APUSH PERIOD 5 CHAPTER 13

Abraham Lincoln

Leader of the Republican Party who opposed the spread of slavery and was elected president in 1860

Compromise of 1850

A series of laws meant to reduce sectional conflict by admitting California as free and strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act

Dred Scott Decision

Supreme Court ruling stating enslaved people were not citizens and Congress could not ban slavery in the territories

Election of 1860

Presidential election in which Lincoln won without Southern support

Fugitive Slave Act

Law requiring the return of escaped enslaved people to their owners

Gold Rush

Mass migration to California after gold was discovered in 1848

Free-Soil Ideology

Belief that slavery should not expand into western territories to protect free labor

Free-Soil Party

Political party formed to oppose the expansion of slavery into new territories

Gadsden Purchase

U.S. purchase of land from Mexico to build a southern railroad route

General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna

Mexican leader involved in the Texas Revolution and Mexican-American War

Harpers Ferry

Site of John Brown’s raid to spark a slave rebellion

Henry Clay

Senator known as the “Great Compromiser” who helped pass major sectional compromises

James K. Polk

President who supported Manifest Destiny and led the nation into the Mexican-American War

John Brown

Radical abolitionist who used violence to oppose slavery

John C. Calhoun

Southern leader who defended slavery and states’ rights

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Law allowing popular sovereignty in Kansas and Nebraska and repealing the Missouri Compromise

Manifest Destiny

Belief that the United States was destined to expand westward

Mexican War

War between the U.S. and Mexico that resulted in major territorial gains for the U.S.

Oregon Border Dispute

Conflict between the U.S. and Britain over Oregon territory resolved by treaty

Oregon Trail

Main westward migration route used by settlers traveling to Oregon and California

Popular Sovereignty

Idea that settlers in a territory should vote on whether to allow slavery

Republican Party

Political party formed to oppose the expansion of slavery

Sam Houston

Leader of Texas independence and later a U.S. senator and governor

Stephen A. Douglas

Senator who promoted popular sovereignty and debated Lincoln

Stephen F. Austin

Leader of early American settlement in Texas

Tejanos

Mexican residents of Texas

Texas Annexation

U.S. decision to admit Texas as a state

The Alamo

Battle during the Texas Revolution where Texan forces were defeated

Transcontinental Railroad

Railroad connecting the eastern and western United States

Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo

Treaty ending the Mexican-American War and granting land to the U.S.

Wilmot Proviso

Proposal to ban slavery in territories gained from Mexico

Winfield Scott

U.S. general who led American forces in the Mexican-American War

“Young America”

Movement promoting nationalism

Zachary Taylor

Mexican-American War hero elected president who opposed the spread of slavery