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John Brown

Abolitionist who led the Pottawatomie Massacre (1856) and the Raid on Harper's Ferry (1859); captured and hanged for treason.

The Missouri Compromise

An agreement (1820) that allowed Missouri to enter as a slave state and Maine as a free state, banning slavery in the Louisiana Territory north of the 36°30' line.

The Compromise of 1850

A set of laws allowing California as a free state, strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act, and introducing popular sovereignty in the Mexican Cession.

Uncle Tom's Cabin

A novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1852) that exposed the cruelty of slavery, increasing abolitionist support in the North and Southern outrage.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act

A law (1854) that overturned the Missouri Compromise by allowing popular sovereignty to determine the status of slavery, leading to violent conflicts known as Bleeding Kansas.

Pottawatomie Massacre

An event (1856) where John Brown and his followers killed five pro-slavery settlers in retaliation for pro-slavery violence in Kansas.

Dred Scott v. Sandford

1857 Supreme Court case ruling that Black Americans were not citizens and Congress could not ban slavery in the territories.

John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry

An attack (1859) where John Brown seized a federal armory to arm enslaved people; he was captured and hanged for treason.

The Election of 1860

An election in which Abraham Lincoln won without Southern support, triggering Southern states to secede from the Union.

Formation of the Confederacy

The establishment of the Confederate States of America (1861) after seven Southern states seceded, led by Jefferson Davis.