Sectionalism In 1800s

Improved Essays
From the early 1800s, slavery was becoming more of a sectional issue meaning that the country was being divided by regional lines. Northerners were becoming more opposed to slavery, and Southerners were becoming more united in their defense of slavery as an institution. The North and the South not only differed in their view of slavery, they also adopted different lifestyles, political views and customs which made it hard for both sides to understand each other. The North was urbanized and industrialized while the South was full of plantations with slaves. Abolitionists arose in the north seeing the inhumane morals of slavery. They grew more and more powerful, and they opposed the extension of slavery as America kept expanding to the west. …show more content…
The government splitted the country evenly between free and equal states. This was the beginning of sectionalism in America. In 1819, a problem occurred. Missouri’s 1819 request to become a slave state threatened to destroy the balance between slave states and free states (Clay, Missouri Compromise). At that time, Monroe who was president wrote, "The idea was that if the whole arrangement, to this effect, could be secured, that it would be better to adopt it, than break the union" (Monroe, James Monroe Papers: Series 1, General Correspondence). Monroe and the congress believed that to keep the peace he needed to grant Missouri’s request but also admit Maine as a free state. This shows the inability of the government to choose a side which allows the country to become more conflicting and split. A map from 1820 shows the regional split between the North and South after The Missouri Compromise (Redway, Slave and Free Areas after the Missouri …show more content…
Throughout the early 1800s, sectionalism was rising as the North and South were getting more split and America was unbalanced. The Kansas-Nebraska Act would allow settlement into the new territories of Kansas and Nebraska but the government were not sure whether to make it a slave state or a free state. Stephen A. Douglas who proposed the act believed strongly that the bill would bring America together and make the nation strong. He stated, “It (The Kansas Nebraska Act) will triumph & impart peace to the country & stability to the Union” (Douglas, Douglas Letter to Cobb). The goal of this act was to cover up the rising sectionalism in the nation. However, it did the opposite. It called for a popular sovereignty where the people of the states themselves could decide whether they want to be a free state or not. This again is a passive decision by the government as they let the people make the decision when there is clearly two opposing sides. In order to enact this, the Missouri Compromise from 1820 was removed because Kansas and Nebraska trespassed the border of free states. This angered the Northerners because it seemed like an aggressive move to advance slavery more North (McGee, Forcing Slavery Down the Throat of a Freesoiler). The Southerners also had propagandizing cartoons as the Hurly Burly Pot

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Before the Missouri Compromise there was a lot of tension between the North and South because of slavery. Though it became even more heated after the Missouri’s 1819 request for admission into the Union as a slave state, which threatened the balance between slave and free states. The reason why the balance was disrupted was because before the request from Missouri there were an even amount of slave and free states. As well as, it would set a precedent for congressional consensus to the increase of slavery. So, to help ease the tension between the states Congress created a two-part compromise, which is known as the Missouri Compromise.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Missouri Compromise divided the nation into two separate parts, free or slave states. Popular sovereignty allowed the states to choose whether or not they would be free. As read in the text, “What then we do insist on, is, not to extend slavery, but that we shall not be prohibited from immigrating with our property, into the Territories of the United States” (Document 8). The South wanted to bring slavery with them and believed they had the right to do so. Although, in the North it was decided that slavery would be abolished and they would all be free states.…

    • 577 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Missouri was well known for its slavery in the 1800s. If the Missouri Compromise didn’t happen, it was of changed the United States today greatly. The Missouri Compromise accomplished making Missouri a slave state and changing Maine into a free state because it wanted to be separated from Massachusetts. There were 22 states at the time equally divided into 11 slave states and 11 free slave states. There was chaos when the Missouri compromise was made, so they made Maine a free of slave state to even out the states.…

    • 205 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In an era where slavery was viewed as a profitable and reputable source of wealth, income, power, and an economic driving force, divisions amongst opinions added fuel to the flame for an unavoidable conflict to ignite. The Missouri Compromise came about for views, even within a time with which like-mindedness was prized and raised to the highest of glories on a pedestal, vastly varied on the issue of slavery and its seemingly rather loosely tied boundaries. With two opposing sides, the North for the removal of slavery and the South in favor of its continued existence -- territorial issues were heavy on the mind. Though often revered as being a more verbal form of compromise that laid out specific boundaries within the states, or two states…

    • 474 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Luckily, the Civil War was delayed due to various settlements between political parties regarding slavery- such as the Missouri Compromise, Compromise of 1850, and the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was proposed by Representative Henry Clay from Kentucky. Clay came up with this after Missouri demanded to become a state, which would have upset the existing balance among free and slave states. The compromise resulted in Missouri admitted as a slave state and Maine carved out of Massachusetts as a free state.…

