Fugitive Slave Law - Black History Part IV

After passing the Missouri Compromise, this Democratic Congress continued by enacting the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 to require Northerners to return slaves who had escaped. It developed, however, into a means for Southerners to kidnap free Black citizens and take them south.

Out of fear of being captured, many (probably more than 20,000) free Black citizens fled to Canada. The Underground Railroad reached its peak during this time, aiding both slaves and free men to find a safe place to live.

After the Fugitive Slave Law, this same Congress expanded slavery by passing the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. This Act essentially repealed the restrictions on slavery in the Missouri Compromise by allowing slavery to be introduced into parts of the territory where it was previously forbidden. Because the Kansas-Nebraska Territory was so large, it effectually pushed slavery from one coast to the other – opening the entire Louisiana Purchase to slavery.

In the end, this push to increase slave states and territory caused a split in the Democrat Party. Many hoped to reverse some of the damage by this Congress.