Drifting Toward Disunion

Chapter 19

Uncle Tom’s Cabin• Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852)

– Written by Harriet Beecher Stowe– Described entire range of slave experience– Made slavery “real” for many Northerners– Increased view of abolition as moral necessity

• Was influenced by Second Great Awakening• Runaway best seller, made into a play• Helped cause the Civil War

– Inspired northerners to be more radical abolitionists– Inspired anger in South for inaccurate portrayal of slavery

• The Impending Crisis of the South (1857)– Written by Hinton R. Helper (white southerner)– Argued non-slaveholding whites suffered most by slavery– Created fear in south that non slaveholding whites might not

support slave owners

Bleeding Kansas

• Most settlers were just looking for land• New England Emigrant Aid Company

– Encouraged abolitionists to move to Kansas– Henry Ward Beecher helped people to immigrate and

get weapons (Beecher’s Bibles)

• Southerners felt betrayed because they assumed Kansas would be slave and Nebraska free– Sent armed groups to Kansas to promote pro-slavery– Slave owners wouldn’t bring slaves when the slaves

could be killed or slavery abolished

• Pro-slavery (border ruffians from Missouri) and abolitionists rushed to Kansas to win popular sovereignty vote about slavery in territorial government– Competing territorial governments were established in

Lecompton (slave) and Lawrence (Free)

Bleeding Kansas

• Both sides used violence to intimidate people into voting for their side

• Lawrence Kansas was burned by pro-slavery forces• Pottawatomie Creek Massacre – John Brown led

abolitionists on attack of pro-slavery people and butchered five people

• Kansas erupted into Civil War

• Lecompton Constitution– Allowed people to vote for constitution with or without

slavery– But, slaveowners would be able to keep their slaves

regardless of outcome– Abolitionists boycotted the vote– President James Buchanan supported the Lecompton

Constitution, losing support of northern Democrats• Ended Democrats as national party – eliminating

important tie to unionism

“Bully” Brooks and His Bludgeon• Senator Sumner (MA) gave a speech “The Crime Against Kansas” (1856) attacking

and insulting pro-slavery people and politicians including South Carolina Senator Andrew Butler

• Representative Preston Brooks (SC), Butler’s cousin– Brooks saw Sumner as social inferior, so decided to beat him instead of

challenge him to a duel– May 22, 1856 Brooks beat Sumner with a cane in the Senate

• Brooks and Sumner became symbols for their sides– Brooks was reelected by South Carolinians and people sent him new canes– Massachusetts left Senate seat empty as reminder of Southern brutality

• Showed the division North-South– Emotion replacing intellect in the debate

Election of 1856• Democrats

– James Buchanan (PA)– Had no connections to Kansas or abolition– Supported popular sovereignty for territories

• Republicans– William Seward was most popular, but declined to run– John Fremont “Pathfinder” of California was chosen– Had no connections to Kansas– Argued no extension of slavery in territories

• American Party (Know Nothing)– Nativist anti-foreign, anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic party– Super patriots – Nominated Millard Fillmore

• Election of 1856– Buchanan wins– Fremont’s judgment not trusted and South threatened

secession with Republican victory• Some voted for Buchanan to save union

Dred Scott Decision (March 6, 1857)• Background

– Dred Scott was a slave who was brought to live in Illinois and Wisconsin Territory (free areas)

– Returned to a slave state – Scott said he was free because lived in a free state

• Supreme Court ruled:– no African (free or slave) could be citizen; therefore, Scott

couldn’t sue in court– Didn’t matter that Scott lived in a free state, he’s in slave

state now, so he’s a slave– Missouri Compromise unconstitutional because limits

southerners rights to own property (slaves)• Fifth Amendment (due process) says that a slave can

be in any territory– only states can ban slavery, not territories

• Effect– Made a bigger wedge between North and South– Republicans argued ruling was an opinion, not decision

because it went beyond scope of legal issue• Made Southerners believe abolitionists refused to follow

rule of law

Financial Crash 1857• Causes

– California gold inflated value of currency– Crimean War overstimulated growth of grain– Land speculation because of railroads

• North and mid-western grain farmers were hurt, Southern cotton planters were not– Increased southern sense of superiority over north

