Untitled Flashcards Set

Chapter 8 (Era of Good Feelings)

• Era of Good Feelings- Nationalism & unity after War of 1812; one party; Dem-Rep; Federalists collapsed; somewhat misleading since debates over tariffs, the national bank, slavery, and the Panic of 1819 occured. 

  • James Monroe- Dem-Rep; won in 1816; represented growing nationalism of Americans

• Cultural Nationalism- Younger generations now felt distinct and American; had their own literature, art, etc.; wanted to expand westward & didn’t care about European politics

• Econ Nationalism- Political movement of protecting US industries & internal improvements

  • Tariff of 1816- First protective US tariff; most, even South, supported it

  • Henry Clay’s American System- Clay’s plan to develop the domestic economy through protective tariffs to protect US industries, a national bank to provide a national currency, & internal improvements (roads, canals, etc.) to facilitate transportation & communication. Tariffs for East, internal improvements for West & South, National Bank for all; Monroe rejected internal improvements by arguing the Constitution didn’t give fed gov the power to fund them; states had to do so

• Panic of 1819- First major econ downfall; happened b/c 2nd National Bank tightened credit & too much land speculation out West; unemployment, poverty, bankruptcies; shoke nationalism & left westerners upset & wanting land reform to reassure their land

• Political Changes- Political factions occurred in Dem-Rep party; old Dem-Reps wanting strict interpretation like John Randolph & John C. Calhoun (wanted states’ rights); new Dem-Reps wanting protective tariffs & the national bank and looser interpretation like Daniel Webster

• SCOTUS- John Marshall; last major federalist; often sided w/ Dem-Reps

  • Fletcher v Peck (1816)- Ruled states could not pass legislation invalidating a contract; first time SCOTUS declared state law to be unconstitutional

  • Dartmouth v Woodward (1819)- Struck down state law; contract for private corporation couldn’t be messed w/ by states

  • McCulloch v Maryland (1819)- Ruled that National Bank was constitutional & ruled Supreme/Federal Law over State Law

  • Cohens v Virginia (1821)- Ruled that the SCOTUS could review a state court’s decision

  • Gibbons v Odgen (1821)- Ruled that states could not control interstate commerce; only fed gov

• Westward Expansion 

  • Causes- Large amounts of land open after Native defeat in War of 1812, economic opportunities, improvements in transportation facilitated it, immigration in cheap land out west

  • Missouri Compromise- Missouri applied for statehood; would break the balance of free/slave states; Clay’s Proposal; (1) Make Missouri slave (2) Create Maine as free state (3) Prohibit slavery in Lousiana Purchase territory north of the 36,30 line; established precedent for free/slave states balance & border for slavery’s expansion

• Foreign Affairs

  • Florida- Overthrew Natives & Spanish during War of 1812 under General Jackson; Florida Purchase Treaty in 1819 (Adams-Onis Treaty) bought Florida & Texas from Spain

  • Monroe Doctrine- Told Europe to stay away from the Western Hemisphere and not intervene w/ any American affairs; set precedent for US foreign policy in 1800s; pushed by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams 

• Growth of Industry- Aided greatly by newly built roads, canals, steamboats, & early railroads

  • Mechanical Inventions- Eli Whitney; cotton gin- greatly increased production of cotton in South

  • Northern Industry- Samuel Slater; water-powered textile factories in NE; made NE biggest manufacturing zone of US; labor; women, children, & immigrants; Unions; workers organized & protested long hours, low pay, poor working conditions; challenges; state laws banning unions, frequent economic stumbles w/ unemployment, & immigrant replacement for workers

• Effects of Market Revolution

  • Women- Had somewhat more financial control over their lives; Lowell System employed many; legal restrictions remained (no voting, etc)

  • Social Mobility- Became easier to go from poor to rich than in Europe due to free(er) capitalism, still very challenging though

