Digital History
Digital History: The Tallmadge Amendment [Pdf]
The question of the expansion of slavery into the territories of the United States was an old question that was addressed again in the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Read about the Tallmadge Amendment and the opinions supporting and...
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: Extension of Slavery
Outline on the extension of slavery and U.S. westward expansion, touching on the development of the cotton gin, Northwest Ordinance and Missouri Compromise.
Digital History
Digital History: The Dred Scott Decision
The Dred Scott decision caused a ripple throughout the country. Read a summary of Supreme Court Justice Roger B. Taney's proslavery decision, and see how it intensified the rancor between the North and the South.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: The Growing Crisis of Sectionalism in Antebellum America
In this Curriculum Unit, students will consider "The Growing Crisis of Sectionalism in Antebellum America: A House Dividing" in 4 Lessons. The unit also includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource...
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Henry Clay
An in-depth biography on American statesman and orator Henry Clay which lists his numerous life accomplishments as well as a discussion of his political life. Content includes information on his "American System," his views on slavery,...
Wikimedia
Wikipedia: Kansas Nebraska Act
Wikipedia offers excellent information on the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854.
Digital History
Digital History: The Impending Crisis: Conclusion
A concise review of the ways the issue of slavery split the country from the Missouri Compromise to eventual secession of the southern states.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Kansas Nebraska Act
Read about the essential repeal of the Missouri Compromise, which had established which states could be slave and which would be free for thirty years, with the rancorous passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. See who supported it and why,...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Missouri Compromise
A good look at the issues debated about the admission of new states, particularly those that would be made from the Louisiana Purchase. Read about why the issue of allowing slavery in the new states was such a hard decision for Congress....
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Dred Scott Decision
Read the terms of the Dred Scott decision which determined that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional. See why this decision was so controversial and completely unacceptable to the northerners, thus driving an additional wedge...
American Battlefield Trust
American Battlefield Trust: Civil War: Trigger Events of the Civil War
A list with descriptions of the major events that led up to the outbreak of the Civil War.
Curated OER
National Park Service: The Significance of the Dred Scott Trial
In this article from "The Old Courthouse" by Donald Dosch the facts of the Dred Scott decision are laid out. Read why the outcome of the case fanned the embers of the coming Civil War.
CommonLit
Common Lit: Text Sets: The Civil War
This is a collection of 29 Grade-Leveled texts (6-12)on the topic The Civil War. The American Civil War lasted for only 5 years but divided the country along bitter lines as the North fought to keep southern states from seceding from the...
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: The Kansas Nebraska Act and Party Realignment
Learn about the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Passed in 1854, it reopened the debate over the expansion of slavery in the United States.
University of Oregon
University of Oregon: Mapping History: Kansas Nebraska Act: 1854
Toggle back and forth on this interactive map to see how the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 completely negated the Missouri Compromise. Click on the map to see where slavery was permitted before 1854 and then after. Be sure to click on the...
iCivics
I Civics: Slave States, Free States
In this lesson plan, students learn about the balance between slave states and free states and their geography, including the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850.
iCivics
I Civics: Slavery: No Freedom, No Rights
From the basics about slavery to the attitudes that defended it and the efforts of those who wanted to see it abolished, in this lesson students learn about this dark part of America's past.
Library of Congress
Loc: Biographical Directory of the u.s. Congress: Jesse B. Thomas
Biography of Senator Jesse Burgess Thomas, whose amendment was added to the Missouri Compromise which addressed the issue of the spread of slavery.
The History Place
The History Place: The Kansas Nebraska Act
This site from The History Place talks about the Kansas Nebraska Act and the effects caused by its creation. The information is brief but very helpful for the subject.
Illinois Institute of Technology
Oyez Project: Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
This U.S. Supreme Court case dealt with the issues of slavery, citizenship, and property rights. It is detailed with an abstract providing a concise summary and a record of the justices that sat on the Court at that time.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: The Debate Over Slavery
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart contains information about the renewed debate over the spread of slavery after the Mexican War. It describes the Wilmot Proviso, popular sovereignty, the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive...
Black Past
Black Past: Louisiana Purchase and African Americans
In this brief encyclopedia article, you find the effect the Louisiana Purchase had on African-Americans because of the new land added to the United States. There is a link to a website that gives additional information about the...