Civil War:Compromise of 1850

By Caroline Dingwall5th Period AP US History

Geographic:

To become a part of the United States, Texas had to give up New Mexico, but it

gained the Texas Panhandle and El Paso. In addition the United States federal

government paid off Texas’ debt.

In the South, they relinquished the claim to Southern California; however, the

possibility of new slave states existed in the New Mexico and the Utah Territory

(Popular Sovereignty).

Bounded in 1850 on the east by the Territory of New Mexico and the Territory of Utah, and on the Territory of Oregon,

lies California. The proposal was to make California a free state and this angered

the South.

Religion:Christian Missionaries

The general idea was that slavery was permitted in the Bible. Abolitionists who felt that all people were created equally and that slaves were people represented the other side of the issue. Some slave owners made their slaves go to church to hear the minister preach to the slaves

about being good slaves. Also, some of the slave owners made their slaves follow Christian practices of marriage so the slaves would have

children and make more slaves for the slave owners.

Intellectual:A : settlement of differences by arbitration or by consent

reached by mutual concessions B : something intermediate

between or blending qualities of two different things

Books were written, such as Harriet Beecher Stowe’s book

Uncle Tom's Cabin, to show the harm of slavery. Other books

and speeches were written supporting slavery as a

necessity.

Political:Fugitive Slave Act

The three main issues making the Compromise of 1850 were:•States and territory boundary issues•Status of territory issues (slave or free states?)•Issue of slavery itself

The Northerners were outraged because slavery was preserved as an institution•Allowed in Washington DC (the nation’s capitol!)

EconomyTexas was able to get rid of a huge debt but it lost New Mexico.

California was busy and wealthy due to the Gold Rush. Because slavery continued, slave capturing become a new occupation and a

responsibility. A white person could be fined $1000 for not being involved in capturing slaves; in addition, if a white person aided slaves,

he or she would be jailed for 6 month and fined $1000. Slave trade was allowed around the city of Washington, but not in Washington.

Social:White control

The two races, especially in the south, were separated by law, by income, by color, and by civil rights. If a disagreement arose between a black and a white citizen, the white citizen was always right and won.

Who:These four men were most important in the

decision making process that eventually led to the Compromise of 1850.

Whig Senator Henry Clay (Kentucky)

Respected figure of the North and South, Henry Clay had been in Congress for 30 years. He helped set the standards for the Compromise of 1850, but failed to pass an earlier compromise in early 1850.

Democratic Senator Stephen Douglas (Illinois)

Democratic Senator Stephen Douglas led the forces of compromise after Clay left Washington. He built a majority by compromising his thoughts with others, which eventually led to the compromise being passed.

Whig Senator Daniel Webster (Massachusetts

)

Webster replied to Calhoun’s speech in what was called, “the 7th of March” speech. He said he “wanted to speak as an American, not as a Northern man or a Massachusetts man.” This helped promote the idea of the compromise.

John Calhoun

Last speech during the debate of the Compromise of 1850. Someone else delivered his speech because he was too ill to deliver it himself.

“If you remain silent, you will compel us to infer by your acts what you intend. In that case California will become the test question.”- Calhoun

What?The Compromise eventually passed, but it did not flow by everyone easily. While it helped the country in a short term, it also reignited the battle over slavery. When Texas was admitted as a slave state, the threats of cession and Civil War were constantly in the water. Many people viewed the compromise as a law that had just postponed the crises, “either you pay me now, or you pay me later,” (Sunoco advertisement).

Where?

The whole united states were effected by this Compromise, the North, South, East, and West. Some states believed they benefited from this compromise, and some felt it hindered their ability to control their own destinies.

When?This Compromise was a mixture of many years of hard work in trying to workaround slavery, but not deal with it. The majority of the work was in 1850 and itpassed after the debate Calhoun v. Webster debate in the Senate.

Why?“The question, then, was whether slavery should

be allowed in the new territories. Both pro-slavery and anti-slavery advocates argued over the issue, yet neither side was strong enough to

administer a plan of action.”- Mr. Nussbaum

How?

Many Senators debated over exactly what would be the best policy for the UnitedStates. To get everything passed the Compromise was split into five separate parts: 1.First law- organize the Territory of New Mexico2.Second law- organize the Territory of Utah3.Third law- admit California to the Union as the 31st State4.Fourth statue- Fugitive Slave Law or the Fugitive Slave Act of 18505.Fifth law- prohibit the slave trade in the District of Columbia (but not slavery itself)

5) http://americanabolitionist.liberalarts.iupui.edu/reward2.jpg

Citations

14a) http://spartans.sstx.org/~ssallee/Apfornet/map1850.jpg14b) http://www.ccsd.edu/link/lms/CivilWarDBQ/comp1850.gif16a) http://www.mrnussbaum.com/history/comp1850.jpg

16t) http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mrnussbaum.com/history/comp1850.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.mrnussbaum.com/history/1850.htm&usg=__WZeQb92dn4JFDZqEkcm6eL7xWv4=&h=266&w=350&sz=36&hl=en&start=12&um=1&tbnid=2cOH0nuE54PDFM:&tbnh=91&tbnw=120&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcompromise%2Bof%2B1850%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dsafari%26rls%3Den%26um%3D1

2) http://media.maps.com/magellan/Images/txhist3.gif3) http://www.1st-art-gallery.com/thumbnail/91220/1/A-Converted-British-Family-Sheltering-A-Christian-Missionary-From-The-Persecution-Of-The-Druids,-1850.jpg4) http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/COMPROMISE

6a) http://www.lsjunction.com/events/comp1850.htm

6b) http://creditcarddebthelp.me.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/credit-card-debt-consolidation.jpg7) http://blogs.ancestry.com/circle/wp-content/uploads/2006/09/09-25-2006%20BILTOFT%20Christian%20Madsen%20born%2022%20April%201850%20and%20family%20Abt%201894.jpg8a) http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/55/7555-004-BD1CF1AC.jpg8b) http://www.alincolnlearning.us/JudgeStephenDouglas.jpg8c) http://clatterymachinery.files.wordpress.com/2007/03/daniel-webster-lighter.jpg

10) http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mcc&fileName=009/page.db&recNum=0&itemLink=r?ammem/mcc:@field(DOCID+@lit(mcc/009))

4) http://bookcoverarchive.com/images/books/the_annotated_uncle_toms_cabin.large.jpg

9) http://www.jamessmithnoelcollection.org/images/henry%20clay.jpg

10) http://www.learnnc.org/lp/media/uploads/2009/06/stephenarnolddouglas.jpg

11) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Daguerreotype-Daniel-Webster.jpg

16b)http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16960/16960-h/images/356.jpg

16c) http://voteview.org/images/United_States_1850A.jpg