Abolitionism
Abolitionism DATE
1688 Quakers wrote petition to end slavery
1775 first abolition society formed in U.S.
1830s is turning point towards immediate emancipation
Mexican-American War DATE
1846-48
Wimot Proviso DATE
1846
Compromise of 1850 DATE
1850
Abolitionism DEFINITION
A trans-Atlantic movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free.
Mexican-American War DEFINITION
Americans illegally settle in Texas, outnumbering Mexicans and Native American Indians, and bringing enslaved people (no slavery in Mexico). Texas declares itself a Republic. In April 1846, US and Mexican soldiers clashed in the disputed borderland between Texas and Mexico.
•1846, American rebels in California declare independence from Mexico
Wilmo Proviso DEFINITION
Congressman David Wilmot proposed a resolution prohibiting slavery from all territories acquired from Mexico.
Compromise of 1850 DEFIINITION
In 1850, California asked for admission to the Union. Brings up the question of slavery’s expansion in the US. Designed by Henry Clay, California enters Union as a free state.
Issue of slavery left up to individual
territories
Abolitionism DATA POINT 1
Second Great Awakening gives abolitionists a greater voice, broader base supporting antislavery. Abolitionists include Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison (The Liberator)
Mexican-American War DATA POINT1
First U.S. War on foreign soil.
Wilmot Proviso DATA POINT 1
Northerners supported it; Southerners opposed it.
Compromise of 1850 DATA POINT 1
Southerners opposed statehood for California. Southerners believed that once the free states outnumbered them, they would move to abolish slavery in the South. Compromise created new, strict law allowing southern slave owners to regain their runaway slaves (Fugitive Slave Act).
Abolitionism DATA POINT 2
Some call for graduate emancipation
Some call for immediate emancipation (radical abolitionists)
Some call for establishing separate colony for African Americans (Liberia)
Mexican-American War DATA POINT 2
American troops occupy Mexico City, the capital.
Wimot Proviso DATA POINT 2
1848, the Free Soil Party, new political party emerges based on the opposition to slavery’s expansion. Party wants to limit slavery’s expansion, but not abolish slavery.
Compromise of 1850 DATA POINT 2
Issue of slavery left up to individual territories (popular sovereignty). Most California miners opposed slavery.
Abolitionism SIGNIFICANCE
Begins ground work for freeing enslaved persons and changes nation economically and politically; creates sectionalism which leads to Civil War
Mexican-American War SIGNIFICANCE
Feb. 1848 – Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ends the war.
–Confirms American annexation of Texas
–Cedes California, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah to the U.S.
_ Leads to Compromise of 1850 when California is admitted to the Union as free state (Henry Clay)/addresses slavery
Wilmot Proviso SIGNIFICANCE
Brings question of slavery to the forefront of American political and social debate, demonstrates the nation's divide.
Compromise of 1850 SIGNIFICANCE
Compromised averted crisis between North and South. Established the status of territories admitted after the Mexican-American War. American westward expansion and divisive issue of slavery continue to create friction in the nation. Fugitive Slave Act was amended and slavery in Washington, D.C. was abolished. California entered Union as a free state.