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Free soil party
The Free Soil Party was a short-lived political party in the United States active from 1848 to 1854, when it merged into the Republican Party. The party was largely focused on the single issue of opposing the expansion of slavery into the western territories of the United States. -
california gold rush begins
The California Gold Rush began at Sutter's Mill, near Coloma. On January 24, 1848, James W. Marshall, a foreman working for Sacramento pioneer John Sutter, found shiny metal in the tailrace of a lumber mill Marshall was building for Sutter on the American River. -
the republican party is funded
The GOP was founded in 1854 by opponents of the Kansas–Nebraska Act, which allowed for the potential expansion of slavery into certain U.S. territories. The party supported classical liberalism, opposed the expansion of slavery, and supported economic reform. Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president. -
congress passes the kansas-nebraska act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery within their borders. The Act served to repeal the Missouri Compromise of 1820 which prohibited slavery north of latitude -
pro-slavery mob sack lawrence, kansas
The First Sack of Lawrence occurred on May 21, 1856, when proslavery men attacked and looted the antislavery town of Lawrence, Kansas. The assault escalated the violence over slavery in Kansas Territory during a period that became known as “Bleeding Kansas.” -
charles sumner of massachusetts is caned
Charles Sumner. ... As an academic lawyer and a powerful orator, Sumner was the leader of the anti-slavery forces in Massachusetts and a leader of the Radical Republicans in the U.S. Senate during the American Civil War. -
U.S supreme court issues the dred scott decision
On this day in 1857, the United States Supreme Court issues a decision in the Dred Scott case, affirming the right of slave owners to take their slaves into the Western territories, therebynegating the doctrine of popular sovereignty and severely undermining the platform of the newly created Republican Party. -
lecompton constitution declared that slavery will be allowed in kansas
The majority of legal voters are free-state. The Lecompton Constitution is a pro-slavery document. If approved it would allow slavery in the state of Kansas. Both the proslavery constitutional convention and the free-state legislature claimed to have the authority to call for an election on the Lecompton Constitution -
abraham lincoln debates stephen a douglas
A relative newcomer to the antislavery cause (before 1854, he said, slavery had been a “minor question” with him), Lincoln used the debates to develop and strengthen the moral quality of his position. The groundwork for the campaign was laid in Lincoln's famous House Divided speech in Springfield on June 16, 1858. -
john brown and his followers stage a failed raid at harpers ferry, virginia
The group rented a Maryland farm near Harpers Ferry and prepared for the assault. On the night of October 16, 1859, Brown and his band overran the arsenal. ... The wounded Brown was tried by the state of Virginia for treason and murder, and he was found guilty on November 2 -
south carolina and six other southern states secede from the union
The secession of South Carolina was followed by the secession of six more states—Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas–and the threat of secession by four more—Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina -
crittenden compromise is proposed but fails
The Crittenden Compromise was an unsuccessful proposal to permanently enshrine slavery in the United States Constitution, and thereby make it unconstitutional for future congresses to end slavery. It was introduced by United States Senator John J. Crittenden (Constitutional Unionist of Kentucky) on December 18, 1860. -
fort sumter falls to confederate forces,triggers the civil war
The bombardment of Fort Sumter would play a major part in triggering the Civil War. In the days following the assault, Lincoln issued a call for Union volunteers to quash the rebellion, while more Southern states including Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee cast their lot with the Confederacy. -
abraham lincoln is inaugurated president
The first inauguration of Abraham Lincoln as the 16th President of the United States was held on Monday, March 4, 1861, on the East Portico of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
