Antietam and Emancipation Proclamation

Battle of Antietam:

On September 16th through 18th, 1862 the first major battle in the Civil War was fought. The battle was in Washington County, Maryland and was the single bloodiest day in American Military history. Throughout the war, the South's job was to defend their nation, but during the Battle of Antietam General Robert E. Lee decided to send his troops to Maryland to invade the North. Lee's plan was not as successful as he had planned. The Confederate Army was outnumbered 2-1 by the Union army. In addition, General McClellan had a copy of General Lee's plans because a confederate soldier had left it at the campgrounds. Both sides struggled for a victory but the Union did manage to repel a confederate advance to the North. The Union also succeeded in getting the European powers to avoid helping the South in the war. During one of the attacks at Antietam creek, General Lee sent out all his troops to fight while General McClellan only sent out less than three-quarters of his army. Because of McClellan's delicate and time-consuming attacks, his full army was used and the Confederate army was able to gain an advantage. General Lee and his army retreated in order to help their wounded. Much to Abraham Lincoln's distaste, McClellan did not follow the Confederates. The battle is considered a tie from military standards but Abraham Lincoln and the Union army consider it a win for them because the South didn't gain any land.

Emancipation Proclamation:

The Battle of Antietam gave Abraham Lincoln, president of the United States, to issue the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1st, 1863. The Proclamation stated that all slaves living in "rebellious" states were freed and slaves living in "border" states, such as Delaware, Maryland, Missouri and Kentucky were not free. The slaves' freedom depended on Union victory. Changes were made to the war, such as a change in focus and new soldiers, as the Emancipation Proclamation was put into effect. The document added a "moral force" to the war, by freeing the slaves. It also gave the Union new soldiers. Free black slaves were accepted into the Union Army and Navy. The focus of the war changed from keeping the Union together to freedom. The Emancipation Proclamation was important because it paved way for the 13th Amendment.

Clara Barton:

Clara Barton was a relief organizer and humanitarian in the early years of the civil war. Barton began an early education and later started her own school in Borden-town, New Jersey in 1853. She had many anti-slavery opinions and worked at charities and philanthropies in Washington. When the civil war broke out, Clara Barton went to care for the wounded soldiers at the Washington Infirmary. Barton cured bloody men and made food for them. She travelled with the Union army to their battles, healing the Union soldiers and Confederate prisoners. Her many supplies and tools made her work popular throughout the army. Her work required her to work so closely to the battle that many accidents occurred. During one of her battles, a bullet went through her sleeve and killed the man she was healing. In 1880, Clara Barton established The American Red Cross Association and held the office as president until 1904. She died in 1912 when she was ninety-one years old.

Election of 1860 and Secession of GA

Election of 1860:

Once the year of 1860 came around it was time to vote. The Democrats and the Republicans were two parties who had very different views, but they both had to pick a candidate for the upcoming election. The Democrats met in Charleston, Carolina to choose their candidate. The voting wasn't as easy as they thought. Northern Democrats wanted to elect Stephen Douglas because they believe he would be their best chance at beating the Republicans. The Southern Democrats considered Stephen Douglas a traitor because he had passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act which allowed states to chose whether to be slave or not. Mad about the North's decision, the South Democrats left (the meeting) without choosing a candidate. Later, they chose Vice-President John C. Breckenridge. Seeing that the Democratic party had split, the Republicans choose their best candidate: Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln was a man who was able to win the electoral college and could manage the remaining uncertain states: New Jersey, Illinois, Indiana, and Pennsylvania. In the end, Abraham Lincoln ended up winning. The results pf the election made the South angry and led to the secession of Georgia.

Secession of Georgia:

After the surprising election of 1860, the South was having problems with the new president. Their reaction to the elections was so bad that they decided to secede from the union. The idea to secede was brought upon by the previous tensions over state and federal power, caused by the U.S constitution. By Georgia decided to secede, then most of the other Southern states seceded too. The North and South were split apart and each became their own temporary "countries". But not everyone was all for seceding. People who wanted to secede from the union were called Secessionists. People who were still uncertain were called Cooperationists. At the end of their meeting (held in the capital of Milledgeville) the decision was made to secede from the union, an event led by the state of Carolina. This secession, brought upon by Georgia, was initially the start of the war against the North and South.

Andrew Stephens:

Andrew Stephens was a cooperationist and an anti-slavery man. He worked as a teacher but then became a lawyer. Stephens assisted in passing the Compromise of 1850. He didn't like the idea of seceding but he knew it was unavoidable. If that was what the whole state wanted, then that was what was going to happen. Andrew Stephens was later elected as the Vice-President of the Confederacy because of his status as a former unionist. Once Stephens was elected into office, he and President Jefferson Davis worked together to decide what was best for the Confederacy. The two got along well at first but as their work became more hectic and strained, their bond began to weaken. Andrew Stephens was not a military man so he and President Davis argued over issues dealing with the military. After serving his term as Vice-President, Stephens was elected as governor of Georgia. He ended up dying in office on March 4, 1883.

