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Following fighting between American and Mexican forces along the Rio Grande, the Mexican-American War (1846–1848) broke out. Major areas of the Southwest were taken over by the United States, which quickly won important conflicts. Sectional tensions increased as a result of the new territory, sparking heated discussions about whether slavery should spread and ultimately leading to the Civil War, (Varon, Chapter 6). -
Congressman David Wilmot proposed the Wilmot Proviso on August 8, 1846. It outlawed slavery in any area that the United States had gained from Mexico following the Mexican-American War. Slaveholding interests gained more power in the Senate, where it repeatedly failed despite passing the House swiftly. It revealed a growing political gap between the North South, caused heated debates if slavery should spread westward, + contributed to the formation of the Republican Party (Varon, Chapter 6). -
Six laws known as the Compromise of 1850 were designed to reduce conflicts between slave and free states. The boundary between Texas New Mexico was established, California was accepted as a free state, Utah New Mexico were granted popular sovereignty, Texas's debt was taken on by the federal government. It also created a stricter Fugitive Slave Law and outlawed the slave trade in Washington, D.C. These actions were supported by Stephen A. Douglas and Henry Clay to maintain the Union. -
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) was Harriet Beecher Stowe’s bestselling novel, exposing the brutality and moral horror of slavery. Many Northerners became more supportive of abolition by learning about the hardships endured by enslaved people. The South were offended by the book because they believed it presented an inaccurate and exaggerated image of slavery. Divisions increased as a result of its immense popularity, bringing the country even closer to war. -
The Fugitive Slave Act led to Anthony Burns' arrest in Boston on May 24th,1854, which sparked widespread demonstrations in the north. Many Northerners were shocked when federal troops returned him to slavery in spite of public protest. The case deepened the widening rift between the North and the South, revealed the harsh reach of the law, and bolstered antislavery sentiment, (Varon, Chapter 7). -
Under a system known as popular sovereignty, the Kansas–Nebraska Act gave residents in Kansas + Nebraska the right to vote on whether or not toallowslavery. It reopened the expansion of slavery into formerly free territories by overturning the Missouri Compromise. Pro-slavery and anti-slavery organizations poured into Kansas, causing bloody conflicts known as "Bleeding Kansas." Political parties were split apart, national tensions rose, and the Republican Party emerged as a result. -
After the Kansas-Nebraska Act allowed settlers to choose whether or not to carry out slavery, pro-slavery Missourians and anti-slavery Northerners flooded the region.This causedBleeding Kansas. The national division was revealed by violent conflicts, rigged elections, the Sack of Lawrence, and John Brown's retribution. The conflict demonstrated how Northern independence was threatened by the Fugitive Slave Act and "Slave Power." Thisbrought the country closer to war (Varon, Chapter 7). -
Charles Sumner was a Massachusetts senator and a vocal opponent of slavery. Senator Brooks of South Carolina violently assaulted Sumner on the Senate floor following his two-day address denouncing pro-slavery forces in Kansas and denouncing Brooks's pro-slavery uncle. The attack stunned the country and served as a powerful symbol for how deeply divided the nation and the government had become over slavery. -
The Dred Scott decision (1857) involved an enslaved man who sued for freedom after living on free soil. The Supreme Court decided that African Americans could not file lawsuits in federal courts because they were not citizens. Additionally, it overturned the Missouri Compromise by stating that Congress lacked the authority to outlaw slavery in the territories. The decision was criticized by Northerners as a pro-slavery rule that increased tensions between the various sections. -
During the August–October 1858 Lincoln–Douglas Debates, Senator Stephen Douglas and Abraham Lincoln debated the future of slavery in the territories. The Dred Scott decision, popular sovereignty, and whether the country could continue to be half slave and half free were the key topics of discussion, as detailed in McPherson's Chapter 7. Lincoln was not elected to the Senate, but the arguments raised him to national prominence and shaped the emerging Republican Party.