  • Slavery- Though many thought it would slowly dissapear, it actually increased greatly w/ the addition of slave states & more effecient ways of producing cotton (slaves still had to pick the cotton)

Summary: After the War of 1812 and the collapse of the Federalist party, Americans found themselves in the Era of Good Feelings, an era marked with cultural nationalism and pride, yet misleading due to the numerous debates and problems that occured. During this time, the Democratic Republican Party, the single party in the US, pushed for economic improvements, mostly through Henry Clay’s American system of protective tariffs to protect US industries, internal improvements to facilitate transportation and aid Southern and Western farmers through roads, early railroads, and canals, and the renewal of the National Bank to stabilize the American currency. Despite these initiatives, the US still suffered through the first major financial crisis in US history, the Panic of 1819, caused by the National Bank and over-speculation out west. This would also cause factions to be created in the Democratic Republican Party, mainly “old” Democratic Republicans such as John Randolph and the “new” Democratic Republicans such as Daniel Webster who believed in a “looser” interpretation of the Constitution and internal improvements. However, despite the Federalist party collapsing, one key Federalist remained; John Marshall, the head of the Supreme Court. During this era, key cases were decided, most notably; McCulloch v Maryland, which established federal/supreme power over state power and Gibbons v Odgen, which ruled states could not intervene with commerce, only the federal government could, once again establishing federal power over state power. Due to the large amount of land gained during the War of 1812 and stolen from Natives, a wave of Westward Expansion occurred, mostly fueled by economic opportunities and cheap land for both American farmers and immigrants. This would lead to issues once territories became states, such as when Missouri tried to enter the US as a slave state. However, this would disrupt the balance in power between slave and free states, leading to Henry Clay’s Missouri Compromise, allowing Missouri in as a slave state for creating Maine as a free state and establishing the 36,30 line which would create a border for slavery; all states above would be free and all states below would be slave states, setting a precedent for the balance between slave and free states. During this time of expansion and caused by perceived threats of European monarchies claiming and establishing colonies in the Western Hemisphere, James Monroe, aided by John Quincy Adams, warned Europe to not intervene with the Western Hemisphere or its affairs in the Monroe Doctrine. Due to domestic improvements in technology, such as the Lowell Mills and the cotton gin, a market economy began. This would greatly expand slavery, develop New England as the leading manufacturer in America, improving social mobility, employing thousands of women in the Northeast, and creating Unions which challenged the poor working conditions, long hours, and low wages of Northeastern factories.

Chapter 9 (Sectionalism)

• North- Most immigration, industry, commercial farming- steel plow & mechanical reaper for corn & wheat in Northwest, transportation, population

  • Unions- Commonwealth v. Hunt allowed for unions & strikes; crowded cities w/ poor sanitation, crime, & disease; 

  • African Americans- Free but w/ limited rights, normally low-income jobs & strikebreakers- hired to replace strikers; 

  • Immigration- Irish & Germans fleeing famines & revolutions, wanting economic opportunities; 

  • Nativism- Feared immigrants would take jobs, weaken Anglo culture, distrusted Catholic Irish & Germans; first major wave of nativism

• South- Slavery, agriculture- tobacco, rice, cotton- King Cotton- foreign reliance on cotton

  • “Peculiar Institution”- Slavery in the South; slave-owners now argued for slavery b/c of religious & historical reasons; argued slavery was good for both the slave & master; compared to colonial times where it was for econ reasons

    • Very few but some free slaves in South; very limited rights, always threatened by potential kidnaps

  • Slave Resistance- Work slowdowns, sabotage, escape, some slave uprisings; Nat Turner (1831); revolts gave hope to slaves & exposed North to horrors of slavery

  • White Hierarchy- Aristocrats w/ over 100 slaves, farmers w/ ~20 slaves, majority were poor farmers w/o slaves; still defended slavery b/c they thought they could one day own slaves

• West- From Mississippi River to California; wasn’t very settled yet (not Northwest w/ commercial farming; more west coast)

