Events Leading to Civil War
Major Events
The Compramise of 1850
The Compramise of 1850'was a series of five laws that were designed by a Whig, they were supposed to keep out sectional conflict. These laws worked together to solve territorial and slavery issues.
Uncle Tom's Cabin 1852
The Author Harriet Beecher Stowe created this novel and it changed Americans view on slavery. The Northerners thought that it was a terrible cruel system but the southerners didn't really believe in it.
Kansas Nebraska Act 1854
The Kansas Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise, allowing slavery in the territory north of the 36° 30´ latitude. It was Introduced by Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois the Kansas-Nebraska Act demanded that the issue of slavery would be decided by the residents of each territory, a idea known as popular sovereignty. After the bill passed on May 30, 1854, violence erupted in Kansas between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers, a action to the Civil War.
The Dred Scott Decision 1857
Dred Scott first went to trial to sue for his freedom in 1847. Ten years later, after a decade of appeals and court reversals, his case was finally brought before the United States Supreme Court. It seemed to be the most infamous case in history, the court decided that all people of African ancestry slaves as well as those who were free could never become citizens of the United States and therefore could not sue in federal court. The court also ruled that the federal government did not have the power to forbid slavery in it's territories. So unfortunately Dred Scott had to remain a slave
Lincoln Douglas Debates 1858
The debates between Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln were held during the 1858 campaign for a US Senate seat from Illinois. The debates were held at 7 sites throughout Illinois, one in each of the 7 Congressional Districts.