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The Missouri Compromise was a significant early step in America's journey toward civil conflict. It allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining a balance between North and South. More importantly, it drew a line across the Louisiana Territory, prohibiting slavery north of the 36°30′ parallel, excluding Missouri. This compromise, however, was the first of many attempts to address the growing schism over slavery.

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Nat Turner's Rebellion was a pivotal slave rebellion that took place in Southampton County, Virginia. Led by Nat Turner, a literate slave and preacher, the rebellion resulted in the deaths of about 60 white people and more than 100 black people. The aftermath saw tightened slave codes and greater fears of further uprisings, showcasing the deep divisions and tensions that existed over the institution of slavery in the United States.

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The annexation of Texas into the United States in 1845 was a controversial decision that significantly contributed to the tension between the North and South. Texas's entry into the Union as a slave state upset the fragile balance between free and slave states. This decision sparked debates over the expansion of slavery into new territories, heightening tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions.

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The Compromise of 1850 was a series of five bills passed in the United States Congress which attempted to settle the disputes arising from the newly acquired territory following the Mexican-American War. It admitted California as a free state and left the decision about slavery in Utah and New Mexico territories to popular sovereignty. The compromise also included a strict Fugitive Slave Law that intensified the debate over slavery and fueled further division between North and South.

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Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, 'Uncle Tom's Cabin,' was published in 1852 and quickly became a bestseller. This powerful anti-slavery narrative brought the realities of slavery to the forefront of American consciousness, influencing public opinion in the North against the institution. Its vivid portrayal of the brutality of slavery helped motivate the abolitionist movement in the United States and increased tensions leading up to the Civil War.

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The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was a key event that further strained the relationships between the North and South. It created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, leaving the decision about whether to allow slavery up to popular sovereignty. This effectively repealed the Missouri Compromise and led to 'Bleeding Kansas,' a violent conflict between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers in the Kansas Territory, highlighting the extremity of the national divide over slavery.

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The Supreme Court's decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford in 1857 ruled that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, could not be American citizens and that the federal government had no authority to regulate slavery in the territories. This decision angered many in the North and was celebrated by slaveholding interests in the South, making it one of the most controversial judgements leading up to the Civil War. It demonstrated how deeply divided the nation was over the issue of slavery.

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The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858 were a series of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate, and Stephen A. Douglas, the Democratic Party candidate for the Illinois Senate seat. The main issue discussed was slavery, particularly its expansion into the territories. Lincoln's eloquent opposition to slavery's expansion and his moral stance against it, despite not seeking its immediate abolition, helped elevate his national profile, setting the stage for his presidential run in 1860.

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1859: John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry

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1859: John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry

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John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859 marked a significant turning point in pre-Civil War America. Brown, an abolitionist, aimed to initiate a slave revolt by seizing the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The failed raid heightened the country's polarization over slavery. Brown's trial and execution made him a martyr to the abolitionist cause and underscored the inevitable conflict between North and South over the issue of slavery.

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The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 was the final straw for the Southern states. Lincoln, a Republican known for his opposition to the expansion of slavery, won the presidency without carrying a single Southern state. This event convinced many Southern leaders that their interests would no longer be safeguarded within the Union, leading to the secession of South Carolina and eventually other Southern states, directly precipitating the outbreak of the Civil War.