1850's: The Decade Of The Secession Crisis

The period of 1850’s is called the decade of the secession crisis because it was a time where some of the most important and diversified events occurred in America. While the north believed that slavery was morally wrong the south didn’t agree with abolishing slavery, they believed that black people should provide free labor. The issue of slavery became a very important series of events starting with the compromise of 1850, then to the Kansas Nebraska act, and the Dred Scott case. The compromise was originally written by Henry Clay it was a set of laws that tried to change the territorial, and slavery dispute that started to arise in the Mexican American war. In 1849 president Taylor encouraged congress to admit California to be a free State, and it also allowed New Mexico to decide if they want to be a free state. When this act happened the southern were very upset. To make things clear for everyone Henry Clay set up series of resolutions for free and slave states. He abolish the domestic slave states in Washington D.C, and also stated that the congress had not authority over slaves trade and that they must come up with a more strong fugitive law. The compromise also solved other problems. Texas received 10 million dollars for accepting the boundary with New …show more content…
The act allowed the territories of Nebraska to decide if they would allow slavery within the borders. It first started with repealing the Missouri compromise that allowed settlers in those areas to determine by popular vote whether they wanted to allow slavery within the territory. For the act to be successful Stephen Douglas needed for the southern to vote, but the southern where infuriated because they didn’t want another free territory. By May 1854 the bill was passed by the Whigs and democrats. The Kansas Nebraska act resulted in dividing both Nebraska as a free state, and Kansas would be slave