Unit 9 -- And the War Came (1854 to 1865)

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Talk of a transcontinental railroad didn't just focus around Gadsden's purchase

Stephen Douglas was tied to powerful railroad interests in Chicago. He dreamed of a railroad from Chicago to California

Douglas' railroad would pass through what was an unorganized territory in 1853. Most Americans thought of the land between Missouri and the Rockies as a "great wasteland". It's called by many "the Great American Desert"

We now know that this area contains some of the richest soil on the planet

Douglas needed the South to go along with his railroad idea, rather than New Orleans.

Douglas also had strong presidential aspirations and needed the backing of the South to carry the Democratic Party's nomination

The South could be bought, but the price turned out to be very high

Kansas / Nebraska Act (1854)

established two territories, Kansas and Nebraska

repealed 36º30' line from the compromise of 1820

both new territories set up under popular sovereignty with regards to slavery

The North reacted violently to Kansas/Nebraska.

Whig party was shattered and ceased to exist

Debate in Congress lasted over 4 months

May 1854 -- bill passes Congress -- half of the Northern Democrats voted against it

The Whig party was gone -- it was going anyway, but Kansas/Nebraska killed it

After 1854 -- Democrats heavily dominated by South but technically still a national party -- Republicans exist only in the North

Know Nothing (American) Party

formed at the local level in the early 1850s
nativist stance -- anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic
very secret about party business -- when asked, Americans said "I know nothing", hence the unofficial name
Many Whigs had nativist leanings -- the Democratic Party openly courted the newly arriving immigrants (they always will)
When the Whigs collapsed in 1854, the Know Nothings brielfy rose in stregnth, but the movement didn't last
Eventually swallowed by the Republican Party

Republican Party

formed in 1854 in Wisconsin (soon spread to other Northern states)

openly against the extension of slavery (not abolitionist, but political with the times)

Sought to unite all political "orphans" in the North by opposing slavery in the territories, an issue on which they could all agree

Purely sectional in nature -- doesn't exist in most Southern States -- first and only major party in American history to rely on pure sectionalism to win

Called "Black Republicans" by Democrats

Sometimes a fragile political coalition of both moderate and radical abolitionists, combined with economic free-soil Whigs who believed in Clay's old American System

"Bleeding Kansas"

A) By 1856, both sides of the country had settled Kansas
B) Missouri sent slave holders across the border to try to sway the vote on slavery (they wouldn't "settle" for long)
C) New England Emigrant Aid Society

group formed in New England to aid settlers who wanted to go to Kansas

run and funded by radical abolitionists

Reverend Beecher (Harriet Beecher Stowe's father) of Boston a leading advocate and supporter

Society shipped "Beecher's Bibles" to Kansas for anti-slavery settlers (boxes marked as bibles, but actually full of rifles)

D) By 1856, two co-existing illegal governments had been set up in Kansas -- one proslave and one free soil
E) Neither side would recognize the other
F) May 1856 -- 700 proslavery thugs sack the free -soil capital of Lawrence and wrecked the place
G) In response to the "sack of Lawrence", a radical abolitionist with a long history of mental instability living in Kansas named John Brown set out with 7 other men for a proslavery settlement on Pottawatomie Creek. When Brown arrived in Pottawatomie Creek, he and his men dragged male 5 settlers from their cabins and hacked them to death in front of their screaming wives and children.
H) The "Pottawatomie Massacre" set off a guerrilla war in the Kansas Territory that lasted through the fall.
I) By Christmas 1856 -- 200 dead on both sides of this "civil war"

3) Brooks / Sumner Affair

A) May 1856 -- the violence of Kansas comes to the floor of the Senate chamber

B) 20 May 1856 (two days before the "sack of Lawrence") -- Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts (a radical Republican) gives a speech in which he attacks the South, South Carolina and South Carolina's older senator Andrew Butler. Sumner called the South's treatment of Kansas "the rape of virgin territory" and even want so far to imply that Butler kept a slave mistress (an unfounded accusation). Not satisfied, Sumner even teased Butler regarding a stutter the elder Palmetto senator had due to a stroke.

C) Sumner's rudeness and lack of honor angered many southern representatives and senators, especially those from South Carolina

D) Preston Brooks, a fiery, young radical Democrat from South Carolina and Butler's nephew, took it upon himself to defend the honor of his section, his state, and his family.

E) 22 May 1856 -- Brooks went up behind the seated Sumner in the Senate chamber and confronted Sumner, accusing Sumner of libel and slander. Brooks then proceeded to pummel Sumner mercilessly with his gold headed walking cane. Sumner tried to stand once, but eventually fell to the floor unconscious, blood streaming from his head.