  • Natives- Natives had already been pushed back beyond Miss. River but were left in Great Plains b/c Americans skipped over it & went straight to far west

  • Frontier- Even though the border get getting further the idea remained; possibility for a fresh start out west

Summary: During a time of rapid expansion, the beginning of industrialization, and growing nationalism, the United States was ironically separated culturally, economically, and morally. In the Northeast and Northwest was where the most industry and commercial farming was seen, resulting in the overall highest population, having the highest population of free African Americans, who, despite having their social, political and economic rights extremely constricted, were better off than being slaves in the deep South. Unions, now legal and able to go on strike due to the decision in Commonwealth V. Hunt, began to be created in response to the poor working conditions, low pay, and long hours of industrial work. However, this industry would lead to great economic success, encouraging many Germans and Irish to immigrate over, also escaping famines and poverty, sparking the Nativist resistance, in which Anglo-Saxon Protestant Americans rioted and were heavily against the Catholic Germans and Irish. In contrast, the Southern states relied heavily on agriculture, mostly tobacco, rice, and cotton, farmed by slaves, and on the foreign reliance of their agriculture. Slavery was so ingrained into the life of Southerners that it was deemed the “peculiar institution”, with many white slavery apologists claiming slavery was beneficial for both the master and slave. This in turn would leave to slave resistance, coming in the form of work slowdowns, sabotage, escaping, and most impactful, violent uprisings, such as the one seen in Nat Turner’s revolt, exposing the North to the horrors of slavery and giving hope to slaves. Finally, in the new, largely underdeveloped West, Natives had been left in the Great Plains region while Americans migrated to California and the West Coast. Overall, these growing differences would lead to tensions of several issues, mainly slavery and states’ rights, which would ultimately lead to the Civil War.

Chapter 10 (Jacksonian Era)

• Jacksonian Democracy- Era of popular politics; more equality between rich & poor than in Europe noted Alexis de Tocqueville (French tourist); white Americans believed in equality for all white men; common man was now important to politics

  • Universal Male Suffrage- By 1840 almost all states had given the vote and right to office to all males; allowed for the common man to get a voice whereas before it was mostly wealthy plantation owners in South & merchants in North voting

  • Party Nominating Conventions- Before; candidates were chosen in closed-door caucuses; now; common citizens could vote for candidates

  • Popular Campaigning- Campaigns became more popular; turned into festivals almost; got the attention of common man

  • Spoils System & Rotation of Office Holders- Spoils System; put people in gov jobs based on support not merit; lead to a lot of stupid people w/ gov jobs but also let many more people have gov jobs. Rotation; gov workers were limited to one term to let as many people in; increased voice of middle-class man.

• Election of 1824- Four way between Dem-Reps John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay, William Crawford, & Andrew Jackson; Jackson won popular vote but not electoral vote; JQA won

  • Corrupt Bargain- Henry Clay used his influence in the House of Rep to get Adams elected; Adams made him Secretary of State; Jackson & his supporters were infuriated arguing private schemes had interfered w/ the decision of voters

  • Tariff of Abominations- Heavy tariff imposed by Adams; southerners were infuriated & began to support Jackson

• Revolution of 1828- “Old Hickory”; Andrew Jackson had massive support from Southerners & Westerners; won election of 1828

• Jackson’s Presidency- “Protector of common man”; vetoed more bills than any president; 12

  • Indian Removal Act (1830)- Forced Natives west of Mississippi river to let land-hungry Americans use the land; Bureau of Indian Affairs was created to assist the resettlement of tribes; most politicians were in agreement

    • Cherokee Nation v Georgia (1831)- Ruled Cherokee Nation was not a foreign nation & could not sue SCOTUS

    • Worcester v Georgia (1832)- Ruled that the state of Georgia could not interfere w/ Cherokee territory

      • Eitherways, w/o President support neither of these could’ve worked; Cherokee were removed; Trail of Tears

  • Nullification Crisis- South Carolina nullified tariff of 1828 & a new tariff in 1832; convention in SC met & prohibited collection of tariffs in SC; Jackson saw this as treason & prepared military action; came to compromise -- lower the tariff; set precedent of Southern states nullifying tariffs; states rights’

  • Bank Veto- Jackson vetoed continuation of National Bank despite it working well b/c he didn’t trust banks, saw it as unconstitutional, & wanted to weaken his political enemy; Henry Clay. 

