PBS
Pbs: Bleeding Kansas 1853 1861
This site details events surrounding the era known as "Bleeding Kansas" due to the conflict surrounding slavery in what is now Kansas.
Other
American Anthropological Association: 1800 1850s: Expansion of Slavery in the Us
Outlines the political events prior to the Civil War as the United States expanded its territories to include new states and conflicts arose over the issue of slavery.
US Capitol Visitor Center
U.s. Capitol Visitor Center: 1820 1861: Holding the Union Together
American history from 1820-1861 is interwoven with the history of the Capitol as it was expanded to accommodate a growing government body. A timeline of significant events in the debates over slavery, the addition of free and slave...
Digital History
Digital History: Growth of Political Factionalism and Sectionalism
Even as national feeling was rising, there was also the emergence of regionalism in politics and economic though. Read about the interests of the three major sections of the country at this time.
Digital History
Digital History: The Impending Crisis: Conclusion
A concise review of the ways the issue of slavery split the country from the Missouri Compromise to eventual secession of the southern states.
University of Oregon
Mapping History Project: Missouri Compromise: 1820
Interactive map showing free states and territories and slave states and territories before and after the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Click on the map to choose before or after and the key. Shockwave required.