Compromise to Secession, Pt 2 (Chap 14) — From Dred Scott to Confederate Secession

Page 1 — Political Gridlock & Recap

• The nation remains in crisis over slavery; popular sovereignty (ex: Kansas–Nebraska Act) has deepened, not solved, sectional tensions.
• Both North and South hope the U.S. Supreme Court can "take slavery out of politics" and supply a final, neutral ruling.

Page 2 — Dred Scott’s Personal Story & Lawsuit (1843 – 1857)

• Dred Scott: born $\text{c.}\,1808$ in Louisiana to an enslaved mother ⇒ enslaved from birth.
• Purchased in the 1830s by U.S. Army surgeon Dr. John Emerson, who wants a slave for "prestige"—believing ownership aids social-military mobility.
• Relationship described as unusually “friendly”: Scott lives in the house, wears formal tuxedo, eats decent food; may have been taught to read (illegal).
• Emerson’s postings: Illinois (free state), Wisconsin Territory (free by Northwest Ordinance $1787$), then back to St. Louis, Missouri (slave state).
• Emerson dies $1843$ ⇒ ownership passes to widow ⇒ she sells Scott to her brother, John Sanford (sometimes spelled Sandford).
• With help of sympathetic lawyers, Scott sues in Missouri District Court: argument—residence in free areas made him free (the “once free, always free” doctrine).
• Missouri District Court AGREES → Scott declared free.
• Missouri Supreme Court reverses: “once a slave, always a slave.”
• After years of appeals, case reaches U.S. Supreme Court, argued and decided $1857$ as Scott v. Sandford.

Page 3 — Supreme Court Composition & Taney’s 3-Part Opinion

• Court then: $9$ justices — $7$ Southerners (4 slave-owners), $2$ Northerners.
• Vote: $7–2$ against Scott (all Southerners in majority, Northerners dissent).
• Chief Justice Roger B. Taney (Marylander, non-slave-holder) writes opinion—considered by many scholars “worst” or 2nd-worst decision ever.

1. Citizenship: “Negroes, whether enslaved or free, are not citizens of the United States.” ⇒ No standing to sue in federal court.
2. Status: Scott remains property; travel in free territory does NOT alter status because Constitution protects property rights.
3. Congressional Power: Congress has no authority to prohibit slavery in any territory ⇒ Missouri Compromise $1820$ declared unconstitutional.
   • Taney could have stopped at jurisdiction (Pt. 1) but overreaches in Pts. 2–3 to “solve” slavery nationally.

Page 4 — Immediate Reaction & Broader Consequences

Northern View:
• Decision “indirectly endorses” slavery; destroys Free-Labor ideology; fuels conspiracy theories of a “Slave-Power.”
• Interpreted as limiting majority rule—Congress barred from regulating slavery.
Southern View:
• Jubilant: removes legal barriers to expanding slavery everywhere; validates slaves as constitutionally protected property; weakens abolitionism.
Net Result:
• Rather than quiet controversy, decision intensifies sectional animosity; viewed as proof that even the Court is politicized.

Page 5 — Continuing Strife in Kansas & the Lincoln–Douglas Debates (1858)

• Kansas still violent; Congress has rejected pro- and anti-slavery constitutions, leaving territorial status unresolved — “Bleeding Kansas.”
• Illinois Senate race 1858: Incumbent Stephen A. Douglas (Democrat, national stature) challenged by Abraham Lincoln (former Whig).
• Debate format: sequential stump speeches across towns (later labeled the “Lincoln–Douglas Debates”).
– Douglas’s position: slavery will not expand where it’s not economically viable; Western soil/climate unsuited for labor-intensive plantation crops.
• Logical flaw: enslaved people can perform NON-agricultural labor (e.g., house servants like Scott).
– Lincoln: slavery “incompatible with liberty”; should be placed “on an ultimate course of extinction.”
• Not for immediate abolition; proposes halting spread so it will die out over time.
• Outcome: Douglas retains Senate seat, but Lincoln gains national fame.

Page 6 — John Brown’s Raid & Growing Fear (1859)

• Abolitionist John Brown returns w/ plan to seize federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.
• Goal: arm enslaved people, spark widespread rebellion.
• Raid fails; Brown captured, tried, executed ⇒ martyr in North, nightmare in South (proof of violent abolitionism).
• Propaganda heightens paranoia on both sides.

Page 7 — Election of 1860: Party Realignment & Platforms

Collapse of Old Parties:
• Whig Party dead; Upper-South ex-Whigs form Constitutional Union Party ⇒ nominate John Bell (TN).
Democrats Split:
• Northern wing nominates Stephen Douglas.
• Southern wing walks out, nominates John C. Breckenridge (KY).
Republicans (est. $1854$):
• Sideline prominent radical William Seward to avoid “abolitionist” label.
• Nominate Abraham Lincoln (perceived moderate) + offer economic planks attractive to northern voters:
– Northern route for transcontinental railroad.
– Higher protective tariffs.
– Homestead proposal: free western land to settlers (becomes Homestead Act $1862$).
• Two distinct regional campaigns:
– South: Bell vs. Breckenridge.
– North/West: Douglas vs. Lincoln.

Page 8 — Results & Statistical Breakdown

Electoral College:
• Lincoln wins outright majority; carries every free state plus CA & OR.
• Votes > combined total of all three opponents.
Popular Vote:
• Lincoln ≈ $42\%$ overall; wins Northern states by ≈ $500{,}000$ votes over Douglas.
• Little to zero Southern support; his name absent from several southern ballots.
Interpretation:
• Sectional, not national, mandate.

Page 9 — Secession: Deep South Responds (Dec 1860 – Feb 1861)

Southern Perception:
• Lincoln viewed (incorrectly) as radical abolitionist forced on South by hostile majority.
• Extremists welcome his election—provides pretext for disunion.
Timeline:
• $20\,\text{Dec}\,1860$ — South Carolina convention unanimously votes to secede (likened to Massachusetts in 1770s radicalism).
• By Feb 1861: Six more Deep-South states (incl. Texas) leave Union.
• Delegates meet Montgomery, Alabama ⇒ create Confederate States of America (CSA).

Page 10 — Confederate Constitution & the Myth of “States’ Rights”

Structure:
• Confederacy resembles U.S. under Articles of Confederation — loose league; national govt equal to state govts.
• President: single $6$-year term; Bill of Rights embedded in original text.
Explicit Protections:

1. Article I §9 ¶4: “No … law denying or impairing the right of property in Negro slaves shall be passed.”
2. Article IV §2 ¶1: Citizens may travel through any CSA state “with their slaves … and the right of property in said slaves shall not be … impaired.”
3. Article IV §3: In all territories, “the institution of Negro slavery … shall be recognized and protected by Congress.”
   • Despite later claims, the primary state right defended = ownership of enslaved people.

Page 11 — Failure of Last-Minute Compromises & Lincoln’s Predicament

• Numerous compromise proposals floated winter $1860 – 61$ yet fail; mutual trust gone.
• Lincoln president-elect until inauguration $4\,\text{Mar}\,1861$ ⇒ cannot act; Union must wait to see policy.
• Crisis sets stage for Chapter 15 (Civil War).

Study Tip: Track how every attempted “solution” (Compromise of 1850, Kansas–Nebraska Act, popular sovereignty, court rulings) intensified—not resolved—sectional conflict. Recognize that by 1860 political, legal, and moral venues for compromise were exhausted, making war increasingly likely.