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Slavery divides the nation



In the middle of the 19th century the country’s future seemed bright, except for one large problem. Southerners wanted slavery to be allowed in the new western lands. Northerners were against allowing slavery there. Many people hoped that a peaceful solution could be found to the differences between the North and the South. But in the end, the differences led to war. These were sad years when the people of the United States faced each other on the battlefield.

The Slave System.The democracy that was spreading in the first half of the 1800’s was not shared by black Americans. Most blacks were slaves. Under the system of slavery, people were bought and sold as if they were objects, not human beings. By the early 1800’s slavery had been outlawed in most Northern states. In the South, however, where vast cotton plantations were very important to the economy, the slave system was still strong.

When the slaves arrived in the United States, they were sold at public auctions. Very often families were divided up to be sold to different owners. Little children were sometimes taken from their mothers. Slaves belonged to their owners. They had no rights under the law. According to the laws, slaves could not meet together in public. They could not travel without permission. It was also illegal to teach a slave how to read or write. Slaves who disobeyed their owners could be beaten.

The Civil War in the USA (1861 – 1865)

Tension between anti – slavery and pro – slavery, North and South, party lines grew and threatened the Union.

The Republican Party in 1860 was a northern rather than a mere anti- slavery party.

Abraham Lincoln was nominated as the only candidate. The result of Lincoln’s becoming President was the splitting of the nation into two parts. South Carolina was the first to act. On December 20, 1860, South Carolina voted withdraw, or secede, from the United States. By February 1, 1861, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas had also voted to secede. They formed the Confederate States of America. Jefferson Davis became President.

Lincoln did not want a war. But soon he saw that there was no choice.

Both sides had certain advantages that they thought would help them to win the war. The North had more soldiers, more supplies and better transportation. The South had better generals and was fighting on home ground. Robert E. Lee, probably the greatest soldier of the Civil War, commanded the Southern armies.

By April 7 the Confederate forces that had tried to retreat father south were surrounded. At last, on April 9, Lee surrendered in a farmhouse near Appomattox. With Lee’s surrender, the war was over.

The final shot. On the evening of April 14, 1865, President Lincoln and his wife went to see a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. During the play, John Wilkes Booth, an actor and a southerner, shot the President. Lincoln died the next morning.







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