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Uncle Tom's Cabin
As a result of the passing of the Fugitive Slave Law, abolitionist and author, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote "Uncle Tom's Cabin".This novel showed the cruelty of slavery based on a true story of a slave Beecher had met. This novel created many antislavers. -
Republican Party
The Republican Party was created as a result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The Republican Party wanted slavery to be excluded from all territories. This party swept the North, and eventually Abraham Lincoln would join. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act, proposed by Senator Stephen Douglas, repealed the Missouri Compromise and created Kansas and Nebraska. This destroyed the notion of sectional peace. -
Brooks-Sumner Incident
After the sack of Lawrence, Senator Charles Sumner gave a speech called "The Crime Against Kansas" in which he insulted the people of Missouri and specifically Senator Andrew Butler. Representative of South Carolina, Preston Brooks, felt Sumner had gone too far. Two days later, Brooks repeatedly battered Sumner with his cane in the Senate. The fact that Southerners supported Brooks' actions enraged Northerners. -
Bloody Kansas
As a result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Northerners and Southerners fought over Kansas to have control over the region. Elections and conventions would be held in competition. There was a constant back and forth until eventually, on May 30th, 1856, 800 proslavery men marched into Kansas to arrest the leaders of the anti-slavery government. Antislavers would attack unknowing proslavers too such as John Brown killing 5 with a sword. All of this resulted in a war in Kansas leaving even more dead. -
Election of 1856
While Pierce wanted to run for renomination, the democrats wanted someone less controversial and chose James Buchanan. Buchanan would then go on to defeat his opponent, John C. Fremont, in one of the most bitter elections ever. -
Lecompton Constitution
The Lecompton Constitution was one of the proposed constitutions for Kansas that never went through. It provided voters three options, to either reject the document, approve the constitution with slavery, or only allow Kansonians who already own slaves to be slave owners. -
Dred Scott
In the case of Scott v. Sanford, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress couldn't prohibit slavery in the territories and black people had no rights that white people had to respect. Republicans hated this decision and felt that it was a move to legalize slavery throughout the U.S. -
Secession
Lincoln's victory in the election made South Carolina's secession from the Union a guarantee. Many states would soon follow suit. The states to attempt to secede were South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina would also threaten to secede. The Union wouldn't let the states secede and so, war was the only option. -
House Divided Speech
To open his Campaign, Lincoln gave a speech called the "House Divided Speech". This speech was a counter to the Dred Scott decision and said that if the U.S. wanted to be a free country, it had to act soon. This marked Lincoln's entry into national politics. -
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Lincoln-Douglas debates
A series of debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas about slavery and its influence. Douglas believed that slavery couldn't be treated as a local problem and black people shouldn't be citizens. Lincoln believed if left unchecked, slavery would spread to become a national institution and that while black people shouldn't be equal economically and politically, black people are equal to every man in terms of rights. While Douglas won the Senate seat, Lincoln's popularity was boosted. -
Harper's Ferry
John Brown, despite the warning of Frederick Douglass, took a group of 21 men to Harper's Ferry. When there, they seized the federal arsenal, an armory, and munitions worth millions of dollars. After two days and a fight with the Marines, Brown was captured. This event increased tension between the North and the South because it made the South believe the North wanted to free the slaves and start a war, leading to the South believing that secession was their only choice. -
John Brown's Execution
For the attack on Harper's Ferry, Brown was put on trial for treason in a Virginia court. Brown refused to plea insanity and said that his only goal was to liberate the slaves. Brown was found guilty of treason, conspiracy, and murder. Northern politicians spoke against Brown's actions but the South felt like they only did that because he was caught. -
Election of 1860
Even though Lincoln had 39 percent of the popular vote, Lincoln had the majority of the Electoral votes, and so, Lincoln defeated Douglas, John C. Bell, and John C. Breckenridge in the election. This would upset slave owners greatly because Lincoln was against slavery. -
Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Address
In Lincoln's address, he promised not to interfere with places that had already established slavery and tried to convince the South not to secede from the Union as it was unconstitutional. This speech did not stop the South from attempting to secede and eventually going to war.