Comparison in Period 5, 1844-1877

This study guide covers Unit 5 of AP US History, focusing on the road to the Civil War and Reconstruction. It examines geographic expansion (Manifest Destiny, Mexican-American War, Gold Rush), immigration, and the resulting ideological conflicts over slavery. Key concepts include sectionalism, the Compromise of 1850, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Dred Scott v. Sandford, and the Election of 1860. The guide emphasizes the interplay between national and regional developments leading to the Civil War.