1. FN: Causes of the Civil War
Watery Wednesday 16, 2015
“What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us.”
Henry David Thoreau
Agenda:
Warm-Up
Words of Wisdom
Manifest Destiny
Home Fun:
FN: Causes of the Civil War
Why did Americans want to move west? What do you think the benefits were? What were the drawbacks?
3-5 sentences

2. Causes of the Civil War CSS 11.1.3 -
Essential Question: What were the causes of the American Civil War? 3-5 sentences

3. 1. Mexican-American War, 1846
The US tried to buy California from Mexico and then went to war.
The US grew by 1/3 and then fought over whether the new territory should be free or slave.
When gold was found in 1849 a huge fight began over what to do with California.
The Compromise of 1850 made CA a state and the bad blood that followed led directly to the Civil War.

4. 2. Sectionalism North South
Sectionalism – the excessive devotion to local interests and customs to a region of a nation.
The northern and southern states fought over political control of the nation.
Everything came back to slavery even though they tried not to talk about it.
The senate was kept balanced so there was an even number of free and slave votes.
North
South

5. 3. Slavery
The South viewed slavery as a necessity to maintaining economic wealth.
Texas believed that slavery was vital to the economy.
However, many people in the North viewed slavery as evil and unconstitutional.

6. 3. Slavery
Slavery was not just a moral issue but a political issue as well.
Which ever section of the U.S, North or South, had more states would have more power in Congress.

7. 4. Dred Scott decision, 1857
Dred Scott, a slave, sued for his freedom because his master took him to a northern state.
The Supreme Court ruled that a slave is property no matter where he/she is.
This made all states slave states.

8. 5. States’ Rights
States’ rights – each state had the right to determine whether or not to follow federal laws.
Southerners supported states’ rights.
They believed that they had the right to own slaves and even secede (leave the Union) if they desired.
Texas believed that the states should be able to make their own political, economic, and social decision with minimal federal government interference.
Northerners did not support states’ rights. They believed the national government had final power.
United States Law

9. 5. Election of 1860
When Republican Abraham Lincoln won the Election of 1860, Southerners believed that their rights would no longer be respected.
Many southerners believed it was time to leave the Union.

10. Southern Secession
After Lincoln’s election, eleven southern states eventually seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America.
Texas’s lawmakers voted to secede by a vote of 166 to 8, and the people of Texas voted for secession by a margin of more than 3 to 1.