AAS 238 Exam 2

End of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

Officially banned in 1808 following the Constitution’s allowance to prohibit importation of enslaved people after 20 years. Domestic slavery boomed as a result.

Forty acres and a mule(January 1865)

• In January 1865, Union general William T. Sherman issued Special Field Order No. 15, which set aside land along the South Carolina and Georgia coasts for freed Black families,

• The promise was largely reversed after President Andrew Johnson restored land to former Confederate owners.

Antebellum period

Decades before the Civil War, roughly 1812–1861. It was marked by the expansion of slavery, the growth of the cotton economy in the South, increasing sectional tensions between North and South, and the rise of abolitionist movements, all of which set the stage for the Civil War.

Louisiana Purchase in 1803

acquisition of approximately 828,000 square miles of territory from France by the United States in 1803 for $15 million. It doubled the size of the U.S., opened land for westward expansion, and intensified debates over the spread of slavery into new territories.

Southern economic boom

Occurred primarily in the early to mid-19th century, driven by the expansion of cotton cultivation. The invention of the cotton gin in 1793 greatly increased productivity, fueling demand for enslaved labor and making the South the world’s leading cotton producer. This boom strengthened the region’s dependence on slavery and shaped its social and political structures.

Short-staple cotton

Cotton gin made the cultivation of short-staple cotton feasible in the United States. Unlike long-staple cotton, which could be grown only in coastal areas, short-staple cotton could thrive in the interior South. The gin allowed efficient seed removal from this type, greatly expanding cotton production westward and increasing the demand for enslaved labor.

Cotton gin

Invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, is a machine that quickly separates cotton fibers from seeds. It dramatically increased cotton production in the American South, making cotton highly profitable and intensifying the demand for enslaved labor

Harriet tubman

An African American abolitionist and political activist, born into slavery, who escaped and subsequently led hundreds of enslaved people to freedom via the Underground Railroad. She also served as a spy and nurse for the Union Army during the Civil War.

Incedence in the life of a slave girl quote on slavery and motherhood:

“I could not leave my children behind; and if I did, I felt that I should be committing a sin which God would surely punish.”

• “There is a great difference between Christianity and religion at the south.” — Jacobs criticizes how Southern religious practice justified slavery rather than true Christian morality.

• “If a man goes to the communion table, and pays money into the treasury of the church, no matter if it be the price of blood, he is called religious.” — Jacobs highlights hypocrisy in Southern Christianity.

Slave girl quote on women in slavery

“Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women. Superadded to the burden common to all, they have wrongs, and sufferings, and mortifications peculiarly their own.”

Renting Out Slaves

A system in which slaveowners leased enslaved people to other individuals or businesses for temporary labor, typically in exchange for money or goods

• Common in antebellum time.

• Picked up in urban areas.

Harriet Tubman (1822–1913) – Brain Injury

As a child (around age 12, circa 1834), Harriet Tubman was struck in the head by a heavy metal weight thrown by an overseer attempting to punish another enslaved person.

William Still (1821–1902)

• Known as the “Father of the Underground Railroad,” Still meticulously documented the escapes of hundreds of enslaved people, preserving their names, stories, and details of their journeys north.

• Helped runaway slaves find their family by recordkeeping.

Pennsylvania Antislavery society

• Founded: 1784, Philadelphia

• Purpose: Abolition of slavery and support for free Black people

• Key Activities: Assisted fugitive slaves via the Underground Railroad, published anti-slavery literature, organized petitions and meetings

• Notable Members: William Still, Lucretia Mott

• Significance: Central in helping escaped slaves, documenting their stories, and promoting Northern anti-slavery activism

Lucretia Mott (1793–1880)

• Advocated for the abolition of slavery and equal rights for women.

• Co-founded the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society (1833), one of the few interracial abolitionist groups.

• Helped organize the Seneca Falls Convention (1848), a foundational event in the women’s rights movement.

Harriet Jacobs (1813–1897)

Writer of incidence in the life of a slave girl:

• Born into slavery in North Carolina, she escaped and later lived as a free woman in the North.

• Highlights the sexual exploitation of enslaved women.

• Escapes to the north with her children eventually.

Slave girl quote on fugitive slave act

• Chapter 38: I  knew my old master was rather skittish of Massachusetts. I relied on her love of freedom, and felt safe on her soil.

• Chapter 39:  It was the beginning of a reign of terror to the colored population.

• Chapter 38: “The judges of Massachusetts had not then stooped under chains to enter her courts of justice, so called.”

Slave girl quote on motherhood

Chapter 16: When I lay down beside my child, I felt how much easier it would be to see her die than to see her master beat her about, as I daily saw him beat other little ones. The spirit of the mothers was so crushed by the lash

British emancipation

Slavery Abolition Act (1833): Abolished slavery throughout most of the British Empire (except in some territories until 1843).

• Provided a moral and political example for American abolitionists, strengthening anti-slavery arguments.

Turner’s Rebellion 1831

• Nat Turner, an enslaved preacher in Virginia, led a rebellion in 1831

• Around 55–65 white people were killed during the uprising

• The rebellion was quickly suppressed; Turner and many participants were executed

• Southern states passed harsher slave codes and restricted literacy and assembly for enslaved people

• The revolt heightened white fears and strengthened pro-slavery attitudes in the South

Virginia Slave Codes of 1831–1832

• Expanded restrictions on enslaved and free Black people after Nat Turner’s Rebellion.

• bans on education and assembly.

South Carolina Negro Act of 1832

• Restricted movement, gatherings, and required white supervision for free and enslaved Black people.

Maryland post-1831 laws

Required enslaved people to have written passes for travel and restricted teaching enslaved people to read or write.

North Carolina Black Codes (1830s)

Limited rights of free Black people and prohibited them from owning firearms or assembling without permission.

Second great awakening

• Emphasizing individual morality and social responsibility.

• Inspired many abolitionists, particularly in the North, to frame slavery as a moral and spiritual evil.

• Led to formation of anti-slavery societies, black churches, etc and increased activism within Baptist and Methodist denominations.

Revivalism

• A movement during the Second Great Awakening that emphasized emotional, personal religious experiences.

• Encouraged individuals to take moral responsibility, including opposing social evils like slavery.

American Colonization Society

• Founded 1816 to send free Black people to Africa.

• Colony established: Liberia, capital Monrovia.

• Supported by some abolitionists and slaveholders.

• Many Black Americans opposed it.

• Impacted debates on emancipation and racial separation.

Lincoln support of colonization

• Believed sending freed Black people abroad could avoid racial tensions in the U.S.

• Considered Haiti and Central America as possible destinations.

• In the first draft of emancipation law.

Paul Cuffe 1759-1817

• African-American merchant, shipowner, and abolitionist.

• Advocated for colonization and resettlement of free Black Americans in Africa.

• Worked to establish trade and migration links with Sierra Leone.

• Used his wealth and influence to support African-American self-determination and economic independence.

hati

• First independent Black republic, gained independence from France in 1804.

• Served as a symbol of Black freedom and resistance in the Atlantic world.

• Inspired abolitionist movements in the Americas.

• Destination considered by American colonizationists for resettling free Black Americans.

• Its independence alarmed Southern slaveholders due to fear of slave revolts.

Willaim Lloyd Garrison 1805-1879

• Prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer.

• Founded and published The Liberator (1831–1865), a radical anti-slavery newspaper.

• Garrison refused to engage in political action, believing the U.S. Constitution was pro-slavery.

• Advocated immediate and uncompensated emancipation of all enslaved people.

• Supported women’s rights and other social reforms.

• Co-founded the American Anti-Slavery Society (1833)

The Liberator (1831-1865)

• Radical abolitionist newspaper advocating for the immediate emancipation of enslaved people.

• Platform for anti-slavery essays, speeches, and firsthand accounts from the enslaved.

• Influential in shaping Northern public opinion against slavery.

• Supported equal rights for African Americans and sometimes women’s rights.

Gradual emancipation 1780s to the 1830s.

