CR11 Adam Rothman

Slavery and National Expansion in the United States

• The article examines the interplay of slavery, westward expansion, and national politics in the United States from the Northwest Ordinance to the Civil War.
• Senator Sumner's 1856 speech denounced a bill authorizing the forming of a state government in Kansas, claiming it was a violation and likened it to rape.
• A lithograph from 1856 depicted Liberty, the fair maid of Kansas, as a white woman besieged by "border ruffians" symbolizing Democratic politicians.
• Slavery's expansion into western territories was a contentious issue for 70 years, originating from debates around the Northwest Ordinance and territories acquired from the Louisiana Purchase.
• Three phases of struggle over slavery in the territories are identified; the first from the Northwest Ordinance to the Missouri Compromise, the second encompassing the Jacksonian era (1820s-1840s), and the third beginning with the Mexican War.
• The Northwest Ordinance established the principle of anti-slavery in the Northwest Territory.
• The Missouri Compromise attempted to balance the number of slave and free states.
• The Louisiana Purchase added extensive land; Congress debated whether to allow slavery in these new territories, with proponents arguing that slavery was indispensable for western development.
• The Missouri Compromise (1820) temporarily settled the issue but failed to resolve the fundamental conflict over slavery's expansion.
• The Wilmot Proviso (1846) attempted to restrict slavery’s expansion, failing in the Senate.
• The Compromise of 1850 allowed territories to decide the issue of slavery on their own, leading to unrest.
• The Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854) repealed the Missouri Compromise, opening further territory to the possibility of slavery; this led to significant violence in Kansas.
• The events surrounding the Kansas-Nebraska Act created significant division and foreshadowed the American Civil War by highlighting the deep-seated conflict over slavery.
• The article contends that the expansion of slavery was fueled by multiple interrelated factors. Economically, the booming demand for cotton in both domestic and international markets necessitated an increase in slave labor. Additionally, demographic shifts, such as population growth and migration patterns, played a significant role, while strategic political maneuvering further shaped the debate surrounding slavery's spread.

Course Reading 11 Option 3