GA platform:

Even though the Compromise of 1850 and the Missouri Compromise had already been passed throughout the country, slavery still posed a threat to the Union and Confederacy. In addition, new territorial gains and westward expansion contributed to the problems that faced the nation. To resolve all these issues, the GA platform was created. This platform stated that Georgia would accept the Compromise of 1850 if the North agreed to the Fugitive Slave Act. The South was happy with the platform, but the North wasn't. The GA platform prevented the North from expanding and pushing slavery into new territories. Over the course of the years, the terms of the GA platform began to wither down and the tensions between the North and South increased. All these events led up to the final war: the Civil War.

Kansas-Nebraska Act and Dred Scott Case

Kansas-Nebraska Act:

In 1854, land became a serious problem again. Settlers and businessmen wanted to move into present day Kansas. Tensions were uneasy between North and South and this claim for land made it even worse. Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois decided to create the Kansas-Nebraska Act. This act gave the south the opportunity to have two more slave states, since Nebraska and Kansas got to decide whether or not to be slave. Kansas turned out to be slave, which upset the long lasting Missouri Compromise. The Missouri Compromise had been keeping the Union together for thirty-four years, but it was repealed in 1854 by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The North was upset about the recently acquired land becoming a slave state, and were also upset about the recent bill being signed to allow the Kansas-Nebraska Act. The bill signed in 1854 had a major impact on the political parties. The Whig Party was split because every North Whig opposed the bill and every Southern Whig voted for it. The Southern and Northern Whigs split themselves into two different parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Many of the compromises were ignored and laws being violated, thus the beginning of the Civil War.

Dred Scott Case:

Dred Scott was a slave born in Illinois, a free state. Over the course of his life, Scott was sold to a military sergeant. The sergeant brought Dred Scott to Missouri, a slave state. Stating that he had been born in a free state, Scott sued for his freedom. After a long and tiresome debate, the court finally ruled Dred Scott guilty and a slave. The Supreme Court said that all parts of western territories were open to slavery. The Southerners were glad about the court's decision but the Northerners were mad. They believed that the decision was planned and they were suspicious of slave power conspiracy. These arguments increased North and South tensions. In the end, Scott claims that he died a free man.

John Brown:

Out of all the raids and attacks due to slavery, John Brown's raid was probably the most violent and the most remembered. On October 16, 1859, John Brown, an abolitionist, led 21 on a raid to Harper's Ferry, Virginia. Brown tried to start a slave uprising but was captured after a two day siege. The attack on Harper's Ferry failed and John Brown was captured and taken to court. He was found guilty of treason and was hanged on December 2, 1859. The raid gave both sides, North and South, different views of slavery and of each other. The North liked how violent Brown was, but the South disagreed with it. The South was convinced that the raid was proof of the North's idea to use slave revolts in order to destroy the South. Northerners praised John Brown and his brave actions to abolish slavery. On the other hand, John Brown's raid caused Southerners to set up militias and gave the decision to break away from the North in 1861. This raid was a major event that assisted in the start of the Civil War.

John Brown

Missouri Compromise and Compromise of 1850

Missouri Compromise:

In the years prior to the Missouri Compromise slavery was a tensed topic. Many states thought that slavery should be abolished while others disagreed. What really set off the balance between the states was when Missouri asked to become part of the nation in 1819. There had to be a balance between "free" states and slave states. By letting Missouri join as a slave state, the balance would be upset. The decision on whether or not to let Missouri in as a slave state lasted from December 1819 to March 1820. In the end, Missouri was allowed to join the nation as a slave state if Maine joined as a free state. In addition, slavery was abolished in lands that were part of the Louisiana Purchase. To keep the peace a territory line was created to make a boundary between slave and free states. All twenty-two states would be balanced and even because of the boundaries.

Compromise of 1850:

Years after the Missouri Compromise was settled, the issue of slavery came up again in 1850. The problem started in 1846 when the U.S went to war with Mexico. The war lasted from 1846 to 1848 and in the end, the U.S won. The Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo ended the war and gave the U.S 500,000 square miles of territory which included the present-day states of Arizona, New Mexico, California and Texas. The U.S also became stronger and more powerful because of this win. With all their new land, the U.S was unsure on whether or not to make it a free state or a slave state. The North was free and the South was slave, so the U.S didn't want any side to have an advantage. But in the midst of all the chaos, California wanted to join the nation in 1850. The gold rush had just occurred and California had become more popular. To settle all these disagreements and problems, Congress created the Compromise of 1850. The compromise stated that Texas's present day borders were set in exchange for the U.S paying Texas's debt, that slavery would be abolished in Washington D.C, and that land previously claimed by Texas would be split in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Nevada. California was also admitted as a free state, which gave the North an advantage. But slavery was still an issue, so the Fugitive Slave Act was passed in 1850 after the Tariff of 1828 was released. The act was passed because of the Compromise of 1850 and was supposed to help slavery all throughout the nation.

