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Texas History
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Chapter
12
THE CIVIL WAR : 1860 – 1868
or The Northern Aggression as we Southerns like to say
Causes of the Civil War
The Civil War was fought between the
northern and southern parts of the United
States. The war had several causes. People in
these two sections argued over states’ rights.
People in the South felt that the states could
limit the power of the national government.
Those in the North did not. People in the
North and South also disagreed about slavery.
Texas was one of the states that allowed
slavery. Most enslaved people worked on
cotton plantations. Most Texans did not own
slaves. Most of those who did only had a few.
The very wealthy people who owned many
slaves had a great deal of power.
The lives of African American slaves were
hard. Most had to work in cotton fields from
sunrise to sunset. They had no control over
their own lives. The slaveholders could split
families apart. Still, the slaves built a strong
culture. Religion and music were important
parts of that culture.
A few African Americans in Texas were free.
Some of them had fought in the Texas
Revolution. Use of ‘Public Lands’ were
another issue that split states.
In the 1850s, the conflict between the North
and the South grew more tense.
In 1860, the nation broke apart.
Growing Conflict Becomes Civil War
Some people in the North wanted to end slavery because they thought it was wrong. Others
wanted to keep slavery but not let it spread to ‘new’ areas.
Most people in the South wanted to keep slavery. It was important to the economy and society of
that part of the country.
In 1854, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. It said the people in Kansas and Nebraska
could decide whether or not to have slavery. This changed an earlier law that banned slavery
from these areas. The change upset many Northerners.
Some leaders in the North formed the Republican party. Many in the South feared that the
party would move to END slavery.
In 1857, the Supreme Court made the Dred Scott decision. It said that Congress could not
outlaw slavery in territories. This decision angered Northerners.
In 1860, Republican Abraham Lincoln was elected president. No votes from Texans. Many in the
South worried that he would try to end slavery.
The people of Texas voted to SECEDE, or pull out of the United States. Governor Sam Houston
was against the idea of secession.
In early 1861, Texas and other Southern States formed the Confederate States of America.
Jefferson Davis was their President. Houston refused to take an oath to support the new
country. He was removed from office.
Texas has belonged to: Spain, France, Mexico, The Republic of Texas, The United States of
America as TEXAS, The Confederate States of America. Six Flags that have flown over Texas
Sam Houston Dies July 1863
He was buried in Huntsville, Texas
http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/Confederate_states_America.htm
Great site to view Confederate State People and events.
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William Wilberforce published his Appeal to the Religion, Justice and Humanity of the
Inhabitants of the British Empire in Behalf of the Negro Slaves in the West Indies in
early 1823. In this treatise, he claimed that the moral and spiritual condition of the
slaves stemmed directly from their slavery. He claimed that their total emancipation
was not only morally and ethically justified, but also a matter of national duty before
God. He opposed the English Merchant Ships sailing to Africa to load up people to
bring to America to SALE.
12.1 - Causes of the Civil War
Vocabulary:
states rights – the idea that states have the power to limit the power of the
federal government
secede – withdraw from the union
abolitionist – a person that wanted to end slavery
vigilantes – people who take the law into their own hands
Nicknames
Grey Backs, Rebels, and Confederates ( Southern States )
Blue Bellies, Union, and Yankees ( Northern States )
Slavery in Texas
 Slavery in Early Texas
 many settlers brought slaves with them to Texas
 growing the number one product in Texas, cotton, required many farm
workers
 slaves were a cheap source of labor to work the cotton fields
 by 1860 there were 182,000 slaves in Texas
 a very small number of African American in Texas were free
 average cost of a slave between 1850 & 1860 was $600
 $2000 if skilled such as a blacksmith
 slaveholders fed, clothed, and housed the slaves
 this costs little in comparison to the huge profits they earned from the cotton
produced
 Treatment of slaves
 the law regarded slaves as property
 some slaves were treated well since the owners depended on them for
production
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 some slaves were overworked and given barely enough food to survive
 the slaves had almost no control over their own lives
 Daily lives of slaves
 worked six days a week from sunrise to sunset
 lived in small log cabins with dirt floors
 slaveholders encouraged their slaves to marry so they would have children:
more slaves
 family ties were strong
 knew their families could be broken up at any time
 used religion and music as a source of comfort and hope
 Slave rebellions and escape
 any time slaveholders heard rumors slaves were whipped or hanged
 some slaves that were able to escape out of Texas ( about 3000) escaped to
Mexico, where slavery was illegal
 The Fight over slavery
