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Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise created an imbalance between the number of pro/anti-slavery states until the admission of Maine as an anti-slavery state. After becoming a pro-slavery state, it allowed for an imaginary line to be drawn dividing the former Louisiana territory. This was ended after the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was created on January 29 of 1850. It was create in an attempt to resolve problems over slavery between the north and the south. The United States was determined to dominate all of the North American continent. -
Fugitive Slave Law
The fugitive slave law was a law passed as part of the Compromise of 1850, which allowed southern slave owners with legal weapons to capture slaves who had escaped to "free states". This law allowed local governments to capture and return slaves to their owners and penalized anyone who helped the slave escape. The law was disliked by the North and persuaded some to revert to anti-slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30 of 1854. The act allowed people in Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders. The act repealed the Compromise of 1820 that prohibited slavery. -
Dred Scott Supreme Court Decision
The Dred Scott Supreme Court Decision was a legal case in which the US Supreme Court ruled that a slave who lived in a free state was not entitled to his freedom. Also adding that, African American were not and could never be citizens of the United States.This decision pushed the country closer to civil war. -
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Raid on Harper’s Ferry
In October 1859, the U.S. military at Harpers Ferry was the target by an army of abolitionists led by John Brown. The raid was meant to be the first stage in a plan to establish an independent stronghold of freed slaves. -
United States Presidential Election of 1860
The election of 1860 was between 4 candidates. The runners included the Republican, Abraham Lincoln, Democrat John C. Breckinridge, and Democrat Stephen A. Douglas. The main platform being discussed was pro/anti-slavery. After Abraham Lincoln was elected, 7 southern states, led by South Carolina, seceded, setting up the American Civil War. -
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Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln won the 1860 election and was officially president in March of 1861. The southern states did not want him to be president and did not agree with his views and policies. Before he was officially in office, the southern states began to leave the United States. Seven states left and formed their own country called the Confederacy. On January 1, 1863 Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 15, 1865. -
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Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was fought from September 16 to September 18. It was fought between the Union and the Confederates and took place near Sharpsburg, Maryland. The Confederates were led by General Robert E. Lee and the Union was led by the General George B. McClellan. The battle began on the morning of September 17, 1862 when the Unions attacked the Confederates. The battle continued throughout the day. This day was considered one of the most bloodies days in American History. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation was signed and passed on January 1 of 1863. The proclamation declared for more than 3.5 million slaves to be "forever free" from Confederate areas against the Union. The proclamation also stated that the government and military would maintain the freedom of the slaves. Not to be left out was that the proclamation did not free almost half a million slaves in the states that were loyal to the Union. It also sets rights and boundaries for African-Americans. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863 in Pennsylvania. On July 1, the confederates fought the Union's Army of Potomac, led by General George G. Meade in Gettysburg. The next day was even more intense as the confederates attacked the federals. On July 3, General Robert E. Lee ordered an attack on the enemies at Cemetery Ridge and managed to penetrate the Union lines but they eventually failed. Lee was forced to remove his army toward Virginia on July 4.
