Kansas - Nebraska Act
- lskerlak
- Oct 3, 2018
- 1 min read
The Kansas – Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on May 30, 1854. There were several factors that proposed this law. One reason was the transcontinental railroad. The northerners had a desire for the railroad to run through the north. This act allowed people who lived in the Kansas and Nebraska territories to decide for themselves whether to allow slavery within their borders, also called popular sovereignty. The Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise, allowing slavery in the north territory of the 36 30’ latitude. This law was proposed by Stephen A. Douglas, who was Abraham Lincoln’s opponent in the debate over the Missouri Compromise. After this law was passed it infuriated the northerners resulting in them settling into Kansas with the hope to affect the outcome of the first election held there. Pro-slavery settlers carried the election but were charged with fraud by anti-slavery settlers, and the results were not accepted by them. After this, the anti-slavery settlers put on another election, but the pro slavery settlers refused to vote. The tension between the two forces-initiated violence in Kansas nicknaming the city “Bleeding Kansas”. Pro – Slavery supporter, President Franklin Pierce, sent in Federal troops to stop the violence and disperse the anti-slavery legislature. This initiated yet another election. Once again pro-slavery supporters won and were unfortunately charged with election fraud.
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