F) To the North, Sumner was a martyr and a hero to the anti-slavery cause. He didn't die, but for 2 1/2 years his chair sat empty in the Senate (Massachusetts refused to fill it with a replacement) as a reminder of Soutehrn "brutality"

G) To the South, Brooks was a hero. He resigned the House, only to be reelected by South Carolina in triumph and glory. He received over 100 new canes to replace the one he had broken on Sumner's head. Brooks, according to the honor code of the South, had finally done what right. In the South, if Brooks, a relative, had not stood up for Butler, he would have lived his life in shame. In the southern code of honor, Sumner deserved no better treatment than he received.

4) Election of 1856

A) Democrats -- James Buchannan (PA) -- 45.3% popular / 174 electoral

B) Republicans -- John Fremont (CA) -- 33.1% popular / 114 electoral

C) American -- Millard Fillmore (NY) -- 21.6% popular / 8 electoral

Election shows that the Democrats are badly damaged and the Whigs are gone. The Know-Nothings had some support, but not enough to carry national elections. The Republicans, a purely sectional party with a platform that sought to stop slavery from expanding, did unbelievably well. All over the North, Republicans rejoiced over their "glorious defeat"

Dred Scott Decision

Decision handed down by the Supreme Court in March 1857
Dred Scott -- slave from MO -- owner was an army officer -- owner took Scott to IL then WI (territory) then back south to KY.
Scott's owner died in KY. His wife married a northern man, Sanford.
Scott sued Sanford for his freedom based on the fact that he had been in IL and WI, both areas (one state and one territory) where slavery was illegal.
Suit was a test case -- Scott's new owner never always intended to free him
Makeup of the Supreme Court in 1857

7 Southerners (5 of the 7 slaveholders)
2 Northerners
Chief Justice Taney -- slaveholder from Maryland

Decision was 7-2 along sectional lines
Scott was not a citizen and could therefore never bring the suit in the first place. According to Article 3 of the Constitution, only "citizens" could bring suits in federal court, and therefore Scott's case was void
Although the case itself had no merit, Taney and the Court decided to tackle the issue anyway. The second part of the decision decided that Scott could not sue for his freedom based on the fact that he had been in a free state and/or territory.
Under Article 4 of the Constitution, property in one state remains so in all states. This is called "full faith and credit". Taney used the full faith and credit clause to say that Scott remained a slave, no matter where he went because MO classified him as property.
Taken to its logical conclusion, the decision basically stated that there were no free states or territories. Any slaveholder could legally have his slaves in any state.
The decision validated the extreme southern position
Missouri Compromise of 1820 -- GONE -- Unconstitutional
"Popular Sovereignty" from 1848 and 1850 -- GONE -- Unconstitutional
Kansas/Nebraska Act of 1854 -- GONE -- Unconstitutional
Republican ideology of stopping the expansion of slavery -- Unconstitutional

Northerners were outraged at the decision
Decision helps the Republican Party find more converts
After 1857 -- only one way to stop the expansion of slavery and/or slavery itself
The way was to fight a civil war
What happened to Dred Scott? He was freed and died a year later in 1858

Lincoln - Douglas Debates

Abraham Lincoln ran against Stephen Douglas in 1858 for the IL senator's seat
Lincoln was a decided underdog
Douglas was one of the most well known Democrats in the United States at the time
Lincoln had one chance -- he challenged Douglas to a series of debates around the state
The race was for one state's senate seat, but it was watched by the entire nation
The debates centered around the issues of popular sovereignty and slavery
Lincoln challenged Douglas to explain his belief in popular sovereignty in light of the Dred Scott case.
Douglas was caught between a rock and a hard place -- his entire political career had been built on popular sovereignty in 1850 and 1854
If he threw out the idea of popular sovereignty, then he could kiss any northern support away and therefore would have lost his reelection bid
If he went against Dred Scott, he could kiss any southern support away and would therefore never receive the Presidential nomination he so actively sought (Douglas was a Doughface Democrat)
Lincoln appeared as a simple country lawyer. HE badgered Douglas all over the state. Douglas constantly appeared as though he was on the defensive.

Freeport Doctrine -- At Freeport, IL, Douglas said that free-soilers could effectively bar slavery by not enacting laws to protect it. Without laws to protect the institution, slavery could not live.
Southerners were outraged -- Douglas seemed to be giving back everything they had won in Dred Scott
IL voters returned Douglas to the Senate
Douglas in the end faced no choice, but he wrecked his political future and any real presidential thought he might have had.
Southern Democrats (is there any other kind of southerner?) will never forgive Douglas for his betrayal.

