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Kali Hansen
Professor Jackson
American Civilization
29 September 2014
Slavery
My Country tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I singfrom
evry mountainside let freedom ring! (LDS Hymns 339). A song we all sing
every year as a celebration of our independence and freedom from Great
Britain. Yet America hasnt let everyone enjoy that taste of freedom pride.
There were the slaves.
In mid-1800s Abraham Lincoln was able to grant slave freedom
permanently. The question is: How was Abraham Lincoln able to grant
freedom to all slaves?
Slavery was first introduced into the United States in 1619 in Virginia.
The North only used the slaves as domestic servants. They were mostly used
in the South, especially in the cotton fields. The South used them because
they were free labor, whereas the white people only worked for wages.
Though it was accepted for many years, during those years the growing
number of abolitionists and anti-slavery grew until one leader finally ended
slavery forever.
Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809. He was raised on a
farm in Hardin County, Kentucky. Abrahams father, Thomas Lincoln,

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disproved of slavery because he had to compete with slaves for work. When
there began to be a land dispute in Kentucky, his father moved his family to
Illinois. Working on a farm was never a strong desire of Abrahams, so he
went looking for work. He got a job working for a flatbed company, at age 20.
The job was to take Northern products and travel up and down the
Mississippi River trading in Southern cities. This is where Abraham first
observed how slaves were treated. He watched from his flatbed, slaves being
auctioned to slave owners or other auctioneers and seeing how many of the
slaves were sold either separately or split up, especially families. Since then
he highly disproved slavery.
A few years earlier the slavery issues began to be a real concern for
new coming states. Maine, split off of Massachusetts, and became a state.
This caused an imbalance in the number of free versus slave states. Missouri,
the new Western state, rebalanced the system by becoming a slave state.
Since the exploration of Lewis and Clark, the idea was promoted that the
West would be free to expand; this gave more opportunities to expand
westward and the possibilities of more states being created in the future.
With the idea of expansion, Congress didnt want any more disputes
regarding which new states became a free state or a slave state. This led to
the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which states, any state created north of
the 36 30 is a free state and anything state created south of the line will be
a slave state. This became very controversial because this introduced the

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possibility of expanding slavery to the West, which by this point many of the
Northern abolitionist groups disapproved.
The Missouri controversy continued on for years, however, nothing was
being done to change it. In 1834, Abraham Lincoln was elected to the Illinois
Legislation General Assembly for the Whig party. Lincoln also became a
successful lawyer while serving in the General Assembly. Then in September
1836 he opened his own practice and made William Herdon his junior
partner. When Lincoln was serving in General Assembly he publicized
against slavery. In 1849, he introduced a resolution where there would be no
slavery in Washington D.C. The sales and the auctioning of slaves would
become prohibited. This resolution would come into effect in January of 1850.
Unfortunately, Congress didnt approve of the resolution and it fell through
the House due to the Fugitive Slave Law. This Law stated that all runaway
slaves must be returned to their slave owners. When Lincoln lost his
resolution in the House, it affected him so much that it convinced him to
return to practicing law.
When Lincoln returned to practicing law, the slavery debate became a
huge topic. The finalization of the Mexican American War treaty caused the
United States to gain more land from the Mexicans including California. Many
people immigrated to California, due to the California Gold Rush, to the point
that they had enough people to gain statehood, this fueled the slavery
debate. California became a state in 1850 as a free state. This sparked the

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issue with the building of western states and the debate of which states
would be slave states and which would be free states.
Stephan Douglas, a senator of Illinois, introduced the idea of popular
sovereignty to have the states choose to be either slave or free states. This
formed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which Stephan Douglas pushed to pass
through Congress (Foner,382). This Act allowed Kansas to have popular
sovereignty over choosing what type, slave or free, state they want to be.
This had Congress repeal the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Whiling the
voting of the state, many pro-slavery Southerns and anti-slavery Northerns
came to the Kansass voting polls, to hopefully sway it in their favor. With
having so many pro and anti-slavery together in one place, that debates
became heated fast to where it turned into violence and eventually blood
was shed. Many newspapers called these issues Bleeding Kansas.
In March 1857, while the Kansas Nebraska conflict was still going on,
Dret Scott was fighting in the Supreme Court for his freedom. Mr. Scott was a
slave for his former master, who moved to a free state. His master died and
Mr. Scott went to the north to seek employment, but was sent back to the
south, due to the Fugitive Slave Law, thinking he was a runaway slave. Mr.
Scott went to the Supreme Court fighting that when his master took him to a
free state, he was freed from slavery. The court ruled in favor against Dret
Scott and he was sold back into slavery. Due to the courts decision, Lincolns
faith was tested in the court system being a law abiding citizen. The

