 51 whites, and this roused fear in the Southerners. This increased tensions between the North and the South since many abolitionists in the North started fighting harder for the removal of slavery, and many Southerners tightened their grip on their slaves. -
Texas Annexation
Texas joined the Union as the 28th state by a joint resolution in Congress during John Tyler’s presidency. This increased tensions between the North and the South because the North feared the expansion of slavery and war with Mexico. This is one of the causes of the Mexican-American War. On the other hand, the South supported the annexation of Texas because Texas joined as a slave state. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 had 5 laws which are a strict Fugitive Slave Act, slave trade in Washington, D.C. was abolished, California is admitted as a free state, the people in the New Mexico and Utah territories will decide about slavery through popular sovereignty, and Texas ceded its New Mexico territory for $10 million. This increased tensions between the North and the South because many slaves that were freed by Northerners were sent back to their owners. -
Fugitive Slave Act
This was an act passed by Congress that made helping runaway slaves illegal. This called for the recapture of escaped slaves to their owners. This act was part of the Compromise of 1850. Another goal of this was to eliminate the usage of the Underground Railroad. This act increased tensions between the North and the South because Northerners were required to return runaway slaves they were protecting and Southerners supported the act because they supported slavery. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom’s Cabin is a novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. It was an abolitionist novel that exaggerated slavery. About 300,000 copies were sold and it also sold well in England. This increased tensions between the North and the South because many Northerners got to see how bad slavery really is and Southerners had to work more to protect slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
This act split the Nebraska territory into Nebraska and Kansas. It also allowed each state to have popular sovereignty, meaning, the people in the states to decide for themselves if they wanted to be a free or slave state. This act repealed the Missouri Compromise. This increased tensions between the North and the South because Northerners supported and stood by the Missouri Compromise while Southerners were fine with this act because they would just decide to be a slave state. -
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Bleeding Kansas
It was a mini civil war between proslavery and antislavery advocates, for power over Kansas through popular sovereignty. Free-soil people from the North made armed emigrant groups to occupy Kansas while pro-slavery advocates came to Kansas through Missouri’s border. This event caused tensions between the North and the South because the South really wanted Kansas as a slave state. -
Brooks Attacks Sumner
Charles Sumner gave a speech that attacked Andrew Butler from South Carolina. Andrew Butler’s nephew, Preston Brooks attacked Charles with a cane 2 days after the speech while Charles was at his desk. This increased tensions between the North and the South because while the North was horrified by Preston Brooks’ actions, the South were happy and congratulated Preston Brooks for what he had done. -
Lincoln-Douglas Debate
7 debates between Stephen A. Douglas, a Democratic senator, and Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, in the 1856 Illinois senate campaign. The debates were mostly about the problem of slavery expansion to the territories. Douglas believed in popular sovereignty whereas Lincoln believed in racial equality and that “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” This increased tensions between the North and the South because the South wanted popular sovereignty and the North want racial equality. -
Raid of Harpers Ferry
A raid led by John Brown, a white abolitionist, who wanted to start an armed slave revolt by seizing US Arsenal at Harpers Ferry in VA. He was defeated by the Marines led by Robert L. Lee. In 36 hours, Brown was captured and the majority of his men were captured or killed. This increased tensions between the North and the South because the North saw John Brown as a martyr for the abolitionist cause while the South saw his actions as treasonous and were encouraged to separate from the North. -
Election of 1860
An election in which Republican Abraham Lincoln defeated Constitutional Union candidate John Bell, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, and Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge. The electoral was divided by Northern and Southern Democrats over slavery, and months later seven Southern states seceded. The election increased tensions between the North and the South because many Southerners did not vote for Lincoln while many Northerners did not vote for Breckinridge and Bell.