John Brown's Raid

After the Pottawamie Creek Massacre, John Brown and his followers fled Kansas and headed back east.
He reemerged in 1859 in Southern Pennsylvania
Oct 1859 -- John Brown and 22 others raid the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, VA
Brown's plan was to capture the armory and then start a slave insurrection
Brown saw himself as Moses, sent by God to lead the slaves out of bondage.
He was probably a madman
State and federal troops surrounded the armory, including a brigade of US troops commanded by Col. Robert E. Lee and some Virginia Military Institute (VMI) cadets commanded by their instructor, Cpt. Thomas Jackson (he'll later be called "Stonewall")
After a small fight, Brown was captured
He was quickly brought to trial in Harpers Ferry on the charge of Treason
Everyone knew that he would be convicted.
Brown himself never once denied his crime
He was quickly convicted and sentenced to die by hanging.
Unlike today, when an inmate on Death Row can sit for years awaiting execution, Brown was executed just a couple of days after the trial on a scaffold built by VMI cadets during the trial.
To the South, Brown was a madman
To much of the North, however, he was a martyr to the cause of freedom
Radical Abolitionists especially used their newspapers and journals to compare Brown to Christ and the early Christians
Moderates in the North, such as Abraham Lincoln, tried to calm southern fears, but to no avail.
As far as the South was concerned, every northerner was another John Brown, hell bent on the destruction of the southern way of life.

By the late 1850s, only one thing held the nation together. That was the fact that a Doughface Democrat lived in the White House. All eyes turned to the Election of 1860. Southerners warned that if a Republican were elected president in 1860, then the South would have to secede. Secession would inevitably bring Civil War.

Election of 1860

Most complicated election in US history
April 1860 -- Democrats meet in Charleston, SC to nominate a candidate
Party split along sectional lines
Southern extremists denounced Douglas and demanded federal protection of slavery in the territories
Northern Democrats adopted a more reasonable tone. They wanted a platform their voters could stomach. They called for Popular Sovereignty.
When the platform with popular sovereignty was adopted, the delegates from the Deep South walked out of the convention
The convention adjourned in chaos

June 1860 -- Democrats reassemble in Baltimore, MD
Deep South refuses to attend
Convention nominates Douglas and adopts Popular Sovereignty as a platform

June 1860 -- Deep South Democrats meet in Baltimore
Nominate John C. Breckinridge (sitting VP from TN)
Platform calls for federal protection of slavery in the territories

August 1860 -- Republicans meet in Chicago, IL
Joyous mood -- they can smell victory
Convention turns to the moderate candidate from IL, Abe Lincoln
Platform denounced John Brown's raid and called for stopping the expansion of slavery in the territories
Important -- platform stated that slavery in slave states was protected and would not be interfered with by a Republican president (tried to calm fears of the South)

August 1860 -- New Party forms in Baltimore
Called the "Constitutional Union Party"
Old Whigs and moderates from the border states (states like VA, TN, KY)
Nominated John Bell of TN for President and Edward Everett of MA for VP
Platform called for the "preservation of the Constitution and the Union"

Throughout the campaign, southern radicals warned about secession. Like the boy who cried wolf too many times, however, the warnings went unheard

Election Results
Lincoln (R) 39% popular 180 electoral
Douglas (ND) 30% popular 12 electoral
Breckinridge (SD) 18% popular 72 electoral
Bell (CU) 13% popular 39 electoral

Lincoln won every state in the North. He wasn't even on the ballot in 90% of the counties of the South. Douglas was the only candidate to carry northern and southern voters, but in the end he won only MO and 3 electoral votes from NJ (the state split its electoral votes). Bell took VA, TN and KY (all border states with sizeable non-slaveholding white populations). Breckinridge took the rest of the slave states.

Secession Winter

20 Dec 1860 -- meeting in Charleston, SC, a special convention of SC delegates passes an Ordinance of Secession and declares SC out of the federal union
4^th and last step to secession -- VA/KY resolutions (idea of nullification), Hartford Convention (idea of secession), Nullification Crisis of 1828-1832 (nullification in practice), Secession Winter (secession in practice)
The difference in 1832 and 1860 was that the rest of the Deep South will follow SC this time
Secession Dates for the Deep South
SC -- 20 Dec 1860
MS -- 09 Jan 1861
FL -- 10 Jan 1861
AL -- 11 Jan 1861
GA -- 19 Jan 1861
LA -- 26 Jan 1861
TX -- 01 Feb 1861

04 Feb 1861 -- Representatives from the new "republics" meet in Montgomery, AL to form the Confederate States of America
Jefferson Davis (MS) is elected president -- Alexander Stephens (GA) was the VP
A new Confederate constitution was drawn up
The nation now faced a number of legal and ethical dilemmas
Was secession legal? Did the seceding states really leave the Union?
Could (and Should) the North try to keep the South in the Union by force?
What about the rest of the slave states? What should be done about them?
Maryland and VA were trouble spots -- they sat around Washington DC -- what if both states decided to leave the Union? What would happen to the government?
Did federal property in the old states now belong to the states or the Confederacy?

The nation began to focus on Charleston Harbor
Fort Sumter -- old fort in the middle of Charleston Harbor -- originally built to protect the city from the British -- now contains a US Army force commanded by Major Robert Anderson. He refuses to leave. A stalemate ensues and the nation waits for Lincoln to take office in March. What will he do?