• Advocated phased emancipation, often paired with compensation to slaveholders.

• Supported by some Northern politicians and moderate reformers in the early 19th century.

• Made irrelevant by Garisson and 1830’s calls for immediate emancipation.

• Founded: 1833 in Philadelphia by William Lloyd Garrison and Arthur Tappan

• Promote immediate abolition of slavery in the U.S., reject gradual emancipation.

• Key Actions:

  • Published pamphlets and newspapers (like Garrison’s The Liberator)

  • Advocated political action against slavery

  • Distributed anti-slavery literature widely

• Frederick Douglass, sometimes disagreed with Garrison’s radical views or tactics, particularly on politics and integration

David Walker 1785-1830

• A Black abolitionist

• In 1829, he published Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World.

• He advocated for the immediate emancipation of enslaved people and encouraged Black resistance to oppression.

• He condemned white Americans for slavery and racism.

• His work inspired fear among slaveholders and empowerment among African Americans, influencing later militant abolitionists.

Walkers appeal 1829

• A radical abolitionist pamphlet addressed to free and enslaved Black people.

• Many states banned the pamphlet and made its possession or distribution a criminal offense.

• Southern legislatures increased censorship of abolitionist materials, targeting both Black and white activists.

Frederick Douglass 1818-1895

• An African American abolitionist.

• Born into slavery in Maryland, he escaped to freedom in 1838 and became a leading voice against slavery.

• Published Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

• founded the abolitionist newspaper The North Star,

• Advocated for black soliders, women's rights, and social justice throughout his life.

The abolitionist:
Angelina Grimké

Southern woman from a slaveholding family who became a devout abolitionist, speaking against slavery and advocating for women’s rights.

• (attacked slavery not based on the Blacks but the fate of the whites[believing it to be a sin])

The abolitionist:
Moral suasion

Abolitionist strategy appealing to slaveholders’ conscience, religion, and morality to convince them to end slavery.

• Framed slavery as a sin and a violation of God’s will.

• Used speeches, pamphlets, and newspapers like The Liberator to spread the message.

• Emphasized conversion of individuals as a path to societal change rather than relying on laws alone.

The abolitionist:
Slave Economy

• After the end to the slave trade in 1807 the economy of selling and buying slaves boomed.

• The abolitionist shows Harriet Beecher Stowe’s emotional shock at witnessing a slave auction, dramatized through her reaction.

Harriet Beecher Stowe

American author best known for Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852), a novel exposing the brutality of slavery.

• Highlighted the moral and emotional suffering of enslaved people, especially families separated by slavery.

• Influenced Northern public opinion and fueled anti-slavery sentiment in the years leading up to the Civil War.

• Credited with making slavery a central moral issue for many Americans.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe published in 1852.

• Directly influenced Northern audiences, increasing anti-slavery sentiment and mobilizing support for abolition.

• Read internationally, including in Britain and France, shaping global perceptions of American slavery.

• Provoked outrage in the South, where it was seen as an attack on the Southern way of life.

• Highlighted the human cost of slavery, particularly the separation of families and the mistreatment of enslaved women.

Antislavery Postal Campaign

Strategy used by William Lloyd Garrison and fellow abolitionists in the 1830s.

• Sent thousands of anti-slavery pamphlets, newspapers, and tracts through the U.S. mail to ministers, politicians, and citizens.

• Aimed to spread the abolitionist message widely and challenge pro-slavery narratives.

• Provoked violent reactions in the South, including the burning of materials and attacks on postal carriers.

The abolitionist:
Edward Covey

Slavebreaker who brutally abused Frederick Douglass, but whose defeat by Douglass symbolized resistance and self-liberation.

• Proved to Douglas that power dynamic of slavery was not innate.
  

John Brown

• Radical abolitionist

• Brown believed that armed resistance was necessary to oppose the expansion of slavery.

• In 1856, he and his men killed five pro-slavery settlers in the Pottawatomie Massacre.

