You will be able to map the effects of the Missouri Compromise. OBJECTIVE You will be able to map the effects of the Missouri Compromise.
What is Compromise? When two people are arguing for two different solutions, they eventually must reach a compromise—both people have to give up some of what they want to get what is most important to them.
Examples of Compromise! The states who have large populations want to create a national Congress that has representation from each state based on its population. The states with small populations think that is unfair and want to create a national Congress that has an equal number of representatives from each state. How could the small states and the large states compromise?
Examples of Compromise! The states who have large populations want to create a national Congress that has representation from each state based on its population. The states with small populations think that is unfair and want to create a national Congress that has an equal number of representatives from each state. How could the small states and the large states compromise? THE GREAT COMPROMISE! This historic compromise created a bicameral legislature—the Congress would be made up of 2 parts. The House of Representatives would be based on a state’s population and the Senate would have equal representation from each state!
Examples of Compromise! Knowing that the House of Representatives allows states to have more representatives if they have large populations, the southern states want to count their slaves as part of their state population. Northern states believe that because southerners treat their slaves as property, not as people, they should not get to count slaves as part of the population. How can the northern and southern states make a compromise?
Examples of Compromise! Knowing that the House of Representatives allows states to have more representatives if they have large populations, the southern states want to count their slaves as part of their state population. Northern states believe that because southerners treat their slaves as property, not as people, they should not get to count slaves as part of the population. How can the northern and southern states make a compromise? THE THREE FIFTHS COMPROMISE! This compromise allowed southern states to count their slaves as three-fifths of a person to increase their population count and give them more representation in the House. In exchange, the South agreed to end the importation of new slaves in 1807.
Keeping it Balanced Congress could not agree on whether or not to allow Missouri to become a slave state. Many farmers in Missouri had brought slaves to the territory and wanted to become a slave state. The southern states agreed, believing that popular sovereignty was more important than keeping a balance of slave and free states—if the people wanted slavery in their state, they should be allowed to have it!
Keeping in Balanced As the conflict worsened, northern states refused to give in and southern states started threatening to secede, or break away, from the Union (another term for the United States). Luckily, by 1820, a new territory—Maine—applied to become a state. This solved the problem of having an imbalance of slave and free states. Congress agreed to compromise by allowing Missouri to enter as a slave state and Maine to enter as a free state. This kept the balance between slave and free states—more importantly, it kept the balance in Congress as well!
Check your Understanding! True or False: Missouri entered as a free state True or False: Two new states joined the Union as a result of this compromise True or False: Northerners supported popular sovereignty—they knew the people of Missouri would vote against having slavery.
The Compromise With a balance reached, Congress had to decide where the boundary should be drawn for slave and free territories. They drew an imaginary line across the Louisiana Territory (the territory added to the U.S. from the Louisiana Purchase) at latitude 36°30’. North of this line, slavery was to be banned in all states and territories, except for Missouri. South of this line, slaveholding was permitted
Check your Understanding! True or False: The compromise allowed slavery to spread into the territory gained by the Louisiana Purchase.
Check your Understanding! True or False: Because of this compromise, the Michigan Territory would now be a slave territory.
Check your Understanding! True or False: because of this compromise, the Florida Territory would now be a slave territory.
Did Compromise Solve the Problem? The Missouri Compromise kept the nation in one piece, but neither northern nor southern states were happy. Many northern Congressmen who voted for the Missouri Compromise were seen as traitors for allowing slavery to spread. In the South, slaveholders were angry that the spread of slavery into the Louisiana Territory was being limited by the compromise. The compromise prevented a civil war from breaking out, but the tensions between North and South were still very much alive.
Map Analysis