History: Chapter 13 Outline

Chapter 13: The Union in Peril, 1848-1861

1.     Conflict Over Status of Territories

a.     Territories gained in Mexican war became focus of sectional dispute

                                               i.     Wilmot Compromise, 15-15 states

b.     Free-Soil Movement

                                               i.     N. Democrats, Whigs supported Wilmot Proviso and all blacks should be excluded from Mexican Cession

                                              ii.     “free soil, free labor, free men”

                                            iii.     Preventing extention of slavery, free homesteads, oppurtunites for whites only

c.      Southern Position

                                               i.     Saw any attempt to restrict the expansion of slavery as a violation of rights to take/use property as they wished

                                              ii.     Moderate Southerners wanted to extend Missouri Compromise line of 36* 30’ to Pacific.

d.     Popular Sovereignty

                                               i.     Lewis Cass

1.     Let people vote for slavery/no slavery for each new state

e.     The Election of 1848

                                               i.     Democrats- Senator Cass, popular sovereignty

                                              ii.     Whigs- General Zachary Taylor- no stance in slavery

                                            iii.     Free-Soil party- martin Van Buren

1.     Conscience Whigs, antislavery democrats

                                            iv.     Taylor wins, Cass close

2.     Compromise of 1850

a.     Gold Rush 1849- 100,000 settlers to CA

                                               i.     Created need for law

                                              ii.     Drafted constitution- banned slavery

b.     Pres. Taylor= slaveholder, supported admission of CA and NM w/o normal process (NW Ordinance)

c.      Plan sparked talked of secession

d.     1850- S. Extremist met in Nashville to discuss secession

e.     Henry Clay’s compromise

                                               i.     Admit CA as a free state

                                              ii.     Divide rest of Mexican Cession into two: Utah and NM

                                            iii.     Popular sovereignty

                                            iv.     Give land in dispute b/w TX and NM to new territories in return of paid debt of 10 million

                                              v.     Ban slave trade in District of Colombia, let whites hold slaves as before

                                            vi.     Adopt new Fugitive Slave Law, enforce rigorously

f.      Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun- last speeches

g.     Senator William H. Seward of NY- higher law than the constituion

h.     Passage of Compromise-1850

3.     Agitation Over Slavery

a.     Fugitive Slave Law

                                               i.     Purpose: track down fugitive slaves

                                              ii.     Anyone captures refused trial by jury

b.     Underground Railroad

c.      Literature on Slavery- Pro and Con

                                               i.     Uncle Tom’s Cabin

1.     1852 by Harriet Beecher Stowe

2.     Slavery= cruel

3.     South said North was prejudiced

d.     Impending Crisis of the South

                                               i.     Showed slavery had a negative impact on South’s econom

                                              ii.     Southern Reaction

1.     North said slavery was evil, South said it was the opposite and good for slave and master.

2.     “Wage slaves”

e.     Effect of Law and Literature

                                               i.     Put more tensions between North and South

4.     National Parties in Crisis

a.     The Election of 1852

                                               i.     Whig problems showed

                                              ii.     Nominated military hero for pres.

1.     Ignored slavery issue, wanted improves roads/harbors

                                            iii.     Democrats elected safe compromise candidate, Franklin Pierce

1.     B/c of Fugitive Slave Law

b.     The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)

                                               i.     Democrats in control

1.     Senator Stephen A. Douglas of IL

a.     Plan for railroad and W. settlement (transcontinental railroad)

b.     Bill proposed Nebraska Territory be slpit into Kansas Territory and Nebraska Territory

