Civil-War_Ch1_info

=**Territorial Expansion and Sectionalism Background Information**=

The beginnings of expansion started in the early days of the American republic. In colonial times, everything happened east of the Appalachian Mountains. Movement west began around 1800 and the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 doubled the size of the nation. The British and Spanish were two obstacles to a complete movement westward. The U.S. and British negotiated over the Oregon Territory in the Convention of 1818 bring a portion of the Oregon Territory into America. The Louisiana Purchase was being developed but adding new states would create a whole new problem - the argument over whether or not slavery should spread to new territories along with the upset of the free state/slave state balance that existed at the time. This argument led to **Sectionalism**, or debates between two regions of the nation - North against slavery and South in favor of slavery.
 * __Westward Movement__:**

Slavery had now come up in federal politics and would lead to the **Missouri Compromise** in 1820. This compromise said that a line would be drawn on the map at 36 degrees - 30 minutes north latitude and north of the line would be free and south of the line could have slaves. Also, Missouri would be added as a slave state and Maine would become a free state. The compromise aimed to keep slavery out of federal politics for good.

There was a belief held by many Americans that they had the right to move west. This belief was called **Manifest Destiny**. This "Young America Movement" belief was led by President **James Polk**, who also wanted to expand westward. His proposed a "Two Million Bill" to offer Mexico money for western territory (Polk would be in office for the upcoming Mexican War). An issue with this bil l came up when David Wilmot, a Pennsylvania representative proosed an amendment to the bill that said "no slavery or involuntary servitude in territory bought from Mexico with the money. This was the **Wilmot Proviso**. Arguments were over the spread of slavery at the time not whether or not slavery should exist. It passed in the House but died in the Senate. Voting on the proviso was by Sectional vote, which would lead to problems of arguing between North and South.

The Mexican War was the war the U.S. fought due to the belief of Manifest Destiny. It began when the U.S. claimed that Mexicans came into U.S. territory. It's unclear if this was really true. Several Whigs in Congress (including one-term Whig Representative Abraham Lincoln) put out the Spot Resolutions demanding that Polk show the exact spot that Mexicans came onto U.S. soil. The U.S. won and compelled Mexico into selling western land. In the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, the U.S. got the Mexican Cession (California, Utah Territory, and New Mexico Territory) for $15 million. Two famous generals from this war were Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott. The U.S. now controlled the west coast. Slavery wasn't being argued over or discussed...yet!

The U.S. obtained Mexico before gold was discovered but not by long. **John Sutter** was building a sawmill in California. He was a proprietor and was trying to build a city in that territory as he was trying to build cities in the west. In the river at his sawmill, one of his workers, James Marshall, found gold. When word of the gold found at Sutter's Mill reached the east coast and it was announced by President Polk, it led to a mass movement to California, which became the **1849 California Gold Rush**. The population of California in 1848 was 14,000 and by 1851 it was 250,000. Many went to California to mine for gold hoping to strike it rich. Others came to get rich by other means. Stephen Fields was a lawyer who went to find clients to help argue over claims. Julian Smart built an orchard selling fruits and vegetables. One who's work is seen today was **Levi Strauss** who made better mining pants out of canvas with the use of rivets. He used a sturdy cotton cloth from the French city Nimes, which was called Serge. This fabric from Nimes (said Serge de Nimes) would be called denim and were the first jeans made in America. There were several ways to look for gold. Panning was when one person had a small pan and sifted through the minerals in the river and streams. A rocker or cradle was used by several people looking in the rivers and streams. A sloose was for a very large group that used a slide-like contraption. Digging into the mountain was another option. Interestingly, blacks and whites worked together in California. It was the Chinese who were discriminated against.
 * __California Gold Rush__:**

California rapidly grew but had no constitutional status. It was a territory under military control. The military governor was William Bennett Riley. Without statehood status, there was no private property, no mail service, and no citizenship status. The people in California wanted their rights. Riley invited delegates to write a state constitution (which goes against the U.S. Congress's procedures to become a state). Congress is suppose to first vote and pass an Enabling Act to allow a territory to write a code of convention, then Congress votes a second time on statehood. However, California didn't wait. They sent their Constitution to D.C. and declared no slavery in California. Congress was already in turmoil over the Wilmot Proviso and Sectionalism that they were in no position to act. Basically, the Gold Rush caused rapid movement, which demanded that a Congress in turmoil act on a very sensitive issue...slavery.

