Emancipation Proclamation and Juneteenth

Missouri Compromise

1820 agreement admitting Missouri slave and Maine free preserving sectional balance

Compromise of 1850

Package of laws delaying sectional conflict over new western territories

Fugitive Slave Act

Law requiring return of escaped enslaved people to owners in South

Kansas-Nebraska Act

1854 law instituting popular sovereignty in Kansas and Nebraska territories

Popular Sovereignty

Doctrine empowering settlers to decide slavery status in their territories

Dred Scott Decision

1857 Supreme Court ruling denying citizenship and restricting congressional power

Nullification Crisis

1832 constitutional confrontation over South Carolina’s opposition to federal tariffs

John Brown’s Raid

1859 abolitionist attack on Harpers Ferry aiming to provoke slave uprising

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

1858 debates highlighting sectional divisions over slavery and popular sovereignty

Republican Party

Political party opposing slavery’s expansion formed in 1854 American North

Secession

Formal withdrawal of Southern states from the Union over slavery disputes

Cotton Gin

Machine invented by Eli Whitney revolutionizing cotton processing and slavery profitability

Slave Codes

Laws enforcing enslaved people’s control and restricting their personal liberties

Wilmot Proviso

Unpassed amendment proposing ban on slavery in territories acquired from Mexico

Slavery

System forcing people into unpaid labor under owners’ complete control.

Cotton Gin

Machine invented in 1793 dramatically speeding cotton seed separation.

Three-Fifths Clause

Constitutional rule counting enslaved people as three-fifths of person.

Missouri Compromise

1820 agreement admitting Missouri slave, Maine free, preserving balance.

Compromise of 1850

Law admitting California free and strengthening fugitive slave enforcement.

Fugitive Slave Act

1850 law forcing citizens to return escaped enslaved people.

Popular Sovereignty

Idea that settlers vote to permit or ban slavery locally.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

1854 law allowing settlers to decide slavery issue by vote.

Bleeding Kansas

1850s violent clashes in Kansas over slavery, foreshadowing civil war.

Dred Scott Decision

1857 Supreme Court ruling Black people not U.S. citizens.

John Brown’s Raid

1859 Harpers Ferry attack aiming to free enslaved people.

Lincoln-Douglas Debates

1858 debates over slavery’s expansion and its effect on unity.

Secession

Formal withdrawal of a state from the United States of America.

Confederate States

Group of Southern states that seceded to preserve slavery system.

Emancipation Proclamation

Executive order freeing enslaved people in Confederate-held territories.

Commander in Chief

Lincoln’s constitutional role authorizing wartime measures against rebellion.

Second Confiscation Act

1862 law permitting seizure of rebel property, including enslaved people.

Preliminary Proclamation

September 22, 1862 announcement threatening future emancipation.

Contraband of War

Enslaved people classified as seized enemy property by Union forces.

54th Massachusetts Regiment

One of the first Black units, proving effectiveness of Black soldiers.

Border States

Slave states that remained loyal to the Union during the Civil War.

Union Blockade

Navy strategy to block Southern ports, crippling Confederate trade.

Black Enlistment

Mass recruitment of formerly enslaved people into Union Army and Navy.

Copperhead Democrats

Peace Democrats opposing the war and Lincoln’s emancipation policy.

Thirteenth Amendment

Constitutional amendment abolishing slavery throughout the United States.

Mutual Aid Societies

Organizations providing support and education in contraband camps.

Radical Republicans

Faction demanding full civil rights and citizenship for Black Americans.

International Neutrality

British and French refusal to recognize the Confederacy post-Proclamation.

Military Necessity

Doctrine justifying emancipation as essential to Union victory.

Coalition Theory

Model analyzing how actors form alliances to win power or policy.

Minimal Winning Coalition

Smallest coalition size that achieves a legislative majority.

Kansas–Nebraska Act

1854 law whose backlash helped form the Republican coalition.

Free Soilers

Group opposing slavery’s expansion for its threat to free labor.

Pivot Voting

Shift in legislator support when policy outcomes change electoral calculations.

Radical Republicans

Faction advocating immediate abolition and full civil rights.