    • Pet Banks- Distributed wealth of National Bank to local banks w/ help of Treasurer Roger Taney

    • Panic of 1837- After Jackson but happened b/c of Jackson; pet banks & specie circular -- payments for land had to be made in gold or silver -- led to mass inflation; poverty; unemployment; the usual; whigs blamed Democrats laissez-faire economics -- little gov action in economics

• Two-Party System- Democrats; Jackson; Jefferson Dem-Reps- South & Western frontier- South, wealthy farmers & common man, states’ rights leaning, pro-slavery, etc vs. Whigs; Henry Clay; Hamilton Federalists- North, bankers, strong gov, anti-slavery, etc.

• Election of 1840- William Harrison won over Van Buren (who served during Panic of 1837) b/c Americans were annoyed over poor state of econ. Made whigs a national party

Summary: During the Era of Good Feelings, a large expansion in voters was seen. This was primarily due to Universal Male Suffrage, letting all white males vote, campaigns become more popular and attracting the common man more, and the Spoils System, which appointed government workers off of support, not merit, allowing many more Americans get a voice and be gain government jobs, mostly, the middle-class, also allowing for many unqualified people to land jobs in the government. This was all best seen in the election of 1828, where war-hero, “Old Hickory” Andrew Jackson won, a man of the people, gaining additional support after the Corrupt Bargain in John Quincy Adams’ presidency in which Henry Clay used his influence to get Adams the electoral vote in return for becoming Secretary of State, and the Tariff of Abominations, a heavy tariff hated among Southerners, in 1828, both of which infuriated Southern and Western farmers-- the common man. Jackson’s presidency is most famous for his overuse of power in vetoing bills, the Indian Removal Act leading to the Trail of Tears in which thousands of Natives were removed from their land and pushed west of the Mississippi, the Nullification Crisis in South Carolina which almost prompted military intervention and set the precedent of Southern states nullifying acts to push their states’ rights ideas, and the veto of the National Bank, leading to the Panic of 1837. This panic, set in place by Jackson and poorly handled by his successor, Van Buren, strengthened the Whigs party, who were primarily Northerners supporting internal improvements and resembling Hamilton’s Federalists. This in turn created a two- party system between Democrats, who continued the ideas of Jefferson, and whigs, who continued the ideas of Hamilton. The Whigs rose to power and set themselves as a prominent form in the election of 1840, which began the end of Jacksonian Democrats, as events succeeding it would lead to debates over slavery, which Jackson did not tackle.

Chapter 11- (Antebellum/Reform)

• 2nd Great Awakening- In response to more liberal religious movements caused by Enlightenment (human reason); began through revivalist camps; Timothy Dwight; Charles Finney popularized it on Western frontier; returned faith to people by warning about damnation & appealing to emotions

  • Mormons- Joseph Smith; Latter-Day Saints; forced to flee to Utah b/c everyone hated mormons b/c of their polygamy (marrying more than one person)

  • Reform- Began voluntary societies which would further push antebellum reform; temperance, education, improving treatment of mentally-ill, abolition, & equal rights for women

• Transcendentalism- Ralph Emerson & Henry David Thoreau questioned doctrines of established churches & business practices of merchants;encouraged self-reliance & the power of the individual; Thoreau was basically the first to argue for non-violent protest (Civil Disobedience) by exposing unjust laws & not paying his taxes during Mex-Am war

