may 30, 1854 - Kansas-Nebraska Act

Description:

Key Event: The Kansas-Nebraska Act is a key event because it is a large contributor to the tensions between the North and South that lead to the Civil War where the country splits.

Defined: The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 ignored the Missouri Compromise and allowed slavery north of Missouri’s border. The Nebraska Territory, Kansas Territory, Utah Territory, and New Mexico Territory could decide whether to prohibit slavery. The land of Kansas and Utah had originally prohibited slavery. Northerners were upset that slavery could expand into the once free states.

Described: Stephen A. Douglas wanted to ensure a northern transcontinental railroad route. Thus, he introduced a bill that would organize the territory of Nebraska so the railroad could go through. However, southern senators objected, because if Nebraska joined the union, it would be a free state under the Missouri Compromise. Hence, Douglas suggested creating two territories, Kansas and Nebraska, which would choose to support pro-slavery or anti-slavery based on popular sovereignty; he assumed the states would choose opposite political sides due to the geographical locations. Through the creation of the two territories, he created the Kansas-Nebraska Act.

Short Term: A period of violence known as “Bleeding Kansas” began due to the act’s creation. Pro-slavery and anti-slavery supporters flooded into Kansas hoping they could influence Kansas into becoming a free state or a slave state. The supporters from each side end up forming small armies where they would fight one another, and the casualties were greater than the casualties in any Union state during the Civil War.

Long Term: The start of “Bleeding Kansas” is one of the largest contributors to the start of the civil war. Tensions between the North and South were no longer conversational and instead became physically violent.

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