2.     Renewed sectionalist problems partly resolved in Compromise of 1820.

c.      New Parties

                                               i.     Know-Nothing Party

1.     Ethnic tensions in North b/w native-born Protestants and immigrant German and Irish Catholics.

2.     Drew support from the Whigs

                                              ii.     Birth of the Republican Party

1.     Founded in WI in 1854 in reaction to the Kansas-Nebraska Act.

2.     Free-Soilers, anti-slavery Whigs, Democrats

a.     Repeal of both K-N Act and Fugitive Slave Law

3.     Northern, Western Moderates

4.     Okay with slavery, not it’s expansion

d.     The Election of 1856

                                               i.     Democrats won by a landslide

1.     Fremont

                                              ii.     Marked emergence of powerful political party

5.     Extremists and Violence

a.     Bleeding Kansas

                                               i.     Free-Soilers made the New England Emigrant Aid Company (1855)= paid for transportation of antislavery settlers to Kansas

                                              ii.     Fight broke out b/w pro and anti slavery groups

1.     1856- Proslavery attacked Lawrence, killed two, destroyed homes, businesses

                                            iii.     Caning of Senator Sumner

1.     Sumner verbally attacked Dem. Admin. “The Crime Against Kansas”

2.     Senator Andrew Butler’s nephew Preston Brooks beat Sumner w/ a cane on the head.

a.     Outraged the North

3.     “Sumner-Brooks” incident

6.     Constitutional Issues

a.     Lecompton Constitution

                                               i.     Buchanan’s 1^st challenges: Accept proslavery state constituion of Kansas submitted by Lecompton or no?

1.     Did not have support of majority of the settlers

2.     1858- Proslavery defeated by majority of Kansas settlers

a.     Most antislavery Republicans

b.     Dred Scott vs. Sandford (1857)

                                               i.     Dred Scott sued for his freedom

1.     Denied it b/c they said he had no right

a.     Constitution not meant for African-descendants

b.     No power to deprive a person of property

c.      Excluded WI, law was unconstitituional

                                              ii.     Lincoln-Douglas Debates

1.     1858- Focus was Stepen Douglas’ campaign for reelection as senator from Illinois

a.     Abe Lincoln challenging him

                                                                                                     i.     One two year term in congress, Whig

                                                                                                    ii.     Not abolitionist, but slavery was a moral issue

b.     Douglas won, but lost ground in the long run           

                                                                                                     i.     Alienated S. Democrats

7.     The Road to Secession

a.     John Brown’s Raid at Harpers Ferry

                                               i.     1859- led slave uprising in Virginia

                                              ii.     Condemned by moderates in north, south don’t believe them

b.     The Election of 1860

                                               i.     Breakup of the Democratic Party

1.     After John Brown’s raid, nation was on the brink of disunion

2.     Last hope of coalition and compromise.

3.     North and South Democrats hold separate conventions, elect different candidates.

                                              ii.     Republican nomination of Lincoln

1.     Drafted platform to appeal to economic self-interest of northerners and westerners.

a.     Called for exclusion of slavery from the territories, protective tariff for industry, free land of homesteaders, internal improvements to encourage w. settlement, including railroad to the Pacific.

2.     South secessionists said if Lincoln was pres, they would leave the Union

                                            iii.     A fourth political party

1.     Former Whigs, Know-Nothings, moderate Democrats formed the Constitutional Union Party.

2.     Nominated John Bell of TN.

                                            iv.     Election Results

1.     Lincoln won over Douglas

a.     Douglas won popular vote, Abe got more electoral votes from populous free states in the north

c.      Secession of the Deep South

                                               i.     December 1860- Convention in SC voted to seced.

                                              ii.     FL, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippie, Louisiana, TX did the same.

                                            iii.     Feb. 1861- Reps of 7 states of the Deep S. met in Montgomery, Alabama.

1.     Created the Confederate States of America

2.     Like US Constitution, but limited govt’s power to impose tariffs and restrict slavery.

3.     Elected pres/ fice pres: Senator Jefferson Davis of Mississippi and Alexander Stephens of Georgia.

                                            iv.     Crittenden Compromise

1.     Senator John Crittenden of Kentuckky

a.     All territories south of 36* 30 would guarantee use of slaves. 

b.     Abe did not accept compromise

2.     Those who voted for secession: tradition of Rev. of 1776, right to indep. And leaving constitution that no longer protected them of tyranny.