North vs South

1850
Compromise of 1850

1854
Kansas-Nebraska Act

1860
Border states
Underground Railroad
Birth of the Confederacy
Balance of Free vs Slave states, 1848 map

  Maintaining Balance
As California is poised to become the next new state, the era during which Congressional representation remained balanced between northern and southern states is about to end. The old 1820 Missouri Compromise, marking territory where slavery will be allowed (ORANGE dashed line), has become obsolete. None of the western land is suitable for cotton, so slavery may have nowhere left to expand.

Slave density,Underground Railroad, 1850 map

  Runaway Slaves
The Abolitionist Movement in the North is slowly getting organized, with many northern families allowing runaway slaves to cross their land on the way to freedom in Canada. The network of such escape routes blankets the northern states, and becomes known as the 'Underground Railroad' (YELLOW lines). Meanwhile, southern planters are transferring slaves from worn-out tobacco plantations in Virginia, to more profitable new cotton plantations in the Deep South (ORANGE arrows and RED lines).


Kansas-Nebraska Act, 1854 map

  The Balance is Gone
The 1850 Compromise admits California to the Union as a free state, but allows settlers to vote for slavery anywhere in the territory just acquired from Mexico. In addition, Northerners are required to help Southerners capture runaway slaves, and return them to the South. This causes an uproar leading to a new compromise, just four years later, shown above. Slavery will be allowed in the newly-created Kansas-Nebraska Territory wherever settlers vote for it. Chaotic conflict immediately erupts in 'Bleeding Kansas.' 


New states destroy the balance, 1859 map

  Tipping Point
By now, prospects for extending slavery into new states have grown dim, indeed. Two new free states have been admitted to the Union, but no new slave states. In the remaining territories, only the area which will become Kansas has any prospect of adopting slavery. It's now inevitable that southern states will soon lose their control of Congress, and perhaps even the White House. If anti-slavery candidate Abraham Lincoln is elected in 1860, it will be GAME OVER for the South.


Plantation density, Border States, 1860 map

  Border States
Battle lines are now being drawn for a possible North-South showdown. This will pit plantation-owners, who absolutely NEED slavery, against most other Americans.  The WHITE highlights above indicate the density of plantations. LIGHT areas have the most, while DARK areas have the least. People in the darker states don't actually own many staves, but share a basically southern ancestry. The YELLOW outline marks 'border states,' where people are unsure about which side to favor.


Lincoln election, Confederacy born, 1860 map

  The Last Straw
As soon as Lincoln is elected, all the big cotton-producing states join South Carolina in withdrawing from the Union (called 'secession'). They create an independent 'Confederacy' (in GRAY), but there is no declaration of war. Slave-owners just want to be left alone, to manage their own affairs without meddling by northern do-gooders. With so much uncertainty, however, many states in the middle haven't yet chosen sides. Everyone is waiting to see what Lincoln will do when he takes office.