Slave states and free states

Slave states and free states

In the United States before 1865, a free state was a state where slavery and the internal or domestic slave trade were not allowed. A slave state was one where they were legal. Between 1812 and 1850, it was very important to the slave states that there were not more free states than slave states. Because of this, new states joined the country in pairs—one slave state and one free state at the same time.

By the 1700s, slavery was allowed in all of the Thirteen Colonies. But during the American Revolution, some colonies began to end slavery. Pennsylvania ended slavery in 1780, and by the end of the Revolutionary War or shortly after, about half of the states had ended slavery. However, ending slavery did not always mean that all enslaved people were immediately freed. Vermont banned slavery in 1777, before it became a state in 1791.

Slavery was a big problem in the United States. It was an important topic when the U.S. Constitution was written in 1787, and it caused big political problems like the Missouri Compromise in 1820 and the Compromise of 1850. Slavery was also a main reason for the American Civil War in 1861. Just before the Civil War, there were 19 free states and 15 slave states. The last free state to join the United States was Kansas. During the Civil War, slavery ended in some of the slave states, and the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution ended chattel slavery across the whole country.

History

Early history

Slavery was allowed in all of the Thirteen Colonies when it began in 1619. Most enslaved people were Africans brought to the Americas. Movements to end slavery started in the mid-1700s. The American Revolution brought up the idea of equality, which did not match the way Black people were treated.

By the late 1700s, several Northern states began passing laws to end slavery. By 1804, all Northern states had such laws, but some people still worked without pay for a time.

In the South, new states like Kentucky and Tennessee allowed slavery. By 1820, there were equal numbers of states that allowed slavery and those that did not.

New Territories

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 stopped slavery north of the Ohio River. This area later became the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, none of which allowed slavery.

As new states joined the United States, there was concern about keeping an even balance between states that allowed slavery and those that did not. This balance was needed to keep equal power in the Senate.

Missouri Compromise

When Missouri wanted to join the United States as a state that allowed slavery, it caused a big debate. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 decided that new states north of a certain line would not allow slavery, while states south of the line could. Maine joined as a free state at the same time.

Texas and the Mexican Cession

When Texas joined the United States in 1845, it allowed slavery. The land gained from Mexico in 1848 also caused debate about slavery. California joined as a state where slavery was not allowed in 1850.

Kansas

In 1854, new rules let people moving to Kansas decide if slavery would be allowed. This led to fights between people who wanted slavery and those who did not. Kansas eventually joined the United States as a state where slavery was not allowed in 1861.

Civil War

The American Civil War from 1861 to 1865 ended slavery. Many states that allowed slavery left the United States, but some stayed. The Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 said that enslaved people in areas controlled by the Union were free. The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed in 1865, ended slavery everywhere in the United States.

Special cases

West Virginia

West Virginia became a state during the Civil War in 1863. It agreed to end slavery gradually, and finally ended slavery completely in 1865.

Washington D.C.

The city of Washington D.C. ended the slave trade in 1850. Slavery itself ended there in 1862.

Utah Territory

Utah allowed slavery when it was a territory, but it ended in 1862 when Congress passed a law stopping slavery in all territories.

California

California’s state laws ended slavery, but Native Americans were treated unfairly and forced to work for settlers until 1863 when these laws were changed.

End of Non-Penal Slavery

The Civil War led to the end of slavery. By 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment ended slavery in the entire United States.