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Missouri Compromise
The North and South divided the country into an area that would allow slavery and an area that wouldn't. Any land under the Missouri Compromise Line could have slavery, any land above it could not. -
Wilmont Proviso
David Wilmot, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, tried and failed to pass the Wilmot Proviso. This law would have banned slavery in any land America won from Mexico in the Mexican-American War. This upset the South because it went directly against what was agreed upon in the Missouri Compromise. -
Popular Sovereignty
Many people thought that slavery should be decided on a case-by-case basis. Each state should hold a vote and decide if it will allow slavery. This was called POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY- the idea that people living in a territory had the right to decide by voting whether to allow slavery. Many Northerners supported the idea, believing Northerners would settle most of the new territory and then ban slavery there. -
California Wants To Enter As A Free State
In 1849, thousands of Americans moved to California in search of gold. Soon California had enough people to be considered a state. California asks Congress if it can enter as a free state (no slavery). This sparks another major debate over how to decide if a state should allow slavery or not. -
Compromise of 1850
Congress decides California's fate with the Compromise of 1850. The compromise lets California become a free state, says popular sovereignty will determine the slavery issue in the Utah and New Mexico territories, and passes stricter laws for catching escaped slaves. The North and the South each get something they want. -
Kansas/Nebraska Act
The land WEST of the Mississippi River and NORTH of Texas was considered "Unorganized Territory," which means it didn't have a lot of towns or local government. According to the Missouri Compromise, it was supposed to be free. When this land is split into the Kansas and Nebraska territories, Congress decides each territory will use popular sovereignty to decide if slavery will be legal. This ends the Missouri Compromise and upsets the North. -
Bleeding Kansas
Kansas became the first battleground between those favoring the extension of slavery and those opposing it. Since eastern Kansas offered the same climate and rich soil as the slave state of Missouri, settlers moving there from Missouri were likely to bring enslaved persons with them. Northerners hurried into the territory in hopes of creating an antislavery majority. Fighting broke out between anti-slavery and pro-slavery groups, leading to the death of 200 people. Kansas voted to allow slavery. -
Caning of Charles Sumner
The day after Kansas declared itself a slave territory, fighting broke out in Congress. A Northern senator, Charles Sumner, said Southerners forced Kansas to accept slavery. A Southern senator, Preston Brooks, got upset and attacked Sumner (beat him with a cane). Southerners support Brooks. A Northern priest says the North is out of options - the North must fight back if they want to end slavery.
