Creation of the Republican Party

Dear Diary,
Today I found out about the new party in Congress. I saw a man promoting it on main street in my town. Apparently people think it is time to have a political party that is actually standing up against slavery. There have been a lot more interest in antislavery than before like with the Free Soil Party. They actually have enough people to qualify as a party. The Republican Party has attracted people who believe in antislavery from all different political parties such as Democrats, Whigs, Free-Soilers, and Know-Nothings. Know-Nothings were a political group of people who raised questions about their prejudices.  The Republicans are different then Free-Soilers because they are not just focused on the lands gained from the Mexican-American War. I am really happy that there is a political party that is speaking out how about how wrong slavery is, instead of just trying to make small fixes. The party is mainly liked by people in the north, but it attracted people from all over the United States. By now, 1856, the Republican Party is big enough to challenge the more established parties.

I also heard about a Supreme Court decision about a man named Dred Scott. Dred Scott is a slave from Missouri. He sued for his freedom because his owner had taken him to free soil but still made him work. He was taken to Illinois and the Wisconsin Territory from 1834 to 1838. The Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger B. Taney ruled that he was not free. The court decided that slaves were considered property and if the court ruled him free then they would be taking away his owners property without due process of law. They also ruled that slaves were not entitled to sue in courts. This case also made the Supreme Court rule that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional. The North did not agree with this decision against Dred Scott. There are people saying that we, the North, should secede from the Union. There are other people saying that the Supreme Court judges should be impeached. I believe it is not fair that more than half the people on the Supreme Court are southerners. Fredrick Douglass has stated that this decision will probably make the end of slavery come sooner than expected. I hope he is correct. Here is an image of a pamphlet about Dred Scott from one of the newspapers:

                                                         That's all for now Diary,
                                                               Rebecca

Dred Scott Decision. N.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2016. 
        <http://kurtfstone.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341e274553ef0133
        f56feecc970b-250wi>.

The Fail of the Kansas-Nebraska Act

Dear Diary, 
Today, Jeanette and I heard about how Congress was having another problem with what to do about slavery. Apparently, Senator Douglas has introduced a bill to set up the Nebraska Territory and the Kansas Territory. He suggested that the territory be organized by popular sovereignty. His idea was that one would be a slave state and one would be a free state even though this was not clearly stated in the bill. He thought this would be a good solution, but it would also let things stay equal in Congress. The Kansas-Nebraska Act was accepted a couple years ago, in 1854. 

Many people have been rushing to move to the new territories. The northerners and the southerners competing to win the state through popular sovereignty. By 1856, there were two governments petitioning for statehood in Kansas. There was a lot of tension between the two groups. Border Ruffians raided Lawrence, Kansas (an antislavery town). They destroyed homes, shops, and The Kansas Free State newspaper. I was even told about how the abolitionist John Brown, his family, and his friends had a midnight execution of five proslavery settlers 20 miles south of Lawrence. This started violence from both sides. The battles that are happening in Kansas have been called, "Bleeding Kansas." The act only made things worse than they already are by adding in the fighting to get what they want. Popular sovereignty was not a good idea once actually acted outside Congress. "Bleeding Kansas" has really made the split between the North and the South over slavery more noticeable. The whole problem out in Kansas would have been fixed if Senator Douglass had just written what he actually wanted in the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
Here is a photo of an poster about an anti-popular sovereignty meeting:

                                                        That's all for now Diary,
                                                         Rebecca

Popular Sovereignty Poster in Kansas. N.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2016.
         <https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com
         /736x/0e/38/75/0e3875c11c51c8b5d15f6c
         49659a4745.jpg>.

The Underground Railroad

Dear Diary,
The northerners are very upset about the changes Congress has made to the Fugitive Slave Act. Some states have even passed personal liberty laws, according to my dad. These new laws allow the states to arrest slave catchers for kidnapping. I am very pleased to know that Ohio was one of these states.