• Lead raid on Harper’s Ferry, Virginia in 1859 but was caught and hung.
  

raid on Harper’s Ferry, Virginia

In 1859 John Brown led a small group of men to seize the federal arsenal at Harper’s Ferry.

• His goal was to arm enslaved people and spark a widespread slave rebellion.

• The raid was quickly suppressed by U.S. Marines led by Robert E. Lee.

• Although it failed militarily, the raid intensified national tensions over slavery and made Brown a polarizing figure.

American Slavery as It Is

• Published in 1839 by Angelina and Sarah Grimké.

• Compiled testimonies and newspaper reports to document the brutality of slavery.

• Provided evidence that slavery was neither benevolent nor justified, countering pro-slavery narratives.

• Influenced public opinion in the North and helped galvanize the abolitionist movement.

Abolitionist Movement Fragmentation

By 1840, internal disputes, radical strategies, and public opposition weakened unity.

• Garrison’s calls for disunion and radical reform caused splits.

• Douglas believed in political reform. Would go on to publish his own paper.

• The abolitionist shows how this divide gets messy between Douglas and Garrison.

Slavery’s Gendered Violence

• Voices like Douglass and Grimké highlighted the unique suffering of enslaved women, including sexual abuse and separation from children.

• Incidence in the life of a slave girl by Harriet Jacobs illustrates the unique tragedies of slavery for women.

 1793 Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic

• white doctors and leaders (like Dr. Benjamin Rush) wrongly claimed that Black people were naturally immune to the disease.

• In Philadelphia, many free Black citizens volunteered to nurse the sick and bury the dead, believing they were less at risk — but many became ill and died as well.

  • Charges of wrong doing on these nurses, cart drivers, etc. 

Gabriel’s Rebellion (August 1800)

• planned slave uprising near Richmond, Virginia, and one of the most significant early attempts at organized Black resistance in U.S. history.

• Foiled plan by a terrible storm the night of the attack and 2 enslaved tractors who snitched.

• Gabriel and about 25 others were executed by hanging in September and October 1800 for intimidation.

• Slave law crackdown.

Richard Allan first black church

free black man in Philadelphia who formed a black church in 1793 with the help of white Americans. Richard Allan championed the American principles that hard work can get you anywhere.

In class film brotherly love

Main theme: The paradox of gaining independence from Britian while slavery grows in America due to Cotton gin and closing transatlantic in 1808. Slavery > Liberty

Pennsylvania Hall

Abolitionist meeting hall burned by mobs in 1838 after racially integrated gatherings offended local white communities.

Everyday resistance

Included work slowdowns, theft, feigned ignorance, breaking tools, and running away temporarily.

The Abolitionists (PBS, 2013) Overview and Importance

• Condenses the early abolitionist movement into a narrative-driven story, centering figures like Garrison, Douglass, and the Grimké sisters.

The Mexican-American War (1846–1848)  effect on slavery

• added new U.S. territories (California, New Mexico, Utah, etc.).

• Sparked debate: Should slavery expand into these new lands

• Increased sectional tensions between Northern free states and Southern slaveholding states.

• Led to 1850 compromise

1849 cholera outbreak

• The 1849 cholera outbreak in major U.S. cities caused widespread fear and disrupted daily life

• Public gatherings, including abolitionist meetings and conventions, were limited or canceled.

• Abolitionist organizers had difficulty traveling and communicating their message.

Anthony Burns case 1854

• Anthony Burns, an enslaved man, escaped to Boston but was captured under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

• His imprisonment in Boston galvanized abolitionists, who protested fiercely against his detention.

• The case exposed the brutality and unpopularity of the Fugitive Slave Act in Northern cities and fueled anti-slavery sentiment.

Kansas-Nebraska act, 1854

• Slavery in Kansas and Nebraska to popular sovereignty. 

  • Repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which had prohibited slavery north of latitude 36°30

• "Bleeding Kansas":

  • Pro- and anti-slavery settlers flooded Kansas to influence the vote.

  • Resulted in violent clashes and deaths, a precursor to the Civil War.

• Kansas enters as a free state Jan 1861, significantly contributing to the start of the war.