War Democrats

Democrats supporting the Union war effort under Lincoln.

Copperhead Democrats

Peace Democrats opposing war and emancipation policies.

Thirteenth Amendment

1865 constitutional amendment abolishing slavery nationwide.

Preliminary Proclamation

Lincoln’s September 1862 warning linking emancipation to victory.

Border State Unionists

Slaveholding states that remained loyal and whose support Lincoln courted.

Institutional Design

Strategic use of rules (e.g., two‐thirds requirement) to shape outcomes.

Constituent Inducements

Offers of patronage or policy concessions to secure votes.

Secessionist Coalition

Southern states aligned to form the Confederacy in 1861.

Postwar Realignment

Shift in alliances after abolition, leading to Reconstruction divides.

Coalition Theory

Study of how actors form alliances to win power or pass laws.

Minimal Winning Coalition

The smallest alliance strong enough to achieve a majority.

Pivot Voting

When legislators change stance based on shifted political advantage.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

1854 law that sparked creation of the Republican coalition.

Free Soilers

Group opposing slavery’s spread to protect free labor jobs.

Secessionist Coalition

Southern states united to form the Confederacy in 1860–61.

War Democrats

Democrats who supported the Union war effort under Lincoln.

Radical Republicans

Faction demanding immediate abolition and full civil rights.

Preliminary Emancipation

September 1862 warning linking freedom order to military success.

Thirteenth Amendment

1865 constitutional change abolishing slavery nationwide.

Constituent Inducements

Offers of jobs or favors to win lawmakers’ support.

Institutional Design

Strategic use of rules (vote thresholds, quorums) to shape outcomes.

Reconstruction Acts

Laws in 1867 establishing rules for Southern readmission and rights.

Federal Troop Withdrawal

1877 end of enforced Reconstruction protections in the South.

Juneteenth

Annual holiday marking June 19, 1865, Texas enslaved people’s freedom

General Order No. 3

Union order announcing emancipation in Texas on June 19, 1865

Galveston

Coastal city where General Granger read emancipation orders in Texas

General Granger

Union general who proclaimed freedom to enslaved Texans in Galveston

Contraband camps

Refugee camps housing escaped enslaved people during Civil War

Freedmen’s Bureau

Federal agency created to assist freed enslaved persons and refugees

Black Codes

Laws restricting African Americans’ rights and economic opportunities post-emancipation

Sharecropping

System where freedpeople farmed land for landlords for a share of crops

Oral tradition

Passing historical memory and culture by word of mouth

Grassroots commemoration

Community-led annual celebrations preserving local emancipation memories and traditions

Federal recognition

Official acknowledgment of Juneteenth as a public holiday in USA

Memory studies

Academic field analyzing how societies remember past events collectively

Civil Rights era

Period of activism in 1950s–1960s promoting equality for Black Americans

Bottom-up enforcement

Local community actions independently implementing emancipation beyond official orders

Emancipation Proclamation

Lincoln’s 1863 decree freeing enslaved people in Confederate areas

Emancipation Proclamation

Executive order freeing enslaved people in rebelling Confederate states.

Preliminary Proclamation

Lincoln’s September 22, 1862 warning linking emancipation to Union victory.

Second Confiscation Act

1862 law declaring enslaved property of Confederate supporters forever free.

Contraband of War

Legal status treating escaped enslaved people as seized enemy property.

Border States

Slave states that remained loyal to the Union during the Civil War.

Commander in Chief

Lincoln’s constitutional role authorizing military measures against rebellion.

Black Enlistment

Mass recruitment of African Americans into Union Army and Navy units.

Union Blockade

Navy strategy blocking Southern ports to strangle Confederate trade and economy.

Copperhead Democrats

Peace Democrats who opposed Lincoln’s war policies and emancipation.

Thirteenth Amendment

1865 constitutional amendment abolishing slavery throughout the United States.

Military Necessity

Doctrine justifying emancipation as essential to achieving Union victory.

Radical Republicans

Faction advocating full abolition and civil rights for freed enslaved people.

International Neutrality

Lack of British/French recognition of Confederacy after Proclamation’s moral stand.