The construction of the transcontinental railroad was perhaps one of the most ambitious projects following the American industrial revolution. In order for the railroad to connect the nation, it needed to go through American controlled areas, such as the Nebraska Territory and the Louisiana Purchase. According to the presentations given, “Senator Frederick Douglass” wanted the these western territories to become two territories, and eventually states. I believe the presenter confused the Abolitionist Frederick Douglass with Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglass, who actually drafted the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
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| Bleeding Kansas |
The act proposed that through popular sovereignty, the people in these territories would decide if their territories would allow slavery. This resulted in the mass movement of pro and anti-slavery moving to the territories. Due to Nebraska being a more northern state, the state deciding to be anti-slavery was very likely. However, Kansas was more southern and became a hotspot for the controversy around the act. As both supporters and opponents of slavery poured into the state, tensions began to rise. Violence and brutality began in the state, which is now known as “Bleeding Kansas.”
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was one of the last key events that sparked the Civil War. While the issue between the north and south was more heated than ever, the issue of the western states and slavery had not been in focus since the Missouri Compromise of 1870. If slavery was allowed in these states, more slave states could have arisen. The North desperately wanted to avoid this while the slave states tried to protect their ways, ultimately leading to the Civil War.
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