• Utopias- Escaping from society to create “perfect” world; Mormons, Shakers, Amana Colonies, & New Harmonies; all examples of religious communal movements

• Reform- Wanted to replace old institutions w/ new ones through political action

  • Temperance- Stop drinking; pushed for by Protestants & argued w/ high crime rates & moral persuasion; German & Irish immigrants opposed but didn’t have much political power; politicians reformed some but it was overshadowed by slavery during Civil War & brought back later 

  • Public Asylums- Dorothea Dix; pushed for new mental facilities to be created w/ better conditions; as well as prisons & schools for the blind & deaf (those two being pushed for most by Samuel Howe & Thomas Gallaudet)

  • Public Education- Nation needed to be better educated; Horace Mann pushed for public schools; wanted moral education as well & more colleges

  • Women’s Role- Became more important to society due to industrialization

    • Cult of Domesticity- Women who stayed at home now became moral leaders

    • Women’s Rights- Sarah & Angelina Grimke; Lucretia Mott & Elizabeth Stanton all pushed for women’s rights; important in Anti-slavery movement

      • Seneca Falls Convention (1848)- Declaration of Sentiments; organized by Stanton & Mott; pushed for equality & women’s suffrage

  • Anti-Slavery Movement

    • American Colonization Society- Appealed to moderate anti-slavery reformers; send slaves back to Africa; appealed to racists who wanted to free America of AAs

    • American Anti-Slavery Society- William Llyod Garrison; The Liberator -- his anti-slavery newspaper -- called for immediate abolition of slavery

    • AA Abolitionists- Frederick Douglass; advocated for direct action to end slavery & prejudice; inspireed Harriet Tubman, David Ruggles, Soujourner Truth, etc.

    • Violent Abolitionism- David Walker & Henry Garnet pushed for slavery revolts

  • Southern Reaction- Saw Northern reform as a threat to “Southern way of life”; weren’t reformers; reform was mostly in North & West

Summary: During the Era of Good Feelings, the Jacksonian Era, and the remaining time before the Civil War, a great cultural shift into reform was seen, primarily in the North and West. Arguably starting with the Second Great Awakening, a religious movement to restore faith in Americans who had become disinterested with religion pushed for by Timothy Dwight and Charles Finney, beginning utopian projects by Mormons, Shakers, and other religious groups, this era of reform revolutionized how Americans thought. In large part due to Ralph Emerson and David Thoreau’s creation of Transcendentalism, Americans began to rely on themselves more, therefore beginning to push for reform, primarily to replace old institutions. Major reform movements included Temperance, aimed at prohibiting alcohol which was greatly opposed by the large amounts of new Irish and German immigrants, the pursuit for better treatment of the mentally-ill in asylums by Dorothea Dix, the push for public education led by Horace Mann, the push for women’s rights and suffrage seen best at the Seneca Falls Convention, organized by Elizabeth Stanton and Lucretia Mott, and the anti-slavery movement, having several different approaches; the American Colonization Society wanting gradual emancipation by ridding the US of African Americans by sending them back to Africa and the more radical approaches seen best in William Garrison’s newspaper -- The Liberator -- and African Americans abolitionists such as Frederick Douglass. However, despite many Americans joining the reform movement, it was primarily in the North and West, being seen as an obstruction to southern life in the South.

