Other
Project p.a.t.c.h.: Dred Scott v. Sandford
This resource presents the text of the case, Dred Scott, Plaintiff v. John F. Sandford, which was presented to the Supreme Court in December, 1856.
University of Virginia
Miller Center at Uva: u.s. Presidents: James Buchanan
The initial source for links to all aspects of the Buchanan presidency, including information on his cabinet, domestic policy and foreign policy. From the Miller Center.
Claremont Institute
Founding.com: John C. Calhoun
A collection of speeches given by John C. Calhoun on why slavery should not be abolished.
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Freedom: A History of Us: A Fatal Contradiction Webisode 5
Webisode 5 - A Fatal Contradiction. The history of the United States is presented in a series of webisodes, within each are a number of segments.Included are links to lesson plans, teacher guides, resources, activities, and tools.
US National Archives
Our Documents: The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 attempted to settle sectional disagreements about slavery in the volatile pre-Civil War period. The compromise, actually a series of bills, had an enormous impact on the nation's slow march to civil war. See...
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: America in 1850: Henry Clay: Review of the Debate on the Compromise Bills
Henry Clay's speech in the Senate in support of the Compromise of 1850 and the importance of preserving the Union.
National Humanities Center
National Humanities Center: Toolbox Library: America in 1850: Daniel Webster: Speech to the u.s. Senate, March 7, 1850
Links to Senator Daniel Webster's famous plea, amidst the turmoil of sectional conflict, for national unity and his support of the Compromise of 1850.
American Presidency Project
American Presidency Project: Democratic Party Platform of 1856
Read a copy of the Democratic Party Platform in the election of 1856. Of note is its equivocation on the issue of slavery.
Northern Illinois University
Teaching Future Historians: Antebellum Era Lesson Plans
Several lesson plans covering a range of topics from the 1830s through 1860. These plans will give your students experience using primary sources.
Other
Fca Homeschool: History 806
A sample lesson plan covering the sectionalism and problems facing the nation in its debate on slavery in the 1850s.
Yale University
The Avalon Project: Kansas Nebraska Act 1854
The complete text of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, called an Act to Organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas.
University of Chicago
Special Collections Library: Stephen A. Douglas and the American Union
Provides information about the Great Debate between Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln.
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.
University of Virginia
Miller Center at Uva: u.s. Presidents: James Buchanan: A Life in Brief
A brief look at James Buchanan as president and the controversies he faced. From the Miller Center.
University of Virginia
Miller Center at Uva: u.s. Presidents: Franklin Pierce: Campaigns and Elections
An interesting account of the political conventions which had trouble choosing a candidate, and the lack of campaigning for president in the election of 1852. From the Miller Center.
US Senate
U.s. Senate: The Caning of Senator Charles Sumner
Describes Preston Brooks' attack on Senator Charles Sumner, May 22, 1856, in the Senate after Sumner's famous speech, "Crimes Against Kansas."
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.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Political Divisions
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart details the growing political divisions in the United States in the decade before the Civil War. It includes information on the election of 1856, the Dred Scott Decision, the Lincoln...
Library of Congress
Loc: America's Story: Stephen A. Douglas
Here is some brief information on the "Little Giant", also known as Stephen Douglas, and his senatorial career. The information is divided into three short pages.
Library of Congress
Loc: America's Story: John C. Calhoun
A brief biography of the life of Vice President John C. Calhoun, along with photos of his monument and tomb. The Library of Congress also includes a sample of Calhoun's forty-two page speech against the Compromise of 1850.
Smithsonian Institution
National Portrait Gallery: The Mask of Lincoln: Stephen A. Douglas
A captioned portrait of Stephen Douglas encapsulates his political career and reputation in a few short paragraphs.