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Supreme Court than declared that the U.S Constitution did not give black
people citizenship; therefore they wouldnt ever. This declaration changed,
however, within the next 10 years.
Stephen Douglas, senator of Illinois, was the one to push the Kansas
Nebraska Act through. Abraham Lincoln was disappointed over the Dret Scott
cases and heard that Stephen Douglas was promoting slavery; he challenged
Douglas to a series of debates. The rules of the debate were that first person
would debate their topic for an hour, and then the second person would
respond for 30 minutes on that topic. The first person would respond again
for another 30 minutes. Lincoln called to have seven public debates in the
time from the 21th of August of 1858 to the 15th of October of 1858. In one of
Lincolns speeches he famously stated that a house divided cannot stand.
This was his most famous quote coming from the debates. Stephen Douglas
tried to convince the people during his debates that Lincoln was an
abolitionist. Lincoln response to Douglass accusation is the difference
between Douglas and himself is about whether a negro is not or is a man. If
African Americans are men (human beings) the words of the declaration of
independence apply to them they are created equally and have right to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (Otfinoski,41). His speeches
began showing that he thought slavery was morally wrong. During the
continuation of many of his speeches, the Republican Party heard about
Lincoln and went to see him. They were so impressed with his debates that
they chose to nominate him to join the party. With the partys support,

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Lincoln ran for office of senate as a Republican. Lincoln and Douglas

continued the debate which led into campaigning for the senate seat. Sadly,
Lincoln lost and in his response to losing he said, though I now sink out of
view, and shall be forgotten I believe I have made some marks which will tell
for the cause of civil liberty long after I am gone (Roberts, 22).
Lincoln was far from sinking away. The Republican Party was pushing
Abraham Lincoln to run for president in the 1860 elections. He never went
out to campaign himself for president, the Republican Party did most of the
work. Yet, the slavery issue was the big debate during the Presidential
campaign. On October 16, 1859, John Brown, extreme abolitionist, and many
of his sons went and raided the United States arsenal at Harper Ferry. They
wanted the arsenal to arm the slaves to help start a slave revolt. Browns
raid failed and he was tried and hung for his actions. After this raid the North
praised John Brown for doing what he had done, whereas the Southerners
were caused to think that the North was going to start using force to stop
slavery. The idea of secession began to spread throughout many of the
Southern states.
There is no record of Lincolns opinion of John Browns actions. Being
the Republican candidate, Lincoln once again was running against Democrat
Stephen Douglas (Illinois), but now for president. On February 27, 1860
Lincoln spoke in New York City and told the people in the audience that
slavery needs to be left where it already exists and cant spread to other

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territories. He also addressed that everyone needs to take a stand on their

position on slavery and that theres no middle ground (Roberts, 41). This
had a huge impact on many people both in the North and the South. The
North saw Abraham was against slavery, where the South saw that he would
fight against slavery. Therefore, they refused to vote for him for president.
November 6, 1860 between 4 different candidates, Stephan Douglas,
Abraham Lincoln, John Bell, and John Breckinridge, Lincoln won by a long
shot. Even with having absolutely no votes from the South. The South was
outraged over Lincolns election. They feared the Black Republicans,
Northern anti-slavery and/or abolitionists, would begin to enforce getting rid
of slavery. One Southerner expressed that the fundamental idea that
underlines the whole movement of his nomination and canvass and his
election. It is the declaration of unceasing war against slavery as an
institution (Roberts, 51).
A few months after Abraham Lincoln was elected, South Carolina
seceded from the Union. This came as a shock from the North and a cheer
from the South. South Carolinas reason for leaving was fear that another
John Brown raid would happen now that Lincoln is president. Many
Northerners were outraged with South Carolina for leaving the union because
this gave the South the ability to keep their slavery laws, whereas the North
wanted them gone. They called for troops to be sent to force them back into
joining the Union. When the South heard this threat they grew even angrier

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with the North. They grew so angry that by January 1861 the Deep South
states, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, and Louisiana, also seceded from the
Union. They then elected Jefferson Davis as their president and called
themselves the Confederacy.
The New Year came and the division of North and South became
worse. Finally, on March 4, 1861 Lincoln gave his inaugural speech as
president. He expressed how he wouldnt attack slavery, but would only do
what needs to be done to preserve the Union. This was his main goal. Many
Republicans and abolitionists didnt like that Lincoln wasnt going to fight
against slavery. Lincoln did send troops to resupply the last of the Union forts
in the South, Fort Sumter, South Carolina; which the South surrounded.
Lincoln had hoped to carry this out peacefully. A hopeful and peaceful effort
started a war that he or any president thought would never happen. On April
12, 1861 at 4:30 am, a single shot sounded in the air. Then the shots of
gunfire and cannons from both sides began. A war that the United States
would never forget, our Civil War had begun.
This war would last four bloody years and effects would change both
the North and the South forever. Abraham Lincoln was strongly affected by
the war. During the first years of the war, Lincoln stayed by his goal of
wanting the preserve the Union. Many others, like the abolitionists and antislavery supporters, made the war look like it had began because of the
slavery issue. Lincoln was against slavery but he feared losing more states to