Unit 5 (1830-1877)

Chapter 12 (Westward Expansion)

• Manifest Destiny- John O’Sullivan; God given duty for Americans to expand and spread civilization/democracy; what basically all expansion was based on 

• Reasons for Expansion- Manifest Destiny, economic opportunities, population increase, nationalism, tech improvements (railroads, canals, etc)

• Texas- Owned by Mexico; MX forced all immigrants (many white settlers) to become Catholic & abolished slavery; Sam Houston revolted against Mexican Dictator Santa Anna; MX denied the peace treaty; Texas was (kinda) independent; asked for US to annex it; Jackson, Van Buren, & John Tyler (despite wanting to annex it) rejected it or couldn’t get it through Senate b/c expansion of slavery since Texas had slavery as an independent nation & pressure from Northern Whigs

• Oregon- British owned; America wanted it since they already had many settlers there

• Election of 1844- Dem; Van Buren: no annexation, John C. Calhoun: annexation; caused split in Dem party; nominated James K. Polk: pro-annexation, wanted all of Oregon, & wanted California; “Fifty-four Forty or Fight!” referring to expansionism vs Henry Clay; Polk won b/c of Southern & Western support

• Mexican American War

  • Causes- Polk wanted Cali & said the border of Texas w/ Mexico was at the Rio Grande River (TX was not part of MX); MX said it was at Nueces River (Texas was part of MX); Whigs opposed war

  • Military Campaigns- First major was fought on foreign territory; General Stephen Kearny drove in to Cali; Zachary Taylor drove Mexican Army out of Texas

  • Results- US Victory

    • Treaty of Guadalupe (1848)- MX recognized Rio River as border & Mexican Cession -- gave US California & New Mexico for $15 mil

    • Opposition- Whigs feared it would mean the expansion of slavery; some Southern Dems didn’t like it b/c they wanted all of Mexico

    • Wilmot Proviso- David Wilmot; made plan for there not to be slavery in newly acquired territory; didn’t pass; set precedent for compromise to be used over slavery

• Expansion

  • Ostend Manifesto- Tried to get Cuba from Spain b/c of plantation possibilities there; didn’t work

  • Gadsden Purchase- President Franklin Pierce bought tiny piece of land in NM & AZ to build railroad

• Settlement- Skipped Great Plains & went straight Oregon & California; largely a middle-class movement

  • Gold Rush (1848-1850s)- Discovery of gold in CA caused massives amount of emigration to CA; also caused large Chinese immigration to West Coast

• Economic Expansion

  • Tech- Telegraph (Samuel F.B. Morse) & railroad made communication & transportation easier; helped connect the nation & helped Western agriculture

  • Kanagawa Treaty- Commodore Perry; opened trade w/ isolationist Japan

  • Panic of 1857- Hurt Midwestern farmers & Northerners; didn’t affect South much; increased sectionalism & made them believe their econ was superior

Summary: In large part due to John O'sullivan's Manifest Destiny, Americans believed it was their God given duty to expand out westward and spread civilization. This ultimately would lead to attempts to expand into now-Mexican territory, best seen in the opinion of James Polk and “54-40 or Fight!” campaign and other Southern and Western Democrats, and be heavily opposed by Northern Whigs, who feared the expansion of slavery. This would then go on to spark the Mexican-American War, fought over Mexican territories: Texas, which was disputed, but Texas claimed to be independent, and California. Won due to generals such as Zachary Taylor, the Mexican-American War ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe, giving America the Mexican Cession -- New Mexico and California, being the first major wave of expansion. However, expansion began issues over slavery, and its expansion into these new territories. This would cause David Wilmot to propose the Wilmot Proviso, saying none of new territories would allow for slavery and setting a precedent for peaceful methods to deal with the expansion of slavery, but it did not get through Congress. Expansion would continue with the Ostend Manifesto, showing the United States’ interest in acquiring Cuba for economic reasons and the Gadsden Purchase, which would allow a railroad to be built. New technology such as the railroad and the telegraph also aided the expansion, connecting the West and East Coast. This would also facilitate the large move to the West Coast during the Gold Rush, which also attracted a prominent wave of Chinese immigrants. Trade was also opened with Japan in the Kanagawa Treaty, allowing for even more economic opportunities. However, this would all end with the Panic of 1857, which hurt Mid-western farmers and Northern industrialists the most, leading the South to believe it had the superior economy, increasing sectionalism.