Tariffs, Nullifications, Fugitive Slave Act and States' Rights

Tariffs and Nullifications
      After the War of 1812, a series of protective tariffs were passed by the Congress. The tariff of 1828 was one of these tariffs. The tariff of 1828 taxes imported goods and increased the cost of goods in the U.S. This tax was passed in order to protects industries in the North. The Northerners enjoyed this tax, but the South did not. Southerners felt that Congress had intentionally passed the law to help the North, which they did. The South thought they were being ignored and they were upset that their goods cost more. Because of this tariff, the South did not trust the government and legislature anymore. South Carolina was one of the Southern states that really opposed the new tax. John C. Calhoun, Vice President of the United States, was born in South Carolina and agreed with the thought of canceling the tariff in South Carolina. The nullification of the tariff of 1828 almost caused a war between the legislature and South Carolina. Finally, the Compromise Tariff of 1833 was created. This tariff put an end to disagreements and changed the previously troublesome tariff.
Fugitive Slave Act
     In 1850 the Fugitive Slave Act was passed. This act was in favor of the South because it required citizens to assist in the recovery of fugitive slaves. Federal officials hired people to help find slaves and bring them back to their owners' plantation. Once caught, the owners had to prove the slaves were theirs in court. But the slave could not speak out in court, so if you weren't actually a slave, then you couldn't argue with the whites. The act/law allowed California to enter as a free state and it banned slave trade in the Columbia District. Signs and posters were put up to look for runaway slaves. The closer you found the slave to its home, the less money you would get. Many people were out on the streets, looking for slaves and hoping to get a reward.
      The Fugitive Slave Act inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe to write her famous book, Uncle Tom's Cabin. The book was written on June 5, 1851. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote this novel to explain how the United States needed to give the slaves their freedom and equality. She was so against slavery because she has witnessed it first hand, since her grandmother had had African American servants. Her story inspired slaves to speak up and assisted in the abolition movement. Uncle Tom's Cabin is now a hugely famous book that is viewed and read in every part of the country. The novel forever changed how Americans view slavery.

Slave Rights
     The concept of states' rights was an old idea by 1860. States had little to no rights because the government had all the power for the states. At the start of the civil war, Southern states decided they wanted fair rights and a weak federal government. They believed that they could govern themselves, without the governments help. The South thought that they had the power to cancel the agreement, they had made, to join the new nation. Debates soon broke out about which powers the states had and what the Federal government had. The government was not about to give up power, but the Southern states were not going to have the federal government govern them anymore. All the debates and arguments about states rights were a contribution to the start of the civil war which began in 1861.

Slavery as a cause

          As the American Revolution started to unwind, the Civil War was starting. One of the main causes of the war was slavery. African American people were taken from Africa in order to help white plantation owners with their lands. In other words, they were slaves. This idea of slaves started with slave trades in Ancient Rome. Ships carried about ten to twelve million slaves to America in the 1500s to 1800s. Slaves were also present in time before the 1800s. In 1942, after Columbus found America, the Europeans tried to enslave the Indians living on the land to work on their sugar cane fields. By the time 1750 rolled around there were 250 black slaves living in European colonies doing all kinds of work. 

                                                             

          Some slaves planted, harvested, and tended to the fields on the plantation , while other slaves were house servants, and coachmen. The slaves worked under the task system and the gang system. While working under the task system, slaves could do whatever they wanted after work was done. Under the gang system, slaves worked from sunup to sundown. 

          Alongside their work and tasks, family and religion was a priority. Marriage was illegal for slaves, but they still considered themselves married to their partners. Their masters supported the marriage because it meant a greater slave population. Religion was an important part in the slaves' lives, with or without their master. Services were held at plantations and churches, though churches were still segregated. Even though they had religion to guide them and give them a sense of hope, life was still hard for the slaves.

          

A slave code was put on them, restricting them to only sixteen hours on Sunday, no education and messaging was not allowed. Certain crimes they committed, including running away, faking sick, working slow, and taking extra food, were tried in court. Punishments for slaves were merciless and brutal. Slaves would hurt or kill themselves just to free themselves from this torture, but their masters didn't care. Aboliti                                                                                                                                                                                                            onists were the only people who felt that everyone should be free and equal. They didn't care about the consequences. But since everyone enjoyed having slaves, this dream never happened and instead slave codes where set up.

          

These codes stated that slaves who runaway would be killed, another master was not allowed to steal or brand someone else's slave, owners could not conceal runaway slaves, slaves are not allowed to be literate, alcohol was not to be sold to slaves, and that slaves couldn't go anywhere without a pass or ticket. Runaway slaves were a big problem in the South and were prohibited. If slaves were caught running away, they would either be beaten or killed. Which is why "The Underground Railroad" was set up. The railroad was a system that helped runway slaves escape to the North without getting caught. Some white people assisted in this event but it was mainly blacks. Hundreds of slaves made it to freedom each year because of this system which was started towards the end of the 18th century. It was named "The Underground Railroad" in 1831 when steam railroads were created. 

Many people participated in the railroad. Harriet Tubman was one of these people. She made nineteen trips to the South and helped over three hundred slaves escape. Tubman was a dedicated abolitionist and helped in anyway she could. She served as a cook, nurse and spy before dying in 1813. 

           Slavery was tough and hard, but it continued throughout the nation. Many African Americans were hurt and lost their lives fighting for their freedom. Slavery was a major reason for the start of the Civil War and can not be forgotten.