    • 508 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    While many people in America debated the morality of slavery, Northerners thought slavery was unnecessary, cruel, and inhumane, while on the other hand southerners felt they needed slavery. They needed slaves to grow the crops and allowed the farmers to be extremely successful. Also, they wanted slaves for free labor that allowed the farmers to save money. Congress passed many laws and acts to appease the two sides of the nation. While the presidential candidates shared their thought and opinions on the issue.…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Tariff Dbq

    • 909 Words
    • 4 Pages

    In 1819 the United States contained eleven free states and eleven slave states which led to a balance in the Senate, and an imbalance in the House that favored the North. Nonetheless, most wished to keep an equal number of each type of state so when Missouri had wanted to join as a slave state…

    • 909 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the early and mid-1800s, sectional tensions arose throughout America. Sectionalism, or the loyalty to a particular subsegment of the Nation, rather than loyalty to the United States as a whole, was a pervasive characteristic of this period. Many factors contributed to these sectional tensions, however, the most divisive factor among the parties was the controversy over slavery. Slavery during this time was largely well-accepted in the South, but typically denigrated in the North. When the institution of slavery was condemned and threatened by the North, many southerners felt that their very survival and way of life was at risk.…

    • 1279 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois was the man who decided to put this act into effect. At the time, the Missouri Compromise was in effect that stated that no slave territories be added into the Union above the 36o30’ line, which Kansas and Nebraska both were above, but anything below that line may be added in as a slave stateZ. Senator Stephen Douglas, a Democrat, stated in the act that the people of the territory were allowed to vote on the subject of slavery in their territory. Douglas, who was a pro slavery senator as most Democrats were, was all in favor of this act that completely disregards the terms and conditions of the Missouri Compromise. On the other hand, many of the Northern abolitionists at the time disagreed completely with the idea because of the fact it would allow slavery into territories it should not. This is a strong instance in which the country was divided into north and south based on the argument of slavery in new territories.…

    • 1871 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    It 's hard to believe that there was a time in American history where certain human beings had few rights because of their color or gender. These individuals were considered possessions, mistreated and abused in the most horrific ways. No rights, no humanity and pushed to the brink. Cornered into a position where concern for laws and a future no longer seem to matter. All was hopeless, no where to turn and completely powerless to make a choice or consider options.…

    • 1255 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Question 1: How did slavery affect politics between 1800 and 1860? This time era is the pre-civil war era in America. The tensions were quite high between these years only growing tighter. The North was doing all it could to stop the South and its expansion of slavery into the new western territories. The main political goal of the North was in fact to stop the expansion of slavery not abolish it from the South.…

    • 1810 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Missouri compromise was passed in 1820, which regulated slavery in the western states that were gained through the Louisiana purchase. This compromise contributed to the division between the north and south regarding the issue of slavery. Slavery was not allowed in anywhere north of the 36:30 parallel, but the state of Missouri allowed slavery. Fortunately, the compromise made many Americans happy and without the compromise the inevitable civil war would have occurred sooner. But unfortunately, the happiness of the country was ruined when the Missouri compromise got repealed.…

    • 1102 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Brilliant Essays

    John Brown Abolition Movement

    • 1892 Words
    • 8 Pages
    • 3 Works Cited

    John Brown devised a plan to incite a slave rebellion in the Appalachian Mountains, arming slaves as they were freed and pushing on to free more men, the army of former slaves growing drastically as it rolled along (Stoddard and Murphy, 15). Slave rebellions had failed miserably in the past, but Brown's idea of properly arming the slaves gave some abolitionists the idea that it could work. On October 16, 1859, John Brown led a group of twenty-two men into Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, to secure weapons from the federal armory stationed in the small town nestled between the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers (Stoddard and Murphy, 15). The weapons stored in the armory would be more than enough to kick off Brown's envisioned revolution. Events did not unfold as the men had hoped, and they were soon surrounded by townspeople and fired upon, with marines (led, ironically, by then Colonel Robert E. Lee) arriving by the following afternoon (Stoddard and Murphy, 15).…

    • 1892 Words
    • 8 Pages
    • 3 Works Cited
    Brilliant Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The North and South have always followed different paths and by the mid 1800’s the differences were even more pronounced. The North was becoming more industrial, dedicated to immigration, free labor and supported a federal government. Slavery was not common in the North and it was even banned in some states. The South’s agricultural economy was founded on slavery and cotton and they supported a government that allowed states to make their own rules. Southerners viewed the North and their views as them trying to destroy Southern culture with their industrialism and growing abolitionist movement.…

    • 352 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The United States government needed to get involved and balance out the number of “free states” and “slave states” when Missouri wanted to to be its own state. It was a slave state and the Senate passed the Missouri Compromise which allowed Missouri to be a “slave state” and then Maine would be a “free state”. Then it was added on to that slavery was prohibited in the rest of the Louisiana Purchase. That part of the compromise halted slavery from moving and growing into the rest of the Louisiana Purchase. It was best said that“ it was becoming clear that strong opposing positions on slavery were beginning to take root”…

    • 923 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays