1. Ch.6 Sec.2

2.  Describe how & why the Republicans
formed
 Explain why the Whigs & Know-Nothings
disbanded
 Explain the importance of the Dred Scott
Case, the Lincoln-Douglas debates, and
John Brown’s raid

3.  Republican Party
• Anti-slavery groups from the Whigs, Free-Soil, and
Democrats formed to create the Republicans
• Chose this name to link themselves to the ideals
of Thomas Jefferson
• Wanted to keep the ruling Southern class from
controlling govt, outlaw slavery in the territories
• Gained more power when the Know-Nothing Party
dissolved

4.  Election of 1856
• James Buchanan (R) vs. John Fremont (D)
• Buchanan wins, aimed to stop the growing
division between North & South
 Dred Scott Decision
• Supreme Court case involved a slave who tried to
sue for his own freedom
• The case ruled in favor of the slave owner
• Further divided the North & South politically

5.  Lecompton Constitution
• Fighting between both sides was still going on in
Kanas
• The pro-slavery govt took control and passed the
Lecompton Constitution (legalized slavery)
• A majority of Kansas citizens rose up, overturned
the Constitution, & applied as a free state
• Became a free state in 1861

6.  1858 Illinois Senate Election
• Stephen Douglas (D) vs. Abraham Lincoln (R)
• Lincoln wanted to outlaw slavery in
territories, Douglas wanted popular sovereignty
• Lincoln lost election, but gained popularity and
recognition for himself & the Republicans

7.  John Brown
• Abolitionist who favored violence to stop slavery
from spreading
• Tried to incite an insurrection against slaveholders
in the South
• Seized an arsenal at Harper’s Ferry
(Virginia), waited for slaves to come and join his
rebellion
• Was surrounded by U.S. marines (Led by Robert
E. Lee) and was captured
• Tried and executed
• Became a hero with abolitionists, a villain to

8.  How did the Republican Party come
about?
 Why did the Whigs disband?
 Why did the Know-Nothings disband?
 Explain the Dred Scott Case & its
importance
 Explain the importance of the Lincoln-
Douglas debates
 Discuss the importance of John Brown’s
raid