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Importation of Slaves Ends
Article 1, Section 9, Clause 1 of the Constitution stated that the migration or importation of slaves was not prohibited prior to 1808, but a tax could be placed on said importation. This was a social and economic event. -
The Missouri Compromise
This admitted Missouri as a slave state, and Maine as a free state. This was a political event. -
The Wilmot Proviso
David Wilmot proposed a bill that stated “neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever exist” in any territory gained from Mexico (Mcgraw Hill). Southerners reacted to this negatively, fearing that it threatened slavery everywhere. John C. Calhoun even made resolutions countering it. This shows how angry the southerners were. This event was social and political. -
The Compromise of 1850
Stephen A. Douglas divided Henry Clay's original, larger compromise (which discussed possible restrictions on slavery) into smaller bills so that the senators could vote against parts they opposed, and support the rest. Eventually, Congress passed all parts of the original proposal. This was a political event. -
The Fugitive Slave Act
The Fugitive Slave Act stated that any African American could be accused of being a runaway, and be captured. They had no way to testify, so they couldn't prove their case. Commissioners also often voted in favor of the slaveholders, because they had an incentive to do so. This was a social and political event. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
This was a book written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, who witnessed slavery herself. The book (and dramatization) reached a huge audience, and caused many people to change their perception of slavery. However, the slavery supporting southerners reacted to it negatively, claiming the information in it was false. They also tried to have the book banned. -
The Kansas Nebraska Act
This act repealed the Missouri Compromise, and divided the region into two territories. Nebraska in the north (intended to be a free state), and Kansas in the south (intended to be a slave state). Even though their was opposition from Northern Democrats, the Kansas Nebraska Act was passed. This was a political event. -
Bleeding Kansas
This was what people called the territory in Kansas that had become a battleground for a territorial civil war between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers. Around 200 people died fighting. This was a social and political event. -
The Caning of Charles Sumner
This started out with a feud between Charles Sumner and Andrew P. Butler. After Sumner singled out Butler, his second cousin (Preston Brooks) confronted Sumner, and ended up beating him with a cane. The event caused northern outrage, while southerners called Brooks a hero. The extreme disagreement caused even more tension between the north and south. This was a social event. -
The Dred Scott Decision
This was a court case where Dred Scott, (a slave who was originally from Missouri, but resided in Illinois and Louisiana) filed suit in Missouri for his freedom, claiming that since he resided in a free state, he was a free man. Scott ultimately lost the case. This was a social and political issue.