Attitudes to slavery - North and South
Slavery had existed in the USA since the 17th Century.
| South | North |
| Mainly agricultural land with large plantations (farms) | Mixed economy with factories and farms |
| Plantation work done by enslaved people | Generally, work was done by paid employees |
| Many Southerners saw slavery as essential to their way of life | Many in the North wanted to see slavery abolished |
| South | Mainly agricultural land with large plantations (farms) |
|---|---|
| North | Mixed economy with factories and farms |
| South | Plantation work done by enslaved people |
|---|---|
| North | Generally, work was done by paid employees |
| South | Many Southerners saw slavery as essential to their way of life |
|---|---|
| North | Many in the North wanted to see slavery abolished |
For many years there was an uneasy alliance between the Northern free stateA state in North America which did not support slavery during the 19th century. and the Southern slave states. This was not to last for long. As more people from both the North and the South were moving west, the issue of slavery started to create problems.
- Settlers from the South wanted to move to the West and take their enslaved workers with them
- Northerners wanted to stop the spread of slavery
As new states were created, the issue of slavery threatened to pull the country apart.
In 1820 the Missouri Compromise was passed to sort out this issue.
The Missouri Compromise
By 1819, the US was made up of 22 states - evenly split between Slave States and Free States.
In November 1819, Missouri requested to become a new state, one which allowed slavery. The North wanted to block the spread of slavery. They were also concerned that an extra slave state would give the South a political advantage. The South thought new states should be free to allow slavery if they wanted. They did not want the spread of slavery to be stopped and the North to have an advantage in the US senate. It took until March 1820 for a compromise to be reached.
- Missouri was a slave state but another new state (Maine) was admitted as a free stateA state in North America which did not support slavery during the 19th century..
- in the new western territories slavery was not allowed above north of the latitude 36°30′ northA circle of latitude which was used to divide the prospective slave and free states west of the Mississippi River, with the exception of Missouri..