Andrew Caprio

History Midterm Essay

Before the time of rapid expansionism in the United States there were rising tensions between

the North and South. The North had a rapid increase in both population and manufacturing

industries. The South was limited to cotton, which was their main crop and what they valued

most. These aspects would then lead to major events in United States history. First off, the

election of James K Polk allowed expansionism in California and Oregon. Then came the

Mexican- American War which brought the United States the Mexican Cession territories.

Finally came the election of 1860, which was the final event before the Civil War broke out. All

three of these events, Polk’s Presidency, the Mexican-American War, and the election of 1860

played a role into the civil war because with expansionism came major decisions about if a state

was free or if a state was a slave state.

The election of James K. Polk was one short presidency. However, during its length the U.S. was

able to acquire both California and Oregon. This was an effect of the Gold Rush. Once he died,

Tyler came into office and was able to annex Texas. This was where the tension was noticeable.

At the time, there was not a formal, federal way to determine if a state was free or slave, so the

Kansas-Nebraska act was introduced. This act meant that territories and states were able to

decide on their own without government intervention if they were a slave or free state. An effect

of this being allowed was that the North became upset while the south liked it because they were

able to influence the people in the state.

Next came the Mexican- American War. As a result of this victory, the U.S. was able to gain

states like Colorado and Nevada. The territories gained were called the Mexican Cession
territories. To determine what a state was, the use of popular sovereignty came into practice in

the Kansas-Nebraska act. It is apparent that the Kansas-Nebraska Act completely reverses the

Missouri Compromise which was put into practice a long time ago. When this came up, the

North was even more upset than before and the thought of a Civil War became a common one to

the people in the United States.

Finally came the election of 1860. The south stated if a Republican was elected, then they would

secede from the states. Abraham Lincoln was elected, and then the South seceded and became

distant. This is one crucial part of history because it is at this moment, the Civil War was

imminent. Lincoln did a great job in office as he looked to heal the tensions between the North

and the South, but it was impossible. His goal was to keep slavery to where it was and not to

extend it as the United States was becoming larger and larger. However, that upset the south and

then the war broke out.

The Kansas-Nebraska Act has a strong connection to the Missouri Compromise because the

Kansas-Nebraska Act reverses and negates what the Missouri Compromise did. The Missouri

Compromise meant that everything above Missouri was free and everything below it and

including it was slave. The use of popular sovereignty shows that the south broke something that

was put into place years before. This negation not only shows how bad the tension was, but also

shows major disorganization in the states.