I recently overheard my father talking with one of our neighbors about the Underground Railroad. From what I understood, it is a way to sneak slaves out from their masters to the north, Canada, and  even sometimes England to free them. The Underground Railroad is apparently not an actual railroad. they use railroad terminology though to explain the network of different passages. My dad was talking about this one slave who is said to have escaped and made almost 24 trips to free slaves. He said her name is Harriet Tubman.

Uncle Tom's Cabin has just came out. I have already read the whole book. The book talks about man, Uncle Tom, who is a slave. It tells about both nice and cruel slave owners. I feel bad for what Uncle Tom had to go through. I wish there was more I could do to help the slaves in the South. Here is a photo of the book:

                                                          That's all for now Diary,
                                                                Rebecca


"Cyclopædia of Political Science, Political Economy, and the Political History of the United 
        States." Lalor, Cyclopaedia of Political Science, V.3, Entry 50, PERSONAL LIBERTY
        LAWS. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2016.
Uncle Tom's Cabin. N.d. Crisis Magazine. Web. 22 Jan. 2016. 
        <http://www.crisismagazine.com/wp-
        content/uploads/2012/09/Uncle-Toms-Cabin-Pic.jpg>.

Election of 1848 and Compromise of 1850

Dear Diary,
Today I overheard my dad telling his friends how he is worried about the election this year. He thinks that with popular sovereignty, the new territories will become slave states. From what I understand, popular sovereignty lets the territories choose whether they want to be slave or free states. I think the new territories will do what is right and choose to be free states. My dad thinks that slavery is bad, but he worries that if too many black men come to the north then he might get put out of a job. Jeanette thinks it is crazy to let black people work for a normal wage. She thinks they are below us just because they have different color skin. Daddy voted for Governor Lewis Cass today. I hope he wins because I don't like that Mr. Taylor has slaves.
                                                         That's all for now Diary,
                                                               Rebecca


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Diary,
Mr. Taylor was elected president. According to my dad, he did not win by much. I was glad to hear that the Free-Soil Party did get 10% of the votes. I think that if I could vote, I would vote for them. I really like the fact that they do not support slavery. My cousin thinks it is crazy to let the slaves go free. Here is a photo of President Taylor:

I just heard about the Compromise of 1850. Supposedly, Senator Clay came up with compromise. There are five main parts from what I understand.
1) Congress lets California enter the union as a free state.
2) New Mexico and Utah territories get to decide how they want to enter the union based off of popular sovereignty.
3) Slave trade has ended in Washington D.C., but not slavery.
4) Congres must past a stricter fugitive slave law.
5) Texas has now given up its claim to New Mexico in return for $10 million.

The new fugitive slave act that came out of the compromise has had a huge impact in the north.The new updates to the law now make it where if a citizen helps a fugitive slave, they can be fined or imprisoned. Even the people that have fought for their freedom are being taken back to be slaves again. I do not support the new law. My dad thinks that it is not right to take them back. Jeanette has been awful lately. She has been trying to get the bounty hunters to take even the free black men in our area. we have grown apart because of what is happening lately in politics. We never see eye to eye anymore.
                                                          That's all for now Diary,
                                                                Rebecca


Zachary Taylor. N.d. History. Web. 22 Jan. 2016.
      <http://cdn.history.com/sites/2/2013/12/taylor-
       color.jpg>.

About Me

I am a 15 year old girl from Ohio. My name is Rebecca Davis. I am the only girl in my family and the youngest. I have four brothers. I was born July 5th, 1833. My cousin has recently come to live with us from Mississippi. Her name is Jeanette Dunn.  We have always gotten along for the most part. Jeanette is only a couple months older than me. Her family has slaves. She thinks it is crazy that my family doesn't. My parents are Whigs. I have grown up listening to my father talk politics with his friends. My father often ask me of my own opioions on things that are happening in Congress.

This is a photo of Jeanette and me. Jeanette is in the green dress. I am in the brown dress.


















"Old Rags." Old Rags. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2016.
         <http://oldrags.tumblr.com/page/43>.