The 1850s

The decade of 1850 was a time of crisis and controversy. The expansion of slavery into new territories became a major issue. Southerners fought to assert their rights, while many northerners wished to prevent the expansion of slave labors into new states. This issue increasingly divided the north and south. There are many reasons why the 1850s was a time of crisis and controversy. The compromise of1850, Kansas-Nebraska Act, Bleeding Kansas, John Brown's Raid, The Dred Scott Case, Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the Illinois Senate Election were all major ingredients of this decade.

The Compromise of 1850 was a major issue. The compromise of 1850 is an agreement proposed by Henry Clay. He said "That a compromise could only be effective if it addressed all the issues dividing North and South. Many northerners objected to Clay's compromise arguing that it was wrong. Opposition to compromise was fierce was fierce. the compromise created the illusion that the issue had been resolved. "There is rejoicing over the land" wrote a northerner. "The disunion and violence are defeated" Although the compromise of 1850 did not satisfy all Americans, most were hopeful that it had settled slavery.

The Kansas- Nebraska Act of 1854 was also a big issue of controversy and crisis. This act established the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, and opened the land to legal settlements. It allowed residents to decide whether by popular vote their state should be free or slave. This was known as popular sovereignty. In Kansas people on all sides of the opposing issue flooded the territory to influence the votes. Rival territory governments, election fraud, and disagreements over land claims all contributed to the violence. Three groups occupied Kansas: pro slavers, free states, and abolitionists. Violence broke out between the opposing sides until 1861 when Kansas entered the union as a free state.

Violence soon erupted in Kansas. With two rival governments, conflict was impossible to avoid. Pro slavery from Missouri attacked anti slavery settlers. In 1856 a pro slavery mob invaded the town of Lawrence, Kansas. I n revenge a group led by john Brown attacked a pro slavery settlement along Pattawatomie Creek, killing five men. The massacre enraged southerners, shocked northerners, and led to more violence,