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the Confederacy, especially the Border States, who would leave the Union if
he claimed this war was to get rid of slavery.
Even with Lincoln wanting to preserve the Union, the abolitionists
pressured Lincoln into believing that the war was all about slavery. And by
preserving the Union this wouldnt happen unless they ended slavery. William
Lloyd Garrison, an abolitionist journalist who wrote The Liberator, taught
patience to those that read his paper and not to pressure the president, yet
Wendell Phillip, another abolitionist, attacked Lincoln that this war was
actually to end slavery.
Another pressure Lincoln was getting reports that the slaves from the
South believed that this war was being fought for them. One reported
incident, three slaves escaped their owner and ran to the Union armies, in
hopes to join them. The army during that time didnt know what to do with
runaway slaves. So some Union military commanders made their own
decisions what to do with these runaway slaves. General Henry Halleck
refused to allow runaways to enter his camp; General William T. Sherman
permitted it but also allowed their masters to look for them if they swore an
oath to the union (Roberts, 61-62). As the war raged on, the amount of
casualties increased and the idea to arm slaves grew. Lincoln didnt want to
arm the former slaves or black men because he didnt want to make the
Border States angry. He was in continual fear that the Border States would

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secede from the Union and go to the South. His fear would change later that
year.
The political leaders of the Confederacy started to send for
reinforcements. The South was already using British ports to transport their
slaves from Africa and tried to gain international support from them.
Representatives were sent to Britain and other European countries in the
hopes of gaining this support.
With the Confederacy seeking international help, Congress became
worried. If the Confederacy gained European support they would gain a clear
advantage over the Union. They in turn sent representatives in the hope of
convincing Britain not to help them because the South still supported slavery
where Great Britain had abolished it in 1833. While hoping to change
Britains mind, the minds of Congress and Lincoln started to change on what
was the real purpose of the war. This was the war that was fought to end
slavery. Congress, towards the end of 1861, was split on the slavery issue.
Finally, on March 6, 1862 Lincoln proposed to Congress that the
Confederate states would get financial aid if they gradually abolished
slavery (Roberts, 60). This resolution was passed in April, yet Congress
passed a stricter legislature to the army, that they would forbid any army
officers to send back runaway slaves to their masters. This helped the Union
commanders to know how to handle the runaway slaves.

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Lincolns constant fear of losing the Border States with the slavery
issue also changed. On July 12, 1862, they joined the Union. They were still
considered the Border States and allowed to still own their slaves.
Congress and Lincolns idea of the war officially revolved around
slavery and together they started to pass new resolutions to end slavery.
This greatly pleased the abolitionists but made the South even angrier. In
April 1862, Congress passed the abolishment of slavery in Washington D.C.
Lincoln proposed this resolution back in 1849, when he passed the countrys
largest slave trade area in Washington D.C. called the Franklin & Armfield. At
that time, Congress failed to accept the resolution. Now with the change of
mind of the cause of the war and abolishing slavery in Washington D.C., this
surely must have pleased Lincoln that his ideas were passing through
Congress. Congress suggested that those slaves who are freed should be
sent to Haiti or back to Africa, mostly to Liberia. The South began to fear that
the North would come and take their slaves away. In their response, South
Carolina moved all their slaves to Texas, in hopes to keep them safe from the
North.
During this time the Confederacy were close to getting the European
countries to support them. The only way to stop them from succeeding was
the presidents idea of the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln wanted this
proclamation to be like what Thomas Jefferson said in the Declaration of
Independence, all men equal, even without abilities, still a man. Lincoln

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said in a meeting, We must free the slaves or be ourselves subdues

