The popular belief that the U.S. was meant to settle the American continent.
What was Manifest Destiny?
This law required all states (including "free" states) to return escaped slaves.
What was the Fugitive Slave Act?
This speech by Confederate vice president Alexander Stephens clearly stated the Confederacy's purpose was to defend slavery.
What was the "Cornerstone Speech"?
This campaign led by Gen. William Sherman pursued a scorched earth strategy.
What was the March to the Sea?
These laws adopted immediately after the Civil War limited the freedoms of the Freedmen.
What were the Black Codes?
The dispute with Britain over this Northwestern territory led to the setting of the U.S.-Canadian border.
What was Oregon Country?
This U.S. Supreme Court decision held that slaves taken by their owners to "free" states were still slaves.
What was Dred Scott (Scott v. Sandford)?
The first battle of the Civil War was the bombardment of this fort.
What is Fort Sumter?
Gen. Lee surrendered the Army of Virginia to Gen. Grant at this place.
What is Appomattox Court House?
This constitutional amendment banned slavery in the United States.
What is the 13th Amendment?
The Mexican-American War arose over Mexico's claim that the border was set along this river.
What is the Nueces River?
These 1858 debates concerned the sectional crisis.
What were the Lincoln-Douglas debates?
The Union strategy to win the Civil War.
What was the Anaconda Plan?
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by this then-famous actor.
Who was John Wilkes Booth?
The conflict between this congressional faction and President Johnson led to Johnson's impeachment.
Who were the Radical Republicans?
This treaty ended the Mexican-American War.
What is the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo?
The pro-slavery vs. free-soil conflict in this territory is considered a preview of the Civil War.
What is Kansas?
The fight between these two ships was the first between armored ironclads.
What were the Monitor and the Virginia (or Merrimac)?
This federal holiday commemorates the day enslaved people in Texas learned they were free.
What is Juneteenth?
This constitutional amendment guarantees due process and birthright citizenship, among other rights.
What is the 14th Amendment?
The discovery of gold at this mill set off the 1849 California Gold Rush.
What was Sutter's Mill?
He led the raid on the arsenal at Harper's Ferry intended to incite a slave uprising.
Who was John Brown?
This 1863 battle and the surrender of Vicksburg marked the turning point for the Union cause.
What was the Battle of Gettysburg?
Gen. Sherman issued Special Field Orders No. 15 which would have given this to each Freedman.
What is 40 acres and a mule?
This agreement effectively ended Reconstruction.
What was the Compromise of 1877?