The Political Argument Over Slavery That Led to a Civil War

Missouri Compromise 1820

The argument began with Missouri becoming a state. One state entering the Union would upset the balance of Free States vs Slave States.

This also brings up the issue of what if other territory out West starts to become states too? Would they be Free or Slave states?

To compromise, they agreed that Missouri could be a Slave state if the North got to make Maine its own Free state to balance it out.

Jefferson ain’t buyin it

“This momentous question of slavery, like a fire bell in the night, awakened and filled one with terror. I considered it at once the knell (death bell) of the Union. It is hushed, indeed, only for the moment…”

Jefferson’s unimpressed face^

Compromise of 1850

Talk about secession has already begun by this point.

In this latest attempt to keep the peace, the Compromise of 1850 delegates agreed on the following:

California would be a Free State Slave Trade was banned in

Washington D.C. But the Fugitive Slave Act became

stronger for the South

Kansas-Nebraska Act 1854

The Missouri Compromise has been keeping the peace for the past 34 years, but peace is over rated right? Lets mix it up.

With Kansas and Nebraska becoming official U.S. territories the argument of whether they should be a free or slave territory began again

Kansas and Nebraska are above Missouri Compromise line (South says that’s not fair)

So they agree that people in those territories can vote on whether they are a Free or Slave State.

This leads to politicians from both sides flooding these two territories, and they begin to literally fight over the territory in essentially a prequel to the War