March 14, 2007 - On the Edge of Civil War

Today's agenda:

1. Assemble puzzle pieces
2. Go over puzzle pieces
3. Ken Burns' Civil War (pg 46-47)
4. On the Edge of Civil War (pg 45)

Today we move closer to war between North and South. We reviewed five events that led the nation closer to war: the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Law (1850), the Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854), and the Dred Scott decision (1857).

We then viewed 20 minutes of Ken Burns' ten-hour documentary, The Civil War. This was an opportunity for us to review the origins of slavery, the Underground Railroad, and prominent abolitionists. Of these abolitionists, the focus of the last part of the video was John Brown. This radical abolitionist was involved in the violence of Bleeding Kansas, and then decided to take it a step further. In 1859, Brown and his followers planned a massive slave revolt, beginning in Harpers Ferry, Virginia, and sweeping all through the Cotton Kingdom.

Brown's revolt failed, and he was tried and convicted of treason against the state of Virginia. This is ONE of the TWO events in the final years leading up to the Civil War that would convince the South that it was time to leave the Union.

Next time, we learn about the OTHER event that will be the final straw for the South . . . find out next time!

RVI