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.
By card A, who would decide on slavery in Kansas, Bo asks?
- The settlers, by popular sovereignty
- The lawmakers of the state of Missouri
- The Supreme Court
- President Lincoln
By card B, what did the Court say about Congress and the territories, Esme asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- Settlers had to vote on it each year
- Congress could not ban slavery there
- Each territory had to free its enslaved people
- 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
- Dred Scott
- Abraham Lincoln
- 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 could vote in Kansas
- They became free in the territories
- 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.
- November 6, 1860
- April 12, 1861
- December 20, 1860
- February 4, 1861
By the note, why did Lincoln's election lead states to secede, Milo asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- Lincoln had already ended slavery across the South
- Lincoln was born in South Carolina
- The Court had ruled against slavery
- They feared losing power to protect slavery
How many years passed from the Dred Scott decision to South Carolina's secession, Noah asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- 3,717 years
- 13 years
- 3 years
- 6 years
Which claim about the 1860 election is careful, Pia asks?
Use the picture in question 1.
- Lincoln won by a vote in Congress
- Lincoln won with about 40 percent of the popular vote
- Lincoln won most of the Southern states
- Lincoln won 90 percent of the popular vote
What does card B's trust line warn Ren about?
Use the picture in question 1.
- It was written by Dred Scott
- It gives the majority's view
- It is not a real Court ruling
- 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.
- Confederates fired on it, and the war began
- South Carolina rejoined the Union
- The Confederacy was first formed there
- Lincoln was elected there