1857 Dred Scott vs. Sanford

• Scott was enslaved in Missouri but moved to Illinois for freedom.

• The Supreme court with chief justice taney declared scott and all other black people ineligible for citizenship. 

• Missouri compromise deemed unconstitutional. 

  • Opened all western territories to potential slavery, even places long considered “free.”

• Completely disrupts the small amount of stability on the topic of slavery. 

Order of Succession

• South Carolina – December 20, 1860

• Mississippi – January 9, 1861

• Florida – January 10, 1861

• Alabama – January 11, 1861

• Georgia – January 19, 1861

• Louisiana – January 26, 1861

• Texas – February 1, 1861 (effective March 2, 1861)

• Virginia – April 17, 1861 (ratified May 23)

• Arkansas – May 6, 1861

• North Carolina – May 20, 1861

• Tennessee – June 8, 1861

Compromise of 1850

• Admitted California as a free state and allowed Utah and New Mexico to decide on slavery by popular sovereignty.

• Included a stricter Fugitive Slave Act, requiring citizens to assist in returning escaped enslaved people.

1st confiscation Act: August 1861

• Declared that “any property, put to use in the rebel cause would be confiscated” “any such property consisting of slaves” would be set free. 

• Disincentives the south from using slaves in the war. 

2nd confiscation act: July 1862

• Declared that any enslaved person in the south could be set free upon being captured by union soldiers. 

• Ended slavery in Washington DC. 

Emancipation proclamation: January 1863

• Freed enslaved people in Confederate-held territories, but not in Union border states.

• Allowed Black men to join the Union Army and Navy, strengthening the Union war effort.

• Shifted the war’s focus to include the moral goal of ending slavery.

13th amendment to the constitution (December 6, 1865 ):

Abolished slavery nationwide — except as punishment for a crime.

14th amendment(1868):

Defined citizenship, guaranteed equal protection, and restricted state power. All black people equally protected by the law.

15th amendment 1870

(ratified in 1870) is what specifically prohibited denying the right to vote based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Congressional reconstruction

Congress was not fully satisfied with how the South was reintegrating. They passed measures, such as the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and later Reconstruction Acts (1867), to enforce federal authority and protect the rights of freed people. 

• Federal troops stationed in the confederate states. 

• All confederate states had to ratify the 13,14, and 15th amendments. 

Freedmen’s Bureau

Established March 1865 to aid formerly enslaved people and poor whites in the South.
Provided food, clothing, and medical care, helped set up schools, and assisted with labor contracts.
Managed abandoned or confiscated land, much of which was later returned to former Confederates.

 Never implemented large-scale land redistribution.

• While it temporarily managed some abandoned or confiscated land, most of it was returned to former Confederate owners

• Promises of “forty acres and a mule” largely went unfulfilled, leaving freedpeople without independent land or economic autonomy.

Post-emancipation labor contracts

• After emancipation, formerly enslaved people often signed labor contracts with white landowners to work on plantations.

• Contracts typically required long hours for low wages and sometimes included provisions that restricted movement or work elsewhere.

• These agreements aimed to replace slavery with controlled labor, but many freed people faced exploitation and little economic independence.

Black codes(1865-1866)

laws passed by Southern states after the Civil War to control and restrict the freedoms of newly emancipated Black people.

• Movement Restrictions

• required to sign Labor Contracts

• Restrict Voting and Political Rights

• Some states don’t recognize Marriage and Family

• Penal System Exploitation: Vagrancy laws allowed authorities to arrest unemployed Black people and force them into labor.

vagrancy laws(1865-1866)

• They criminalized being unemployed or “idle,” disproportionately targeting freed Black people.

• Violators could be fined, forced into labor, or hired out to white employers.

• These laws were designed to maintain a labor supply and restrict the freedom of formerly enslaved people.

Local black codes in Louisiana 

Required that every black person had to be in service of a white person or former owner.

South Carolina black code:

Black people were forbidden to participate in any trades other than farming and household services. 

Reconstruction Racial violence 

Lynching became particularly widespread after the Civil War.

