The road to the Civil War: compromises that failed and the election of 1860
Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet
Circle the best answer.
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Card A (May 30, 1854): "The Kansas-Nebraska Act". Who made it: Congress, from a bill by Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois. For whom: settlers and the nation. Why: to organize the Kansas and Nebraska territories. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Settlers in Kansas and Nebraska will decide by popular sovereignty whether slavery is legal. The act repeals the Missouri Compromise line. What it changed for people: Land closed to slavery since 1820 was opened to it, and the conflict over Kansas turned violent, earning the name Bleeding Kansas. How far can I trust it? For: It is the act itself, kept by the National Archives. Against: An act cannot show how settlers on each side felt. Card B (March 6, 1857): "Dred Scott v. Sandford". Who made it: the Supreme Court; Chief Justice Roger B. Taney read the majority opinion. For whom: the nation and its courts. Why: to decide whether Dred Scott and his family were free. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Court says that enslaved people are not citizens and cannot expect protection from the federal courts, and that Congress has no authority to ban slavery from a federal territory. What it changed for people: The Scott family's claim to freedom was turned down. The 13th and 14th Amendments later overturned the ruling. How far can I trust it? For: It is the Court's own judgment, kept by the National Archives. Against: It gives the majority's view; many legal scholars call it the worst decision the Court ever made. Below the strip: Southern states, whose economies depended on slavery, feared that the Union's balance of power would tip to the North.
Why did the Kansas-Nebraska Act anger people against slavery's spread, Ari asks?
- It made Kansas a free state at once
- It ended the Fugitive Slave Act
- It repealed the Missouri Compromise line
- It set Dred Scott and his whole family free
By card A, who would decide on slavery in Kansas, Bo asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- The Supreme Court
- President Lincoln
- The settlers, by popular sovereignty
- The lawmakers of the state of Missouri
By card B, what did the Court say about Congress and the territories, Esme asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- Each territory had to free its enslaved people
- Congress could not ban slavery there
- Settlers had to vote on it each year
- Congress had to ban slavery there
Who read the majority opinion on card B, Jun asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois
- Abraham Lincoln
- Dred Scott
- Chief Justice Roger B. Taney
By card B, what did the Court say about enslaved people, Kira asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- They became free in the territories
- They could vote in Kansas
- They were not citizens of the United States
- They were citizens of the state they lived in
When did South Carolina secede, by the strip, Luz asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- February 4, 1861
- November 6, 1860
- April 12, 1861
- December 20, 1860
By the note, why did Lincoln's election lead states to secede, Milo asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- They feared losing power to protect slavery
- Lincoln had already ended slavery across the South
- Lincoln was born in South Carolina
- The Court had ruled against slavery
How many years passed from the Dred Scott decision to South Carolina's secession, Noah asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- 3 years
- 3,717 years
- 13 years
- 6 years
What does card B's trust line warn Ren about?
Use the picture in question 1.
- It is not a real Court ruling
- It was written by Dred Scott
- It gives the majority's view
- It was written in 1820
What happened at Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, by the strip, Tala asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- South Carolina rejoined the Union
- Lincoln was elected there
- The Confederacy was first formed there
- Confederates fired on it, and the war began