Civil War and Reconstruction, 1848–1877

Led directly to the secession of several Southern states

Indefinitely settled the territorial slavery disputes

Temporarily alleviated tensions between Northern and Southern senators

Expedited the outbreak of the Civil War within a year

Kansas-Nebraska Act

Emancipation Proclamation

Fugitive Slave Act

Dred Scott Decision

Franklin Pierce

Zachary Taylor

Andrew Johnson

James K. Polk

The Fugitive Slave Act

Settlement Texas-New Mexico boundary issue

Admission California as free state

Abolition slave trade in Washington DC

It led directly to secession threats from Southern states due to increased tariffs imposed on imported goods they relied upon.

It ensured an equal number of slave and free states, maintaining Congressional neutrality on issues related to slavery.

It tipped the balance in favor of free states in Congress, causing concern among slaveholding states about their diminishing influence.

It precipitated a major economic downturn in both North and South as gold strikes destabilized currency values nationwide.

Abolitionist movements gained momentum.

Women's suffrage became a national issue.

There was a push for prohibition.

Labor unions began to form nationally.

The deeply entrenched economic and social differences between slaveholding and non-slaveholding states.

Differences over immigration policies that emerged due to the westward expansion of settlers.

The disputes between Federalists and Anti-Federalists about states' powers that resurfaced during the negotiations.

Debates over the appropriate powers of the national bank and its impact on the country's economic stability.

Land received by the War with Mexico would all be free

Slave trade ended in Washington DC

Fugitive Slave Act was enacted

California was admitted as a free state

It created economic incentives for Northern businessmen who invested heavily in Southern cotton production.

It prompted Northern states to pass personal liberty laws that strengthened federal power over runaway slaves.

It led to widespread acceptance of slavery as a necessary evil essential to national unity.

It intensified anti-slavery sentiment by mandating Northerners' participation in the capture and return of escaped slaves.

Northern abolitionists

Western farmers

Urban workers

Southern planters