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Jacob Bell
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Underground Railroad Pt2
They were called conductors. The work they did was very dangerous. If they were caught by the slave owners or slave bounty- hunters they would be tortured or even killed. Many slave and slave helpers were beaten or killed while the Underground Railroad was in effect. But the was a risk many people were willing to take. In the end, their hard work payed off. -
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a network of secret routes and passages leading slaves to freedom from their slaveholders in the south. The Underground Railroad has been around for many years tracing all the way back to March 21, 1787. Many people had to come together to form the Underground Railroad. They were called abolitionist, or people who wanted to abolish slave. Some abolitionist in the north would come to the south to help the runaways make it too freedom in Canada. -
The Missouri Compromise
After the US bought the Louisiana Territory, Missouri wanted to apply for statehood. But there was a problem to solve when Missouri applied. That problem was if Missouri should be a slave or free state. Missouri was above the 36’ 30’ as well. On March 3, 1820 Congress passed the Missouri Compromise. The Missouri Compromise allowed Missouri to join as a slave state. For the south getting Missouri, the north got Maine. -
The Missouri Compromise Pt2
The Missouri Compromise allowed Missouri to join as a slave state.This was all to keep the balance between the free and slave states all equal and balanced. The man who came up with this compromise was Henry Clay. But the president who signed it into law was James Monroe. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Nat Turner’s Rebellion was a revolt by slaves against the slave owners. There were 60-70 slaves involved in the rebellion. But one slave named Nat Turner came up with the idea of the rebellion. The rebellion took place on August 22-23, 1831 in Southampton, Virginia. It was a 48 hour long killing of any white slave owners they saw and their families. To end the rebellion it took 3,000 militia men to kill the slaves. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion Pt2
But when the rebellion ended it got much harder for all of the blacks living in the south. Many were killed and beaten all just to strike fear into the other blacks eyes, or they had very little if not no rights at all. In the end around 200 blacks were killed after the rebellion. As a result of the rebellion the southern states passed many new laws restricting the slaves even more than before. These laws continued all the up and through the Civil War. The laws became known as the “Black Codes.” -
Nat Turner's Rebellion Pt3
All of this made it harder and more difficult on slaves throughout time. -
Compromise of 1850
As America grew, so did the slave population. So the slave owners wanted more land for their slaves. They wanted the 36’ 30’ line to extend all the way across the US. But the Union didn’t want that to happen. So they came up with the Missouri Compromise. It stated that California would join the Union as a free state. And in Washington DC the slave trade would be outlawed. In return the south would get something called the Fugitive Slave Act. -
Compromise of 1850 Pt2
That made all blacks even free ones to be brought back down to the south for work. That lead to many more difficulties and more blacks brought to the south for no reason. The person who came up with this was a man by the name of Henry Clay on January 29, 1850. He also created the Missouri Compromise. -
Harriet Beecher Stowe
There were many people who helped on the Underground Railroad. They were called abolitionist, and some went above and beyond to help and try to end slavery. One of this abolitionist was Harriet Beecher Stowe. She had written a book about a slave and how he was treated by his masters. The book was called “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” and was published on March 20, 1852.That book made many people who weren’t abolitionist, become abolitionist. In fact, that book was one of the causes of the Civil War. -
Harriet Beecher Stowe Pt2
She was even greeted by president Abraham Lincoln as “So you're the little woman who started this war.” But with her and many others, the Underground Railroad was brought to an end. Without their help, the outcome of slavery would have definitely been different. -
Kansas- Nebraska Act
As time went on so did the need for supplies in the west. So they came up with the railroad system. The Transcontinental Railroad was thought of. A man by the name of Stephen Douglass wanted Chicago to be the “Hub” or where the train will start from. But to do so, Kansas and Nebraska had to both become states. Because of the Missouri Compromise, the two states would have been free states. If that were to happen the south would not agree to those terms. -
Kansas- Nebraska Act Pt 2
So Douglass came up with the Kansas- Nebraska Act on May 30, 1854. It says to forget about the Missouri Compromise and the 36’ 30’ line and for Kansas and Nebraska to rely on popular sovereignty. Many people did not support this idea but in the end Congress passed this law making the states slave states. People saw Douglass as “a sell out to the Slave Power.” Much of this lead to fighting and bloodshed over time later being known as Bleeding Kansas. -
Bleeding Kansas
After the Kansas- Nebraska Act tensions began to grow. People would move into Kansas and vote illegally to try and stop the Slave Power from growing. But things as got more violent over time. The first act of violence was in Lawrence, Kansas started by five proslavery supporters on May 21, 1856. After that there were many other accounts of violence. Another one was led by John Brown and with him other anti-slavery supporters. -
Bleeding Kansas Pt2
John Brown and the other anti-slavery supporters dragged five men out of there sleep and killed them in front of their family. After that there was much more looting and raids in Kansas. Soon it became known as a mini Civil War. All of this led up to the Civil War. -
Dred Scott Case
While Bleeding Kansas was happening, a slave by the name of Dred Scott wanted his freedom and went to court for it on March 6, 1857. Scott thought he should be free because he had lived in free territory for a few years. So Scott went to court for his freedom trying to sue in federal court. This case went on for 11 years and eventually Scott losing. The Supreme Court ended up saying that Africans would never and could never be US citizens. -
Dred Scott Case
That means black could also not sue in a federal court like Scott tried to. With this, the government did not have the power to prohibit slavery in the territories. After these 11 years, Scott still remained a slave. But a childhood friend of Dred Scott’s had bought Scott and freed him but dying only nine months later. -
The Raid on Harpers Ferry
With all the raiding and looting that was going on, there was a raid on a weapons arsenal. It is known as the Raid on Harpers Ferry and was led by a man named John Brown on October 16, 1859. With him there were 22 other men and actually some were blacks helping in taking over the arsenal. Brown thought that if they attacked the arsenal other slaves would revolt and join in. But instead of slaves it was the townspeople that helped. -
The Raid on Harpers Ferry Pt2
With the help of all the people, Brown wanted to continue south and have more and more people join in leading a revolt against proslavery people. But sooner or later General Robert E Lee and some soldiers went down to Harpers Ferry. The soldiers ended up killing half of the men helping Brown, two of which were Brown’s sons. The other half of Brown’s men, including Brown, surrendered over to the soldiers. -
The Raid on Harpers Ferry Pt3
John Brown was taken to court where he was tried convicted of treason and sentenced to death by hanging. In the end, John Brown had definitely failed. -
Presidential Election of 1860
Its 1860 and a new president is needed. There are four candidates in the running for president. They were Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, John Breckinridge, and John Bell. But at first Abraham Lincoln wasn't supposed to be in the running. It was supposed to be a man named William Henry Seward. But Seward was thought to be too aggressive towards ending slavery and the delegates wanted to gain the states they had lost. -
Presidential Election of 1860 Pt2
So the delegates picked Abraham Lincoln instead even though Seward was the leading candidate for the Republicans. Lincoln had all the northern states while John Breckinridge took the southern states. Stephen Douglas took only Missouri and the southern part of New Jersey. Then John Bell took the border states with only Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. But in the end Abraham Lincoln took the president spot on November 6, 1860.
