Unit 4 – Chp 19 – Drifting toward Disunion
Nothing brought the nation closer to the Civil War than all of the events that dealt with
slavery. The early years of Compromise had now disappeared and the decision to the Dred Scott
case heralded the nation toward war. By 1860, with the election of Lincoln, the nation became
divided and many of the Southern states had seceded, broken away.
1850 – the Compromise of 1850
1852 – Publication of the abolitionist book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, by Harriet Beecher
Stowe becomes the most popular book of the decade. Widely read throughout the US, especially
the North as well as in England and France. Although she never really witnessed the brutal
nature of slavery or a slave auction, the book swayed many to the abolitionist cause. England
and France may have intervened on behalf of the South, but their own people would never have
allowed, both nations were avid abolitionists and this book made it even more so.
1854 – The Kansas-Nebraska Act. This called for popular sovereignty in these
territories. Abolitionists and pro-slavery supporters swarmed into both areas, but only 2 slaves
were in Kansas and 15 in Nebraska by the time of the vote. One problem was that pro-slavery
supporters from neighboring Missouri swarmed across the border, voted early and often and
swayed the vote to pro-slavery supporters in Kansas.
1856 – Bleeding Kansas – John Brown, a white abolitionist from the North with a sordid
past, stormed into Kansas with some of his supporters and famously hacked to death five slave
owners in front of their families.
1856 - The Lecompton Constitution – proslavery people created a anew state
constitution for Kansas that would support the rights of slave owners no matter how people
voted. Abolitionists refused to vote and the proslavery contingent therefore won. Senator
Stephan Douglas, of Popular Sovereignty fame, said this was undemocratic. A new vote
occurred and the free-soilers won the day overwhelmingly.
1856 – Bully Brooks – House of Reps. Preston Brooks used his cane to beat Senator
Charles Sumner after Sumner, from Ma., gave a fiery abolitionist speech in Congress. Brooks,
from SC, was upset by Sumner’s attack on his state and his distant cousin, the senator also from
SC. Brooks beat Sumner with his cane right in the halls of Congress until the cane broke.
Sumner almost died, Brooks resigned but was re-elected overwhelmingly by his district.
Supporters sent him new canes.
1856 – Presidential election – Democrats nominated James Buchanan, who was greatly
influenced by Southern supporters (nothing in their platform was against slavery, it was mostly
in favor of Popular Sovereignty); Republicans nominated John C. Fremont (the Republican
Party was against the extension of slavery into the territories), and the Know-Nothing Party, a
very anti-foreigner and anti-Catholic party nominated the old president, Millard Fillmore, he
claimed that “Americans must rule America.”
Unit 4 – Chp 19 – Notes 1
Mudslinging was pervasive. The Democrats won. Conservatism and Southern Bullying
won – Northern industry wanted cheap Southern cotton and Northern banks were afraid to lose
the $300 million that the South owed them.
1857 - The Dred Scott case (Scot v. Sandford) – a slave, Scott, was taken to the free land
of Illinois and the Wisconsin territories for a number of years before returning to the slave state
of Missouri. He sued for his freedom upon his return but the case made its way to the Supreme
Court, which was still controlled by Southern judges, 7 to 2. Although Scott had won his
freedom thanks to a lower court decision, the SC ruled that since he was a slave, he was not a US
citizen, and he had no right to sue. Also, Justice Taney, the Chief Justice at the time, ruled that a
slave was a piece of property that could be taken anywhere (free land or slave land). Lastly the
Dred Scott decision ruled that the Missouri Compromise, specifically the 36 30 parallel was
Unconstitutional, that Congress could NOT outlaw slavery in a territory, and neither could state
legislatures.
1857 - Panic of 1857 – This economic down turn hurt the North a lot more than the
South. Northern Industries blamed the lower tariffs under the Tariff of 1857 for not protecting
their businesses and causing the crash. The outside party now had the economic advantage. No
sitting president ever won re-election when the economy was faltering (The only two I can think
of where even the same party stayed in power was FDR during the Great Depression and Obama
during the Great Recession because the economic climate was getting better in both cases).
1858 – Lincoln-Douglas Debates – a series of long debates between incumbent Stephen
Douglas of Popular Sovereignty fame, and Abraham Lincoln, a poor 1 term member of the
House of Reps that was not noted for too many things. He did say, “A house divided against
itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half
free.”
Lincoln, in Freeport Illinois, asked the “Freeport Question” to Stephen Douglas: The
Supreme Court ruled that the people of a territory could not vote down slavery. Who would be
supreme, the Supreme Court or the people? Knowing Douglas background with popular
sovereignty, Douglas responded with what became known as the Freeport Doctrine – No matter
what the Supreme Court ruled, slavery would stay down if people voted It down. Laws to protect
slavery could only be passed by the legislatures through popular support or approval.
1859 – John Brown at Harpers Ferry – John Brown attempted a massive slave revolt. His
intention was to overthrow a military arsenal and pass out the weapons to slaves, who would
then use them to secure their freedom. The problem was that Harpers Ferry’s, the arsenal was
being guarded by a Robert E. Lee. Brown was captured, along with his men and sons. Some
were killed in the attack on the arsenal, the rest were hung for their acts.
1860 – The Democratic Party was split. Southerners did not want Douglas due to his
response to the Lecompton Constitution and his Freeport Doctrine. At the first Democratic
National Convention (DNC), the Southerners walked out and Douglas did not have enough
support. When the DNC was moved to Baltimore, the Southern delegates did the same thing and
the Northern delegates voted Douglas in. The Democratic Party was now a regional party. It
Unit 4 – Chp 19 – Notes 2
had no support in the South, just the North. Southern Democrats broke off and created their
own party, selecting John Breckinridge. A Constitutional Union Party was created that was full
of old Whigs and Know-Nothing members. Lastly, the Republican Party, still a sectional party,
selected Abraham Lincoln. The Republican Platform was now pro-free-soilers (the nonextension of slavery), protective tariffs, no abridgement of immigrant rights, internal
improvements paid for by the national government, and free land to settlers (a Homestead Act).
Lincoln won. Although he was not an abolitionist as the South claimed, he considered
freeing the slaves utilizing the 5th Amendments’ Eminent Domain, paying the slave owners fair
market value for the property (slaves) taken from them. The Southerners refused his offer and
many Southern states began to quickly secede. During President Buchanan’s lame duck period
(the time Lincoln was voted into office in November but as per the Constitution he did not
assume the position until March of the following year.), South Carolina led the call to secede and
eventually 11 states broke away from the Union (they claimed they were simply doing what our
Founding Father’s did during the American Revolution.) The states in the South created the
“Confederate States of America,” under the leadership of Jefferson Davis. They followed in the
European path of self-determination, which was happening all across the Old World. Although
one member of Congress tried to pass a major compromise to avoid this withdrawal from the
Union (country), the Crittendon Amendment, it was quickly vetoed by Lincoln and no official
compromise was attempted by Lincoln.
Unit 4 – Chp 19 – Notes 3