(Roberts, 67). This was Lincoln publicly speaking that slavery was now the
main focus of the war. Secretary of State William H. Seward advised Lincoln
not to issue the proclamation until after a big union victory, because he saw
this as the last measure of an exhausted government, a cry for help, our
last shriek, on the retreat (Roberts, 67). At this time in the war, the Union
was losing battles and many men with those battles.
Finally, after the very bloody Battle of Antietam, Lincoln signed the
Emancipation Proclamation which all the slaves from the Confederate States
are free, however the Emancipation Proclamation did not apply to the Border
States; they were allowed to keep their slaves. The proclamation was a
formidable weapon against the South; they lost the support from the other
European countries, due to still supporting wanting to keep their slaves.
Having the Emancipation Proclamation come into effect by January 1, 1863;
Lincolns began to form another idea in his mind. He hoped to propose a
constitutional amendment of ending slavery completely by January of 1900.
The effects of this proclamation did change the war dramatically. The
South fought harder to keep their slaves, yet when the slaves heard the
news of the Emancipation Proclamation, many of thousands of them ran
away from their slave owners. Most of them ran to join the Union army. This
was the first time since the civil war began that blacks were allowed into the
army, before they were only allowed to be in the Navy. Over 186,000 joined

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which comprised of 166 more units formed in the Union army. With the
continued loss of men in the war, this helped to reinforce the Union army.
The most famously mentioned group of black troops was the 54th
Massachusetts infantry. On July 18, 1863 they attacked the Confederate Fort
Wagner in Charleston harbor. More than half of their men, including their
white commander Robert Shaw, died fighting in that battle. This was a slap
to the face to the Confederacy by inspiring the Union to recruit more blacks
to join the army.
The South did not appreciate how the 54th Massachusetts infantry
made them look badly. The Confederate armies made the life of any black
person; they came across, a living nightmare. Most of the Confederate
commanders killed any blacks that they captured. Commander Nathan
Bedford Forrest being known for capturing the Union fort, Fort Pillow, in
Tennessee and brutally killed over 300 of those who were defending the fort,
mostly were black. This was his statement, It is hoped that these facts will
demonstrate to the northern people that negro soldiers cannot cope with
Southerns (Roberts, 82). Despite his harsh statement, thousands of blacks
still joined the Union army.
Unfortunately, the South wasnt the only one who had issues with the
Emancipation Proclamation. In New York City, there was a large riot led by
democratic men that mostly consisted of Irish immigrants. They were angry
with the new law that everyone get drafted into the war, where the wealthy

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Republicans could pay their way out and have someone else substitute for
them. Also, they were against new freed blacks because they moved north to
get a paying job. This publicized riot made Americans aid the blacks in
helping to join the war effort. Lincoln later remarked how the emancipation
was helping the war effort for the Union.
Lincoln worked hard throughout the year dealing with the war and the
new proclamation with its repercussions. Despite the proclamation being
passed he saw that slavery needed to end everywhere. He formed another
idea that in order for slavery to be abolished it needed to say it in the
Constitution. He constructed the 13th Amendment and gave it to Congress.
The Senate passed the amendment fairly soon and gave it to the
House of Representatives. This is where the debate of passing the
amendment became a publicized issue. Most of the House was divided with
new proposed amendment. Some of the House members did not believe that
the government should be taking property without permission or reward.
On June 15th with thirteen votes short of the two-thirds majority of the House
it failed, but was not forgotten. The House debated it for the next several
months. During those months, Lincoln and his Secretary of State, William
Seward, tried everything they could to get those 13 votes to pass the
amendment. Finally after their hard work on January 31, 1865 the 13th
amendment was passed with 119 votes for, to 56 against. It was ratified by
December 6, 1865 with three-fourths of the states accepting the ratification.

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Later that year, in April 9, 1865 Robert E. Lee surrendered and the war
officially ended.
The success of passing the 13th amendment finally gave Lincoln peace
of mind. His fight to end slavery has officially come to an end. On April 14,
1865 Abraham Lincoln and his wife attended a play at the Fords Theater;
there he was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, an actor and larger
supporter of the Confederacy. His death didnt end in sorrow; his death was
to remember that he died for something great. Abraham Lincoln is a true
hero to the American people for abolishing slavery in the United States of
America.

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Work Cited

Bracken, Thomas. Abraham Lincoln. Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 1998. Print. Few
back stories of Lincoln seeing slavery the first time. The start of Lincolns
career.
My Country Tis of Thee LDS Hymns pg 339.
Foner, Eric. Give Me Liberty (Brief 4th Edition). New York: W.W. Norton and
Company, 2014. Print.
Otfinoski, Steven. Abraham Lincoln. New York: Scholastic, 2004. Print. The
beginning look of slavery in Lincolns life time. Lincolns beginning years of
slopping slavery.
Roberts, Russell. Lincoln and the Abolition of Slavery. California: Lucent Books, Inc.,
2000. Print. This book goes more in-depth of Lincoln trying to abolish slavery.
The timeline of Lincolns to abolishing slavery.