Divided Nation 1815-1860 — Practice Quiz
A US History cheat sheet for Divided Nation 1815-1860 — every key formula with its symbols defined — plus a medium-level practice quiz to test recall.
Formulas & key concepts
Loyalty to the interests of one's own region or section of the country, rather than to the country as a whole
Where: Major cause of the Civil War (North vs. South)
Agreement that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state; banned slavery north of 36°30'
Where: Maintained balance of power in Senate for 30 years
Series of laws passed to address slavery in territory acquired from Mexico
Where: CA admitted as free state; Fugitive Slave Act strengthened; popular sovereignty in UT/NM
Law requiring citizens to assist in the capture of runaway slaves and denying accused fugitives right to trial by jury
Where: Outraged Northerners; increased support for abolition
Anti-slavery novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe that depicted the harsh reality of slavery
Where: Best-selling book of 19th century (after Bible); "So this is the little lady who started this big war"
Law proposed by Stephen Douglas allowing settlers in Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide slavery by popular sovereignty
Where: Repealed Missouri Compromise; led to "Bleeding Kansas"
Violent civil war in Kansas Territory between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers
Where: Prelude to the Civil War
Radical abolitionist who believed in using violence to end slavery
Where: Led Pottawatomie Massacre and raid on Harpers Ferry
Killing of five pro-slavery settlers by John Brown and his followers in Kansas
Where: Retaliation for Sack of Lawrence
Political party formed in 1854 to oppose the expansion of slavery
Where: Composed of Northern Whigs, Free-Soilers, and anti-slavery Democrats
Massachusetts Senator brutally beaten with a cane by Preston Brooks on the Senate floor
Where: Martyr for anti-slavery cause; highlighted breakdown of civil discourse
Supreme Court ruling that African Americans were not citizens and Congress could not ban slavery in territories
Where: Declared Missouri Compromise unconstitutional; victory for South
Series of debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas for Illinois Senate seat
Where: Focused on slavery expansion; made Lincoln a national figure
Idea argued by Stephen Douglas that territories could exclude slavery by refusing to pass laws protecting it
Where: Alienated Southern Democrats
Failed attempt by John Brown to seize federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, VA and start a slave revolt
Where: Brown executed; became a martyr in North and villain in South
Presidential election won by Abraham Lincoln with no Southern electoral votes
Where: Triggered secession of Southern states
Act of formally withdrawing from the Union
Where: South Carolina was first to secede (Dec 1860)
Nation formed by seceding Southern states in 1861
Where: Constitution protected slavery; capital in Richmond, VA
President of the Confederate States of America
Where: Former US Senator and Secretary of War from Mississippi
Failed last-ditch effort to prevent Civil War by extending Missouri Compromise line to Pacific
Where: Rejected by Lincoln and Republicans
Federal fort in Charleston Harbor, SC; site of first shots of Civil War
Where: Confederate attack led to Lincoln calling for troops
Slave states that remained in the Union (Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri)
Where: Strategic importance to North
16th US President; led nation through Civil War
Where: "A house divided against itself cannot stand"
Illinois Senator who championed popular sovereignty and ran against Lincoln in 1860
Where: "Little Giant"; Northern Democrat
Political party in 1860 election that sought to avoid war by ignoring slavery issue
Where: Candidate: John Bell
Secret network aiding runaway slaves; became more active and controversial in 1850s
Where: Direct defiance of Fugitive Slave Act
Laws passed by Northern states to counter the Fugitive Slave Act
Where: Example of Northern resistance to federal slavery laws
Radical Southern secessionists who urged separation from the Union
Where: Key figures: William Lowndes Yancey, Robert Barnwell Rhett
Pro-slavery constitution proposed for Kansas; supported by President Buchanan but rejected by Congress
Where: Split the Democratic Party
Economic depression that hit the North harder than the South
Where: Reinforced Southern belief in superiority of cotton economy
Practice quiz
Loyalty to the interests of one's own region or section of the country, rather than to the country as a whole, is best defined as:
- Nationalism
- Federalism
- Sectionalism
- Abolitionism
Answer: Sectionalism
The Missouri Compromise of 1820 achieved which of the following?
- Admitted California as a free state and strengthened the Fugitive Slave Act.
- Banned slavery in all territories acquired from Mexico.
- Admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, banning slavery north of 36°30'.
- Established popular sovereignty as the method for determining slavery in all new territories.
Answer: Admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, banning slavery north of 36°30'.
How did the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and the publication of *Uncle Tom's Cabin* in 1852 impact Northern public opinion?
- Both led to increased support for the expansion of slavery into new territories.
- The Fugitive Slave Act outraged Northerners, while *Uncle Tom's Cabin* had little impact.
- Both significantly increased Northern outrage and support for the abolitionist cause.
- The Fugitive Slave Act was widely accepted, but *Uncle Tom's Cabin* sparked Southern protests.
Answer: Both significantly increased Northern outrage and support for the abolitionist cause.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 directly led to which of the following events?
- The admission of California as a free state.
- The strengthening of the Fugitive Slave Act.
- The violent conflict known as "Bleeding Kansas."
- The establishment of the Republican Party as a pro-slavery party.
Answer: The violent conflict known as "Bleeding Kansas."
Radical abolitionist John Brown is most famously associated with which two violent acts aimed at ending slavery?
- The Compromise of 1850 and the Dred Scott decision.
- The Pottawatomie Massacre and the raid on Harpers Ferry.
- The Lincoln-Douglas Debates and the Freeport Doctrine.
- The formation of the Republican Party and the Crittenden Compromise.
Answer: The Pottawatomie Massacre and the raid on Harpers Ferry.
The Supreme Court's ruling in *Dred Scott v. Sandford* (1857) had which significant outcome?
- It declared that all African Americans were citizens of the United States.
- It upheld the constitutionality of the Missouri Compromise.
- It ruled that Congress could not ban slavery in the territories and that African Americans were not citizens.
- It established popular sovereignty as the legal method for determining slavery in new states.
Answer: It ruled that Congress could not ban slavery in the territories and that African Americans were not citizens.
During the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, Stephen Douglas proposed the "Freeport Doctrine," which argued that:
- Slavery should be immediately abolished throughout the United States.
- Territories could effectively exclude slavery by refusing to pass laws protecting it.
- The Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision was unconstitutional.
- A new compromise line should be drawn to extend slavery to the Pacific.
Answer: Territories could effectively exclude slavery by refusing to pass laws protecting it.
What event directly triggered the secession of several Southern states from the Union?
- The attack on Fort Sumter.
- The passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
- The election of Abraham Lincoln as President in 1860.
- The Supreme Court's ruling in *Dred Scott v. Sandford*.
Answer: The election of Abraham Lincoln as President in 1860.
Who served as the President of the Confederate States of America?
- Abraham Lincoln
- Stephen A. Douglas
- Jefferson Davis
- John Bell
Answer: Jefferson Davis
The attack on Fort Sumter in April 1861 is significant because it:
- Led to the immediate end of the Civil War.
- Was the site where the Crittenden Compromise was signed.
- Marked the official beginning of the American Civil War.
- Convinced the Border States to secede from the Union.
Answer: Marked the official beginning of the American Civil War.
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