American History

1. US
HISTORY
Chapter 16
Toward Civil War
1840-1861

2. Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise
 Missouri Compromise (1820) -- kept number of
slave states and free states equal, BUT only
affected states from LA Purchase
 Mexican Cession (1848) -- added parts of CA,
NV, AZ, NM, UT, & CO = are they free or slave?
 Wilmot Proviso -- bill in Congress wanted to
outlaw slavery in all territory gained from
Mexico, never became law

3. Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise
 California Statehood –
(1849) CA applies for
statehood as free
state…Senator John C.
Calhoun (SC) says if this
happens the South
would leave the Union
 Great Compromiser --
Senator Henry
Clay…developed the
Compromise of 1850

4. Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise
 Compromise of 1850
 1) California joins Union as free state
 2) New Mexico & Utah become territories w/ popular sovereignty
 3) pay Texas for giving up territory to New Mexico
 4) end slave trade (not slavery) in DC
 5) form a strict fugitive slave law

5.  Fugitive Slave Act
 Passed as a part of the
Compromise of 1850
 Required all citizens to
help catch runaway
slaves
 Many African-
Americans who were
legally free or had
enjoyed years of
freedom were captured
& taken to the South
Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise

6.  The Kansas-Nebraska Act
 Passed in 1854
 Created two territories
called Kansas & Nebraska
 Both territories were north
of the 36° 30’ line (MO
Comp) so they should have
been free...instead, they
had popular sovereignty
 Pro-slavery and Anti-slavery
forces raced to the area
Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise

7.  Bleeding Kansas
 Abolitionists move in and form
the city of Lawrence, Kansas
 Anti-slavery settlers
outnumbered pro-slavery ones
 hundreds of border ruffians
cross the border to harass anti-
slavery settlers & vote illegally
for slavery
 pro-slavery govt. elected, anti-
slavery groups protest and elect
their own govt.
Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise

8.  Bleeding Kansas
 Violence increased between
the groups
 May 1856 -- group of pro-
slavery people attacked
Lawrence and killed five
abolitionists
 John Brown -- took his 5
sons and killed 5 pro-
slavery settlers at
Pottawatomie Creek
Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise

9.  Brooks-Sumner Incident
 1856 - Abolitionist Senator Charles
Sumner (MA) delivered a speech titled
“The Crime Against Kansas”…spoke out
against pro-slavery forces
 Two days later, Rep. Preston Brooks
(SC) walked into Senate chamber and
attacked Sumner with his cane
 Sumner – seriously injured, did not
return to the Senate for three years,
became a hero to the North
 Brooks – broke his cane during the
attack, Southern sympathizers sent him
numerous canes to replace his broken
one…one cane said “Hit him again.”
Lesson 1 – The Search for Compromise

10. Lesson 2 – Challenges to Slavery
 Republican Party
 Formed in 1854 
combination of antislavery
Whigs, Democrats, & Free-
Soilers
 Main message was that
slavery should be banned
from new territories
 Almost no support in the
South, but was still able to
gain control in the House of
Representatives by 1858

11. Lesson 2 – Challenges to Slavery
 Dred Scott Decision
 Dred Scott -- slave in Missouri
 his owner moved to Illinois for a
period of time…moved back to
Missouri where his owner died
 Scott decided to sue for his
freedom stating since he lived
in a free state (IL), he was a free
man
 1857 - goes to Supreme
Court...ruled against him, said
he is not a citizen & cannot sue
in court

12. Lesson 2 – Challenges to Slavery
 Lincoln-Douglas Debates
 1858 – race for US Senator
from Illinois
 Stephen Douglas –
Democrat...current Senator
 Abraham Lincoln –
Republican...former member
of the Illinois state legislature
and the US House of
Representatives
 Held a series of seven debates
across the state...main topic
was slavery

13. Lesson 2 – Challenges to Slavery
 Lincoln-Douglas Debates
 At the debate in Freeport,
Douglas said people could
exclude slavery in a territory
by refusing to pass laws to
protect slaveholders’ rights 
statement came to be known
as the Freeport Doctrine
(caused Douglas to lose
support in the South)
 Election Result  Douglas
won a narrow victory...Lincoln
gained a national reputation

14. Lesson 2 – Challenges to Slavery
 Raid on Harpers Ferry
 October 16, 1859 – John
Brown led a group of men who
seized the federal arsenal at
Harpers Ferry, VA
 Brown wanted to start a slave
revolt...planned to have slaves
come to Harpers Ferry and use
the weapons to form a slave
army
 Didn’t work...Brown was
caught, convicted of treason,
and hanged

15. Lesson 3 – Secession and War
 Election of 1860
 Democratic Party - split over
issue of slavery
 Northern Dems – Stephen
Douglas...supported popular
sovereignty
 Southern Dems – John C.
Breckinridge...keep slavery
 Constitutional Union Party – John
Bell...took no stance on slavery
 Republican Party – Abraham
Lincoln...slavery should be left
alone where it’s at, BUT should be
excluded from territories

16. Lesson 3 – Secession and War
 Election of 1860
 Lincoln (Republican) won
 Vote was clearly along
sectional lines...Lincoln’s name
didn’t even appear on the
ballot in most Southern states
 Lincoln stated that slavery
would not be disturbed where
it already existed, but that it
would not spread to new
territories
 Southern states rejected this

17. Lesson 3 – Secession and War
 Secession
 December 20, 1860 –
South Carolina seceded
from the Union
 February 1861 –
Confederate States of
America (CSA) was
formed...included seven
states (SC, TX, LA, MS, AL,
FL, GA)…elected Jefferson
Davis as President

18. SC Gov. Pickens: "Mr. President, if you
don't surrender that fort at once, I'll be
blowed if I don't fire."
US President Buchanan: "Oh don't!
Governor Pickens, don't fire! till I get
out of office."

19. Lesson 3 – Secession and War
 Lincoln’s Inauguration
 March 4, 1861
 7 slave states already
seceded…8 more slave
states had not yet
 3 Pledges
 US would hold on to federal
property (forts) in the South
 Union was perpetual
…secession was illegal
 US would not be the first to
attack…BUT would fight back
if attacked

20. Lesson 3 – Secession and War
 Fort Sumter
 Lincoln stated that the US
would hold on to federal
property (forts) in the South
 US tried to send in supplies to
Ft. Sumter (SC)…Lincoln
notified SC governor that
unarmed supply ships were
coming
 Confederates opened fire on
the fort before supply ships
arrived
 April 12, 1861 – first shots of
the Civil War fired