Digital History
Digital History: The Slave Power Conspiracy
Read about a book published in 1864 that contended that there was a conspiracy to spread slavery into the western territories. See that the accusations included in the book could not be authenicated, but the ideas presented showed the...
Digital History
Digital History: The Fugitive Slave Law
See why the Fugitive Slave Act was such a contentious, divisive law that exacerbated tensions between North and South.
Digital History
Digital History: Harper's Ferry
Read about the infamous raid on Harper's Ferry by John Brown and his band in 1859. His first plan had a chance of success thought Frederick Douglass, but the plan that was carried out was doomed from the start. See what John Brown was...
Digital History
Digital History: What Was Life Like Under Slavery?
A sobering look at the life of the plantation slave in the decades before the Civil War. Read about the malnutrition, severe treatment, and inadequate living conditions.
Scholastic
Scholastic History Mystery: Abolition
History puzzle in which students play a game to solve a mystery and name the Abolitionist.
White Pine Pictures
White Pine Pictures: Breaking the Ice: The Mary Ann Shadd Story
Mary Ann Shadd was born in Wilmington, Delaware in 1823. She emigrated to Windsor, Upper Canada and was a leader in advocating for integrated schools at a time when most Canadians believed segregated schools should predominate. This web...
University of Missouri
Famous Trials: Amistad: Lewis Tappan
A short essay on the life of abolitionist Lewis Tappan and his involvement with the Amistad case.
British Library
British Library: The Slave Trade
An article describing the historical background to the Abolitionist movement in England, giving details on the slave trade and more.
British Library
British Library: Abolitionist Campaigners
A collection of short biographies of individuals who were involved in the anti-slave trade movement in England during the late 18th and 19th centuries.
State Library of North Carolina
N Cpedia: Quakers
Read about the history of the Quakers, also called the Religious Society of Friends, who are the oldest organized Christian church in North Carolina.
Other
Wwhp: American Anti Slavery Society
A good review of the evolution of the support for the abolition of slavery from the first anti-slavery organization formed by the Quakers to the support for Abraham Lincoln as president. Focus is on the American Anti-Slavery Society and...
Other
Personal Site: Thomas Clarkson
A nicely done biography of the famous British anti-slavery campaigner in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Other
Personal Site: William Wilberforce
A nice biography of the famous British abolitionist who served in Parliament during the late 18th and early 19th century.
Other
Personal Site: Biography of Anthony Benezet
A short but good biography of the famous Quaker abolitionist who established a school for slaves in Philadelphia in 1770. He wrote a pamphlet in 1772 which led to the establishment of the anti-slave trade movement in England.
Other
Alton, Illinois: Elijah Parish Lovejoy
Biography on minister, journalist, and anti-slavery spokesperson Elijah Lovejoy, who was killed by a mob when he was 34. This well written bio focuses on the events on the night of his death.
Other
Beneath the Underground: Flight to Freedom
A site that tells the story of the Underground Railroad in Maryland. Includes interactive maps.
Library of Virginia
Death or Liberty: John Brown's Raid
The Library of Virginia details John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry as a prelude to the U.S. Civil War. Content also lists various records and resources regarding John Brown's Raid held in the library.
Tom Richey
Tom richey.net: The Crisis of the Union (1850 1860) [Ppt]
Presents key ideas for examining the events and issues that led to the American Civil War.
National Women's Hall of Fame
National Women's Hall of Fame: Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Brief biography of this famous women's rights leader.
National Women's Hall of Fame
National Women's Hall of Fame: Sara Grimke
Read about the life and accomplishments of abolitionists Angelina Grimke and Sarah Grimke, important political figures in the anti-slavery movement.
Other
Republican Party: Our History
Read the first few paragraphs of this article to find out about the formation of the Republican Party in 1854 and how it affected the political scene in the last part of the 1850s.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Sacred Beliefs
At the beginning of the Civil War people in both the North and the South held firm beliefs about the reasons for the war. Some wanted to preserve the Union, others to end slavery. In the South the question was about states' rights and...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Canefight! Preston Brooks and Charles Sumner
Violence associated with strong feelings about slavery entered the halls of the Senate. Read what happened to Senator Charles Sumner after a two-day tirade he gave in the Senate after the sack of Lawrence, Kansas.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Pottawatomie Creek Massacre
John Brown, seeking revenge for the sack of Lawrence, Kansas, made Kansas even more bloody. Read about the Pottawatomie Massacre and its reverberations throughout Kansas.