* This compromise admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state, maintaining the balance of power in the Senate.
* However, it also drew a line across the Louisiana Territory, prohibiting slavery north of the 36°30' parallel.
* This angered many Southerners, who felt that they were being deprived of their rights to own slaves in new territories.
The Nat Turner Rebellion of 1831
* Nat Turner, an enslaved African American, led a rebellion of enslaved people in Southampton County, Virginia.
* The rebellion resulted in the deaths of dozens of white people, and it sparked widespread fear and panic among white Southerners.
* This event further increased tensions between the North and the South, as many Northerners condemned the violence of the rebellion while many Southerners defended it as necessary to maintain control over enslaved people.
The Dred Scott Decision of 1857
* In this case, the Supreme Court ruled that enslaved people were not citizens of the United States and therefore had no legal rights.
* This decision further angered many Northerners, who saw it as a blatant attack on the rights of African Americans.
* It also led to increased calls for the abolition of slavery.
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859
* John Brown, a white abolitionist, led a raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.
* Brown's goal was to incite a slave rebellion, but his raid was quickly defeated by federal troops.
* This event further inflamed tensions between the North and the South, and it is often cited as one of the catalysts of the Civil War.