CHALLENGES TO SLAVERY12.4 (p.548)

KANSAS-NEBRASKA ACT

Split Democratic Party along Sectional Lines

1854-Antislavery Whigs & Democrats joined with Free-Soil to form

Republican Party

Main message:Ban Slavery in new territories

1856—Presidential Election

Republicans-John C. Fremont:(Free Soil, Free Speech and

Fremont)

Democrats-James Buchanan:(Popular Sovereignty)

Know-Nothings-Millard Fillmore:(anti-immigration)

Dred ScottScott was a slave who sued for his freedom based upon his extended residence, with his master, in the free states of Illinois and Wisconsin.

Supreme Court Chief JusticeRoger Taney

Who was involved in this case?Dred Scott--Plaintiff Sanford--DefendantChief Justice Roger B. Taney

What THREE issues did the court rule on?whether Dred Scott qualified as a citizenwhether Scott gained his freedom by living in a free territorywhether or not the Missouri Compromise was constitutional

What was the decision of the court on these issues?Scott was not a citizen and could not sue in

federal courtScott ‘s status did not change when he entered a free territoryThe Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional, Congress cannot forbid a state or territory

from making slavery legal

Why did Justice Curtis dissent?free African Americans voted to ratify the

Constitution & nothing stripped them of their citizenship

Dred Scott Supreme Court Decision“They [African Americans] are not included, and were not intended to be included, under the word ‘citizens' in the Constitution, and can therefore claim none of the rights and privileges which that instrument provides for and secures to citizens of the United States.”

“…the act of Congress which prohibited a citizen from holding and owning property [slaves] …north of the line therein mentioned is not warranted by the Constitution and is therefore void…”

Chief Justice Roger Taney, Majority Opinion

Dred ScottPublic Reaction

“It is no newness to find the Supreme Court following the lead of the Slavery Extension party, to which most of its members belong. Five of the Judges are slaveholders, and two of the other four owe their appointments to their simplistic cleverness in making State laws bend to Federal demands in behalf of "the Southern institution.“ - Editorial in the Albany, New York, Evening Journal, 1857

John Brown’s RaidHarper’s Ferry, VA, October 1859

What was John Brown’s plan to defeat slavery?Brown intended to assist and guide slaves in their escape from the South. These people would escort the escaped slaves northward and would be so safe and so reliable that it would entice thousands of slaves to participate. Brown thought this mass slave migration would dramatically devalue slave property, ultimately bankrupt the slave aristocracy and drive slavery into extinction

John Brown’s Raidon the arsenal

What did he need that Harper’s Ferry had?Brown needed firearms. The arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Va., (now West Virginia) stored 100,000 rifles and muskets.

Who warned John Brown about this plan?Frederick Douglass

How did John Brown’s plan unravel?The railroad bridge night watchman escaped his captors and halted an approaching B&O passenger train short of the station. A free African American named Heyward Shepherd became curious about the train’s strange stopping point. Brown’s men shot and fatally wounded Shepherd. The echoing gunshots awakened Dr. John Starry, who came to investigate. Brown’s men snared Starry, brought him to the dying Shepherd, and then permitted him to depart. Dr. Starry loudly announced abolitionists had seized the Ferry and this brought the militia to the Ferry.

How was Robert E. Lee involved in this incident?Lt. Col. Robert E. Lee had 87 U.S. Marines dispatched from the Washington Navy Yard under his command. They arrived by train and planned an assault on John Brown and his men.

What did John Brown go on trial for and what was his punishment? John Brown was charged with murder, treason and inciting slave rebellion. He was found guilty and sentenced to hang.

“I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged

away but with blood.”

THE COUNTRY IN 1860

How was John remembered?North Martyr/Hero SOUTHDevil

Source: University of Virginia, Historical Census Browser, http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/index.html

Total Slave Holders in 1860 Farms Larger than 1000 Acres in 1860

Capital Invested in Manufacturing (In Dollars) in 1860

Source: University of Virginia, Historical Census Browser, http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/index.html

Males Employed in Manufacturing in 1860

Capital Invested in Manufacturing (In Dollars) in 1860

Source: University of Virginia, Historical Census Browser, http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/index.html

Males Employed in Manufacturing in 1860

Total Slave Holders in 1860 Farms Larger than 1000 Acres in 1860