A Nation Divided

North/South Divide
  • What was going on at the time that led to the Civil War in terms of expansion? - new states joining the country
    • Why was the “slave status” of new states important? - states with similar “slave-status” tended to have similar opinions
    • Why were Southern states anti-federal power? - did not want tariffs
  • How did the Southern states benefit from the 3/5ths compromise? - increases their number of representatives, even though enslaved people couldn’t vote
  • What was controversial about Lincoln’s election? - South was extremely anti-Lincoln and he only won on Northern support
    • What is the difference between party support now and in the 1860s? - philosophies switched, Republicans dominate the South now, Democrats dominate the North
  • What was the importance of Southern identity? - lifestyles were different between the two areas which drove the divide
  • Why was the South afraid of federal power? - thought that they would abolish slavery
  • In the opinion of the South, what was the conflict really about? - states’ rights vs federal authority
  • Who was doing better economically during the period before Lincoln’s election? - The North because industry was expanding which required workers so people came to find jobs
    • Which side’s population was growing faster during the period before Lincoln’s election? - the North
    • Overall, which side was faring better in the conflict? - the North

Why didn’t the South adapt and change their economy to keep up with the North? - wealthy elites would lose their status and wanted to maintain their Southern identity

  • How does the idea of Southern identity pull in poorer white people? - idea that the North was taking away their way of life
Could the Civil War have been avoided?
  • What about the Constitutional Convention(1787) led to the divide between the North and South? - 3/5 compromise, scheduled discussion of slavery for 1808, idea of balance, failure to diversify Southern economy
    • What could they have done to address slavery even though it was such a hot topic? - put an expiration date on it to give people time to accept it and figure out other options
  • How did the Missouri Compromise further the divide between the North and the South? - created a literal boundary
  • Would people have listened to George Washington about emancipation/abolition? - possibly, he was well-respected and a slaveholder himself so he could have held a lot of weight
  • 13th Amendment - ended legal slavery
  • 14th Amendment - birthright citizenship

15th Amendment - voting rights for everyone regardless of race

Key Events and Chronology
  • 1799: Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions - The two states declared the Alien and Sedition Acts unconstitutional. They asserted that states had the right to declare laws passed by congress to be unconstitutional
  • 1820: Missouri Compromise - Missouri has no restrictions on slavery, everything north of its southern border (not including Missouri itself) would be free territories
  • 1828: “Tariff of Abominations” - tariffs increased further which angered the Southern states
  • 1831: Nat Turner Rebellion - Nat Turner, an enslaved person living in Virgina, led a revolt against his master. This large-scale revolt led Southern leaders to fear new uprisings, and believed that these uprisings were as a result of the abolitionist movement, increasing their animosity toward abolitionists
  • 1832: Nullification crisis (South Carolina) - South Carolina refused the new tariffs and promised to secede if the laws were attempted to be enforced
  • 1833: Compromise of 1833 - negotiations led to the lowering of tariffs in South Carolina to avoid their secession
  • 1836: Congress passes “gag rule” - democrats ignored petitions like the ones sent by abolitionists and made a rule against discussing them.
  • 1846: Wilmot Proviso - Wilmot wanted territory annexed from Mexico to be non-slave states, so he proposed an amendment to do just that.
  • 1848: Territory from Mexico following Mexican American War - US won more territory from Mexico in the war, so the issue of slavery in these territories became a hot topic once again.
  • 1848: Free Soil Party - A new political party was formed, whose founding principle was that new territories should not have access to slavery.
  • 1850: Fugitive Slave Act - This act required people to return escaped enslaved people to their masters. Many Northerners were against this act and did not adhere to it, which gave rise to the Underground Railroad.
  • 1850: Compromise of 1850 - Henry Clay proposed a solution to the nation’s problems: New Mexico had no restrictions or protections on slavery, California became a free state, Texas did not get the territory it believed it was owed but got debt relief from congress instead, DC would not abolish slavery completely until Maryland and Virginia agreed.
  • 1853-56: Brief rise of Know Nothings - The Know-Nothings were a short-lived political party who opposed immigration. They nominated Millard Filmore against John Charles Fremont and James Buchanan in the election of 1856. Buchanan was the eventual winner.
  • 1854: Formation of Republican Party - Republican party was built by Northern Whigs and anti-slavery democrats. The founding principle was that new slave states should not be admitted to the country as states.
  • 1854: Ostend Manifesto and Kansas Nebraska Act - Ignored the Missouri Compromise line and allowed the two territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide their "slave status" themselves.
  • 1856: Violence on Senate floor (beating of Charles Sumner) - anti-slavery senator beaten by a pro-slavery representative over an anti-slavery speech made by the former.
  • 1857: Dred Scott decision - Dred Scott travelled from Missouri to Illinois with his master. Some argued that he was free because he had lived on slavery-free land for many years, but the supreme court shot down this argument and decided that he was to remain enslaved.
  • 1858: Debate over Kansas - settlers who were anti-slavery became violent as Missourians fraudulently voted in order to make Kansas a slave territory, they decided that Kansas becomes a state if the Lecompton constitution was accepted by voters, did not become a state until the population grew if they rejected it. They finally decided to reject it.
  • 1859: John Brown raid on Harper’s Ferry - John Brown and his companions took over an arsenal owned by the government in order to arm a revolt among enslaved people.
  • 1860, Nov: Election of Abraham Lincoln - Lincoln was the first Republican president, the Republican party being created by Northerners shortly before. The south saw this as an attack on them and their beliefs and a play for power.
  • 1860, Dec 18: Crittenden Compromise - Crittenden plan wanted protections for slavery and slave states in the constitution, and wanted these amendments to not be able to be changed themselves. The plan was eventually rejected by the senate’s Republicans.
  • 1860, Dec 20: South Carolina secedes - The secession was Lincoln’s first problem to deal with as president, and it was a big one. He needed to decide whether or not to resupply the union holding of Fort Sumter, the consequences being war or SC leaving the union.
  • 1861, Jan-Feb: MS, FL, AL, GA, LA, TX secede - These states would rather be out on their own than be a part of a union with a Republican president such as Lincoln. The case focuses on whether this secession was lawful.
  • 1861, Feb: Confederacy begins - The seceded states decided to band together to form their own new nation, the Confederate States of America, whose government was based off of the US Constitution, but prohibited the banishment of slavery.
  • 1861, March 4: Lincoln inaugurated - Lincoln’s inauguration came after seven states left the union due to their anti-republican views.