Chapter 13 (Union in Peril)

• Free Soil Movement- Were against the expansion of slavery, not slavery, b/c they wanted economic opporutinities for white men; mostly Northerners (also included some abolitionists); South saw it as a threat to their constitutional right to property

• Popular Sovereignty- Lewis Cass; allowing states to vote on whether or not it would have slavery; supported by moderate Whigs & moderate Democrats

• Election of 1848- Zachary Taylor (Whig- no position on slavery) vs Lewis Cass (Dem- popular sovereignty) vs Van Buren (Free soil); Zachary Taylor won

• Compromise of 1850- California wanted to be admitted as a free state; “fire eaters” Southern slave owners, radical Democrats considered seceding; Henry Clay made compromise: California be admitted as a free state, Mexican Cession would be divided into Utah & New Mexico w/ popular sovereignty, ban slave trade in DC, fugitive slave law- Slaves who had escaped could be kidnapped & brought back into slavery; adopted by Millard Fillmore after the death of Taylor w/ Stephen Douglas’ help

• Fugitive Slave Law- Heavily supported by South; got them to pass Comp of 1850; infuriated North & abolitionists

• Underground Railroad- Harriet Tubman; helped slaves escape to North; aided later by Frederick Douglas & Sojourner Truth

• Books

  • Uncle Tom’s Cabin- Harriet Beecher Stowe; exposed horrible truths of slavery & influenced millions of Northerners to support abolitionism; South deemed it “untruthful”

  • Impending Crisis of the South- Southerner Hinton Helper used statistics to prove slavery was harming South’s economy; banned in South & used heavily in North

  • Southern Reaction- Argued slavery was allowed by Bible & argued slavery was beneficial for both slaves & owners; argued wage workers in North were slaves in worse conditions - “wage slaves”

• Election of 1852- Winfield Scott (Whig- no position on slavery; internal improvements) vs Franklin Pierce (Dem- Northerner but supported fugitive slave law); Pierce won

• Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)- Senator of Illinois Stephen Douglas wanted to build a railroad & needed Southern support; came to compromise; split Kansas & Nebraska into two & have popular sovereignty; both were above 36,30 line established in the Missouri Compromise (1820)

• Bleeding Kansas- Pro-slavery farmers & abolitionists (Free Soil Party used New England Emigrant Aid Company to transport people) rushed into Kansas to vote; got violent; John Brown--fierce abolitionist--; first major time violence was used over issue of slavery

  • Lecompton vs Topeka- Lecompton was pro-slavery legislature in Kansas; Topeka was anti-slavery legislature in Kansas

• Sumner-Brooks Incident- Preston Brooks- proslavery - beat Charles Sumner - anti-slavery - w/ a cane in Congress; increased tensions between North & South

• New Parties- Whig Party was weakened by conflicts; Northern & Southern Democrats for a short period

  • Know-Nothing Party- Nativist party; against Catholics & Irish/German immigration; helped weaken Whig party w/ minor support

  • Republican Party- Wisconsin (1854); Free-soilers & antislavery Whigs; opposed spread of slavery- not necesarily abolition; called for repeal of Kansas-Nebraska Act & Fugitive Slave Law

  • Election of 1856- Rep- John Fremont (no expansion of slavery, homesteads, & protective tarrifs) vs Dem- James Buchanan; Buchanan won but Reps also did very well; established Reps as a major National party

• Constitutional Issues

  • Lecompton Constitution- Kansas settlers (mostly Reps) opposed Lecompton legislature; Kansas entered as a free state

  • Dred Scott v Sandford (1857)- Dred Scott sued b/c he had fled to a free state; believed it made him free; Southern Dem Roger Taney (SCOTUS Chief Justice) ruled: African Americans were not citizens (Scott could not sue), Congress could not take away slavery b/c it was personal property nor prohibit the expansion of slavery, & Missouri Comp was uncostitutional; enraged Republicans, deligthed Southern Democrats; major cause of sectional tension