• Tariff of 1857– Reduced protectionist tariff– Resulted in increased competition which hurt northern businesses

• Effect– Push for free land in west (instead of it being sold by government)

• Eastern industrialists opposed because they would lose labor• Southern planters oppose because would encourage small farmers, not

slave owners• Buchanan veto Homestead Bill

Lincoln and Douglas• Abraham Lincoln

– Self made man, from poverty. Self educated, widely respected as lawyer, unimpressive as politician

– Kansas-Nebraska act inspired his political career

– Lincoln challenged Douglas for Illinois Senate in 1858

“ ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand.’ I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved-I do not expect the house to fall-but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other.” – Abraham Lincoln

• Stephen Douglas believed popular sovereignty to determine slavery, allow will of people to determine the issue

• Abraham Lincoln argued Union could not continue half free and half slave• Douglas’ Freeport Doctrine

– Will of people is more important that Supreme Court or federal laws– If a territory did not pass laws to protect slavery, then slavery is avoided– Caused Douglas to lose support of South

• Douglas is elected Senator• Lincoln becomes a national political figure

Harpers Ferry and John Brown

• John Brown led raid on armory in Harpers Ferry VA in October 1859– Wanted to give weapons to slaves to start revolt– US Marines led by Robert E Lee trapped and arrested

Brown and followers• Brown was hung for treason

– Brown knew he was more valuable to abolitionism dead than alive; accepted death sentence with dignity

• North treated Brown like a martyr• South was terrified

– Proved Republicans wanted to start slave revolts

Candidates - 1860 Election

Northern Democrats Stephen Douglas

Southern Democrats John Breckinridge

Republicans Abraham Lincoln

Constitutional Union John Bell

• Stephen Douglas nominated by northern Democrats– Southern “Fire Eater” Democrats regarded

Douglas as traitor because of Lecompton Compromise and Freeport Doctrine

– Supported popular sovereignty

• John Breckinridge nominated by Southern Democrats– Favored extension of slavery into territories

and annexation of Cuba

• John Bell nominated by Constitutional Union Party– Moderates who favored compromise– Keeping nation united primary objective

• Abraham Lincoln nominated by Republicans– Selected over William Seward, Salmon Chase,

Edward Bates, Simon Cameron– Called for non-extension of slavery, railroad,

protective tariff, free homesteads

1860 Presidential Election Results

180

72

39

12

Lincoln Breckinridge Bell Douglas

• Lincoln did not appear on ballot in 10 southern states– Only received 40% of popular vote, but had a mandate in

electoral college– Was a purely sectional victory

• Not a lot of support for secession in national election• South still dominated Supreme Court and Republicans did not

control House or Senate

• South Carolina secedes in December 1860– Did not believe federal government

would protect the South

– Believed States voluntarily created the United States, so States could leave if they wanted

Confederate States of America• Mississippi (1/9), Florida (1/10), Alabama (1/11), Georgia

(1/19, Louisiana 1/26), Texas (2/1) all follow South Carolina’s lead seceded before Lincoln was inaugurated on March 4, 1861

• Confederate States of America were created in February 1861– Jefferson Davis selected President– Montgomery Alabama was the Capital

• Davis said South had to have slavery to survive

• Most Southerners were ready to defend their homes, not slavery

• James Buchanan (lame duck President) did not respond to secession forcefully– Didn’t have the ability or Constitutional authority to

use force to prevent secession– Not sufficient support in North to go to war

Crittenden Compromise

• Last attempt to keep Union without war

– Would recreate Missouri Compromise line and allow and protect slavery south of it including future land acquisitions

• Lincoln didn’t like it. Republicans won’t allow any more slavery– Lincoln feared it would encourage

further US wars to acquire more land

• Lincoln says states cannot leave union

• US would not leave property in south, but would not fight

Why did the South Secede• Political balance of power shifted

to north due to population• Victory of sectional political party• Tired of abolitionism

– Wanted to be left alone• Didn’t believe US would fight

– Northern factories and banks depended too heavily on cotton/markets

• Global nationalism inspired similar movements in South

• Saw themselves as continuation of Revolutionary principles