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The Compromise Of 1850, And The Kansas-Nebraska Act

Decent Essays

From the years 1861 to 1865, the United States was at war. But not just any war. America was fighting each other, over national issues such as slavery and states’ rights. The outcome of this war would determine the future of the United States. Events that led up to the American Civil War include the compromise of 1850, and the Kansas-Nebraska Act which instigated fighting in the state of Kansas. The election of Abraham Lincoln as President resulted in the secession of the southern states from the union, and the formation of the Confederate States of America. The Compromise of 1850 was originally meant to bring peace to the North and South, but instead caused more tension between the two, very different regions. The plan, crafted by Henry Clay, and split into separate bills by Stephen A. Douglas would please the North that California would become a free state. It would also outlaw the slave trade in Washington D.C. For the South, Congress would not pass laws that had to do with slavery for the remaining territories won in the Mexican-American War. Congress would …show more content…

Douglas proposed that the Nebraska Territory be split into two territories. These territories would be named the Kansas and Nebraska Territories, and the residents would decide whether the two territories be open to slavery or closed to slavery. As a result, over five thousand Missourians, and thousands more from all over the nation scrambled to the territories to cast their vote. Since the proslavery outnumbered the anti-slavery, both territories became open to slavery. Anti-Slavery settlers then established their own government after boycotting the formal government. Tensions between the North and South continued to increase, as well as violence in Kansas. One of the most notable attacks against on the proslavery was carried out by extreme abolitionist John Brown, who murdered five of his proslavery neighbors. The fighting in Kansas earned the name “Bleeding

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