• John Brown’s Raid- Harpers Ferry; John Brown tried to lead a slave revolt; moderate Reps condemned his actions; South saw it as more proof the North wanted to destroy the South

• Election of 1860- Southern Dem- John Breckinridge (unrestricted exentsion of slavery & annexation of Cuba) Northern Dem- Stephen Douglas (Popular Soveirgnety) vs Constiutional Union Party- John Bell (Know-Nothings & moderate Dems- preserve Union & use Constitution) vs Rep- Abraham Lincoln (Maintain the Union, protective tarrifs for Northern industriaists, free homesteads for Western farmers); Lincoln won; South had threatened to seceede if he won

• Secession- South Carolina, GA, FL, AL, Miss, Louis, TX all secede first; rest of the southern states seceded; created Confederate States; like US but restricted President’s power on tariffs & slavery; elected Jefferson Davis

• Crittenden Compromise- Buchanan’s last attempt to preserve Union; extension of slavery under 36,30 line; Reps rejected it b/c they wanted no extension of slavery, South rejected it b/c they had already seceeded. 

Summary: Beginning this period of conflict over the expansion of slavery was a proposed solution by Democrat Lewis Cass; popular sovereignty, which would allow the residents of territories appyling for admission as states to choose whether or not they wanted slavery. This would make up Cass’ campaign during the Election of 1848 between Cass, the Whig nominee Zachary Taylor, who ended up winning, and the Van Buren with Free Soil Party, a new party formed pushing for no expansion of slavery as they wanted economic opportunities for white settlers. Considering the Gold Rush and the massive amounts of land obtained in the Mexican Cession, it was inevitable states would be created, creating dispute. When California tried to enter the nation as a free state, conflicts began over what status it would take considering it was over and under the 36,30 line established in the Compromise of 1820. This would lead Henry Clay to creating the Compromise of 1850, in which California would be taken in as a free state and the slave trade would be banned in DC, to please Northerners, the Mexican Cession would be split into New Mexico and Utah and would then use popular sovereignty to decide whether or not they would have slavery, and the fugitive slave law, both to please Southerners. However, this ultimately created more conflict. Paired with the recent release of Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe exposing the cruelty of slavery to millions of Northerners, increasing the support for abolitionism, the Fugitive Slave Law, which allowed escaping slaves to be kidnapped and returned to slavery, creating massive amounts of fury in Northerners, tensions only rose. Under President Pierce, the Kansas-Nebraska Act passed for Stephen Douglas to build a railroad, leaving both Kansas and Nebraska to decide for slavery through popular sovereignty. However, in Kansas, things got violent when both pro slavery, at Lecompton, and anti slavery, at Topeka, groups crammed in to vote on the issue, causing the violence during Bleeding Kansas. Paired with Summer-Brooks incident in which a violent fight broke out in Congress due to arguments over slavery, a shift in solutions was seen over the issue of slavery, from peaceful compromise to violence. This issue would also create new parties; mainly the Know-Nothing Party, a purely nativist group which heavily opposed Catholic immigrants of Germany and Ireland, and the Republican party, a sort of successor to the failing Whig party, wanting no expansion of slavery, protective tariffs, and the repeal of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Fugitive Slave Law, being established as a national party in the election of 1856, where they lost but still got a large amount of votes. However, tensions would continue to worsen dramatically with the Dred Scott decision, under Roger Taney, ruling that African Americans were not citizens, the Compromise of 1820 was unconstitutional, and that Congress could not decide on the expansion of slavery; this would enrage Northerners. However, Southerners would be enraged next over the raid at Harpers Ferry, conducted by John Brown, an abolitionist who also fought during Bleeding Kansas, making Southerners firm in their belief that the North’s true intentions were to destroy the South. This would ultimately all lead to Southern Secession and the creation of the Confederate States in retaliation to the election of Republican Abraham Lincoln.