There were two major points of view on the slavery issue in the late 1840s. One was that of **Free Soil**, which was the belief that slavery was a human institution and that it should not be imposed where it doesn't already exist and should not be enforced in a free state. **States' Rights** was more of a constitutional argument that believed that since it's up to the states to discuss property laws, then the federal government can't regulate slavery. A major proponent of States' Rights was Senator John C. Calhoun. The Wilmot Proviso turned slavery into a federal issue. Territorial expansion became a slavery and sectional issue. Elections were even turning into debates over slavery.
 * __Crisis of Mid-Century__:**

In 1847, the **Matson Slave Case** was a major court case on the issue. Robert Matson was a Kentucky slave owner. "Free Negro" Anthony Bryant supervised a Matson farm in Illinois. Bryant married a slave and feared that Matson would sell his wife and children "down the river" meaning the Ohio River and into the deep South where slaves were treated harshly. Free soilders protected Bryant's wife and children. Bryant argued taht Illinois was free ground. Matson argued that he was a citizen of Kentucky and was subject to Kentucky's laws so he got a lawyer. Matson's case was argued that he sojourners (visitors) should have to follow laws from their home state and therefore could take slaves into free territory and keep them as slaves if visiting free territory or a free state. The courts found against Matson stating that salvery could only exist in boundaries of slave states. Southerners were upset since they had to travel into free states from time to time. According to this decision, salves could leave if they were in a free state. Southerners were also upset that the federal government ruled on what the Southern states believed was a property issue and therefore up to the individual states.

Going into 1850, many were looking to compromise and solve the slavery issue. James Buchanan suggested extending the Missouri Compromise line to the Pacific. Lewis Cass suggested popular sovereignty, which meant that the people in each territory would vote on whether or not slavery existed in their territory. Cass was a candidate for president in 1848, but lost to Zachary Taylor. Neither of these compromises were accepted. **Henry Clay**, a popular politician for decades, came up with the **Compromise of 1850**. He wanted a permanent solution in one omnibus bill, or a bill with many small parts in one big bill to solve the slavery problem. The parts were: (1) admit California as a free state, (2) rest of the Mexican Cession would be subject to popular sovereignty, (3) Texas had claimed much more territory that they should have when they were admitted to the Union (had been part of Mexico) and would give up some territory that would be subject to popular sovereignty, (4) Texas would receive $10 million to pay off their debt from when they were an independent nation (Lone Star Republic), (5) **Federal Fugitive Slave Act** that said all runaway slaves had to be returned to their owner and if a slave was taken into a free state by the owner and the slave ran away, the slave was not free and when caught had to be returned, which would completely overturn the ruling of the court in the Matson Slave Case, and (6) abolition of the slave trade in D.C.

Clay wanted each part to be passed under one bill so that the issues of slavery would never have to come up again. However, the compromise did not pass. **Stephen Douglas** was a senator with goals of one day being the president. He wanted to make the compromise work and made deals with other government officials to help get all six parts passed, but passed as six separate bills. However, President Taylor state that he would veto each part except the admission of California as a free state. However, Taylor mysteriously died. Millard Fillmore became president and signed each part into law. Moderates on both sides were glad to get the whole matter over with, but radicals were unwilling to give up anything. Some Northerners like William Seward said that there was a "higher law" that was against slavery and Southerner John C. Calhoun spoke in favor States' Rights.

In the election of 1852, the Whigs chose Mexican War hero Winfield Scott. The Democrats chose Franklin Pierce. Both were Northerners with Southern running mates. Pierce won and Americans were optimistic that Pierce would bring the U.S. out of the crisis. However, the crisis didn't end since the compromise had problems. First, there was no single constituency on the bill since it wasn't passed as one big bill. Clay wanted a single majority of supporters. Second, Northerners were upset with the Fugitive Slave Law and refused to obey it with some states passing Personal Liberty laws making it a crime to force a person into slavery. Third, there was an increase of slaves escaping on the **Underground Railroad**, which was a network of escape routes from the South to the North. Fourth, there was a rise of **abolitionists**, or those who viewed slavery as a moral evil and wanted it to end everywhere. Many began to turn against slavery with **Uncle Tom's Cabin**, a book written by Harriet Beecher Stowe that protrayed blacks as having families and feelings like whites. Many abolitionists began to speak out including **Sojourner Truth**, a former slave herself who also spoke in favor of women's rights.

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