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Southern states break away and form the Confederacy, making Civil War imminent. The war will soon begin at Fort Sumter.

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11. Abraham Lincoln is Elected as President

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11. Abraham Lincoln is Elected as President

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Because of division in the opposing party, Lincoln won the election of 1860 with only 40% of votes. Southerners viewed it as a sign that their power and freedom was lost, and as a result began considering secession.

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The anti-slavery movement formed a new political party, the Republican Party. Its top representative, Abraham Lincoln, challenged senator Stephen A. Douglas and forced him to explain his views on slavery, bringing the topic clarity for everyone.

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In Congress, Preston Brooks gave Charles Sumner a beating after Sumner verbally attacked the pro-slavery senators for the events in Kansas. Northerners used the incident as an example of the cruelty of slavery-supporters, while southerners celebrated it.

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As a result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, pro-slavery Border Ruffians from Missouri and anti-slavery Jayhawkers with the intent to terrorize slavery supporters rushed into Kansas. Both sides violently attacked the other, leading this time period to be called "Bleeding Kansas."

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In order to build a railroad to California, Stephen A. Douglas thought Kansas and Nebraska shoule be organized into states to allow the building process to be easier. He said that they should vote on their own status, which caused both sides to swing in to try to win the votes.

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As part of the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was implemented, requiring that Northerners turn escaped slaves back to their owners in the south. While Northerners felt that was against their purpose, Southerners felt that it was not enough to ensure return of their property.

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When California applied as a free state, its entrance would disrupt the balance of pro- and anti-slavery votes in the Senate. Thus, the Missouri Compromise was ineffective in holding Congress together.

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Because of California's application, Southerners feared they would be removed from power, as California's admittance would give the slave states a majority. As a result, another compromise was reached. It entailed 4 points: 1) California would enter as a free state, 2) New Mexico and Utah could vote for their own status, 3) Slave markets in Washington, D.C. would be banned, and 4) the Fugitive Slave Act would be implemented.

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Some slaves attempted to escape to Northern territories where slavery was banned. Quite obviously, southern slaveowners were not happy about this fact.

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When Dred Scott, an African-American slave, was taken past the line into Wisconsin, he sued his owner for his freedom, as he lived in a free state. The Supreme Court, however, ruled that because he was a slave, not a citizen, and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional, they were inadequate grounds to sue. Simultaneously, it made all unorganized territories to the west open to slavery.

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Missouri's application for statehood threatened the boundary between whwere slavery was allowed, so Congress made a line at 36 degrees 30 minutes. North of this line, slavery was banned except in Missouri.