Sharecropping

• Economic trap: Debt and exploitative contracts kept Black families dependent on landowners.

• Limited mobility: Families often stayed on the same land for years.

• Limited education: Labor demands reduced school attendance for children.

Reconstruction Act (1867):

• Established US military control posts in the south.

• Required Southern states to draft new constitutions guaranteeing Black male suffrage.

• Mandated ratification of the 14th Amendment as a condition for reentry into the Union.

• Marked the start of Congressional (Radical) Reconstruction, shifting power away from former Confederate governments.

Theodore Dwight Weld (1803–1895):

• Abolitionist who coauthored American slavery as it is (1839)

• Not support women’s rights.

• Created tension in the abolitionist movement on integrating women’s rights.

Stephen A. Douglas (1813–1861)

• U.S. Senator from Illinois and leading Democratic politician.

• Advocated popular sovereignty, arguing that settlers in U.S. territories should vote on whether to allow slavery.

• Key architect of the Compromise of 1850 and author of the Kansas–Nebraska Act (1854), which repealed the Missouri Compromise and intensified sectional conflict.

Jefferson Davis (1808–1889)

• President of the Confederate States of America from 1861 to 1865.

• Former U.S. senator and Secretary of War; strong defender of states’ rights and slavery.

• Argued slavery was legal, constitutional, and essential to Southern society and economy.

• Led the Confederacy during the Civil War; captured in 1865 and imprisoned for two years.

• After the war, became a symbol of the Lost Cause and Southern resistance to Reconstruction.

Massachusetts passed Personal Liberty Laws in the 1840s and 1850s.

• These laws barred state officials, courts, and jails from assisting in the arrest or detention of alleged fugitive slaves.

• They guaranteed jury trials and legal protections for accused fugitives under state law.

• The laws directly challenged the Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850, escalating sectional conflict between North and South.

1860 Election

• Lincoln won the Electoral College but only 2/5th of the popular vote(Representing the Republican Party)

• Abraham Lincoln was not on the ballot in most Southern states, so many Southern voters couldn’t even vote for him.

• Within weeks of his victory- process of disunion would begin leading to war

• Democratic Party- resided in all the newly Confederate States.

attack on Fort Sumter(april 1861)

• Confederate forces attacked Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, SC

• Marked the start of the Civil War

• Fort commanded by Union Major Robert Anderson; Confederates led by P.G.T. Beauregard

The Militia Act of 1862

• Passed by Congress on July 17, 1862, it authorized the enrollment of African American men into the Union Army and Navy.

• Prior to this, Black men were largely prohibited from enlisting in regular Union forces.

United States Colored Troops (USCT)

• Over 180,000 Black men served by the end of the Civil War

• Played a crucial role in Union victories and the eventual defeat of the Confederacy

• Commanded mostly by white officers, but enlisted men were Black

• Initially, unequal pay: Black soldiers received $10/month vs. $13/month for white soldiers; $3 was often deducted for clothing

Union camps

• Slaves fled to Union camps seeking freedom and protection

• Camps for runways were often overcrowded, unsanitary, and under-supplied, but provided shelter and basic sustenance

• Many runaways worked for the Union army as laborers, cooks, teamsters, and sometimes supported military efforts

• Despite hardships, these camps became centers of emancipation, education, and recruitment for Black troops

Presidential Reconstruction (1865–1867)

• Led by President Andrew Johnson after Lincoln’s assassination

• Offered lenient terms to Southern states for readmission to the Union

• Required ratification of the 13th Amendment (abolishing slavery) and repudiation of secession

• Many former Confederate leaders regained power quickly

• Did little to protect newly freed Black Americans’ rights

Black men in congress

• 22 African American men were elected to the U.S. Congress

• Most served in the House of Representatives; a few served in the Senate

• All were from Southern states, where Black men had gained voting rights under Radical Reconstruction

• Their election represented the first significant Black political participation at the federal level in U.S. history

• Many faced violence, intimidation, and political opposition but helped pass civil rights legislation and protect Reconstruction gains