-
1518
The Middle Passage
The Middle Passage was the crossing from West Africa, over the Atlantic ocean to the West Indies and Americas that was used from about 1518 to 1865. It was used to transport West Africans to the West Indies and Americas as slaves. Slaves were transported through the Middle passage because people in the Americas and West Indies wanted slaves. Because of the Middle Passage many slaves came to the West Indies and Americas. -
Fugitive Slave Clause
The Fugitive Slave Clause was a Constitutional Clause that made it so that runaway slaves would have to be returned to their owner, no matter what state they were in. The clause was made after negotiations between Northern and Southern Delegates at the constitutional convention in Philadelphia. The Clause was made because Southerners wanted a law passed that returned their slaves if they ran away to the North. -
The Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a series of safe houses and routes that slaves in the Southern US used to escape to free states in the North or Canada from about 1810 to 1863. Slaves used the Underground Railroad because they wanted to escape slavery in the South. Because of the Underground Railroad about 100,000 slaves escaped slavery. -
The Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a bill passed by congress on March 3, 1820 that admitted Missouri as a slave state, Maine as a free state and banned slavery in all Louisiana purchase territories North of Missouri's southern border with the exception of Missouri. The compromise was made because many people wanted Missouri to be a slave state while many did not. The Missouri Compromise was the start of a long series of conflicts over the expansion of slavery. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
Nat Turner's Rebellion was a rebellion led by Nat Turner in Southampton Virginia that lasted from August 21-23. During the rebellion Nat Turner and his fellow rebels, consisting of slaves and former slaves, killed 55 white people connected to slavery in the hopes of overthrowing the system of slavery. The rebellion was eventually put down by 3000 militiamen. The rebellion caused widespread fear among white southerner's which resulted in laws being made that restricted black peoples rights. -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a compromise made up of 5 bills that were proposed by Henry Clay on January 29 1850. The compromise added California as a free state to the Union, let Utah and New Mexico decide if they wanted to be free or slave states, Permitted slavery but not slave trade in Washington D.C., made boundaries for Texas and established the fugitive slave act. The compromise was made to resolve several disputes and avoid a fight between North and South. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's cabin was a book written by Harriett Beecher Stowe with the hopes of educating Americans on the horrors of slavery. The book was wildly successful in the North and outraged people in the South. The book greatly helped the abolitionist movement. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was a bill signed into law by congress on May 30th 1854 that gave the states of Kansas and Nebraska the right to choose whether or not they wanted to be a free or slave state. The act was passed to resolve disputes over whether or not Kansas and Nebraska should be free or slave states. The act led to a long fight between pro and anti slavery people in Kansas known as Bleeding Kansas. -
Dred Scott Case
The Dred Scott case was a series of lawsuits filed by Dred and Harriett Scott, with the help of abolitionists, in order to sue for their freedom on the basis that they had lived in free states so were therefor free in the eyes of the law. Their Court battle went all of the way to the Supreme Court where they lost. The court ruling outraged abolitionists and helped create the anti slavery movement. -
John Brown's Raid
John Brown's Raid was a raid led by the abolitionist John Brown into the town of Harpers Ferry, Virginia on October 16 1869 where he hoped to spark a slave uprising in the south. The raid was put down very quickly by locals and a militia led by Robert E Lee. John Brown was put on trial and executed not long after. Although Brown's plans were very unsuccessful he was thought of as a martyr and hero in the North for his actions while southerners were outraged. -
The Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation was an order issued by Abraham Lincoln that stated that all slaves in the US are now free. It was issued in order to free people who were being held as slaves. The Emancipation Proclamation turned the civil war into a fight to end slavery.