 Southern states began to threaten to secede from the U.S. if slavery was
banned
 Abolitionists were hung or forced out of Texas if they spoke out
The Nation Splits Apart
 States’ rights
 Southern states believed that states had the right to limit the power of the
federal government
 most Southerners believed that the federal government went beyond its
power by  limiting the spread of slavery
 Northern states were in favor of a stronger federal government
 most Northerners opposed slavery
 in the South, many people feared that the loss of slavery would bankrupt the
South
 they threatened to secede (withdraw) from the Union if slavery was outlawed
 Slavery
 Southern states’ economy depended on slavery
 Northern states believed that slavery was wrong
 Kansas-Nebraska Act (1854)
 gave the people of Kansas and Nebraska the right to decide if their states
would allow slavery
 Southerners supported the act, it possible could increase the number of slave
states in the Union
 Northerners opposed this act because it had overturned the Missouri
Compromise which said these states would be ‘free’ of slavery
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 Dred Scott Case (1857)
 Dred Scott was a slave who tried to win his freedom through the courts
 this landmark Supreme Court case ruled that African Americans did not
have the rights of citizens
 the Supreme Court also ruled that since he was not a citizen, his case would
not be heard
 the decision went on to say the U.S. could not outlaw slavery in the western
territories
 The “Texas Troubles”
 by 1860 hostility between the North and South worsened
 Violence erupted
 a series of fires were set in Dallas, Denton, and Pilot Point
 abolitionists and slaves were blamed for the fires
 around 60 people were hanged (mostly slaves)
Texas Secedes
 Abraham Lincoln, a Republican, became president in 1860
 he received no votes in Texas
 Southerners feared he would make ‘changes’ to slavery
 he only won Northern States support during the 1860 election
 Petitions from around the state called for Governor Sam Houston to get Texas to
secede from the U.S.
 he refused because he wanted to keep the U.S. together
 Texans held a convention without Houston in Jan 1861
 the delegates voted 166 to 8 to secede and signed an oath to the Confederacy
 Sam Houston refused to sign the oath, so Texan Confederates removed him
from office
 on Feb 23, 1861, the people of Texas also voted to secede
 The Secession Convention Oran M. Roberts, chief justice of the Texas Supreme
 Court, called a convention to discuss Texas leaving the Union
 soon after the vote, Texas delegates helped to establish the Confederate
States of America
 Texas Joins the Confederacy
 on March 5, 1861, the Secession Convention declared Texas independent of
the United States
CAUSE
 Texas becomes a Republic
EFFECT
 Slavery grows rapidly
 Splits the North and South states
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 Kansas – Nebraska Act
 Northerners begin Republican Party
 Dred Scott case
 Angers anti – slavery groups
 Texas Troubles
 Vigilantes blame African Americans
and abolitionists for a series of fires
 Vigilantes hang dozens of people
 Secession Convention
 Leaders decide Texas should join the
Confederacy
Texas joins the Confederacy
Texas seceded from the United States in 1861. Its rationale was spelled out in
the Texas Ordinance of Secession, a document ratified by the state's Secession
Convention on February 1, by a vote of 166 to 8. The document specifies several
reasons for secession, including its solidarity with its "sister slave-holding States," the
Federal government's inability to prevent Indian attacks, slave-stealing raids, and
other border-crossing acts of banditry. It accuses Northern politicians and
abolitionists of a variety of outrages upon Texans. The bulk of the document offers a
justification of slavery and white supremacy, including this extract:
"We hold as undeniable truths that the governments of the various States, and
of the confederacy itself, were established exclusively by the white race, for
themselves and their posterity; that the African race had no agency in their
establishment; that they were rightfully held and regarded as an inferior and
dependent race, and in that condition only could their existence in this country
be rendered beneficial or tolerable.”
Texas seceded from the United States on February 1, 1861, and joined the
Confederate States of America on March 2, 1861, replacing its governor, Sam
Houston, when he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy. During
the subsequent American Civil War, Texas was most useful for supplying soldiers for
Confederate forces and in the cavalry. Texas was mainly a "supply state" for the
Confederate forces until mid-1863, when the Union capture of the Mississippi River
made large movements of men, horses or cattle impossible. Some cotton was sold in
Mexico, but most of the crop became useless because of the Federal naval blockade of
Galveston and other ports.
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11 Seceding states
Seven states seceded by March 1861:
 South Carolina (December 20, 1860),
 Florida (January 10, 1861),
 Georgia (January 19, 1861),
 Texas (February 1, 1861).
Mississippi (January 9, 1861),
Alabama (January 11, 1861),
Louisiana (January 26, 1861),
After Lincoln called for troops, four more states seceded:
 Virginia (April 17, 1861);
Arkansas (May 6, 1861),
 Tennessee (May 7, 1861).
North Carolina (May 20, 1861)
Five states had slaves but remained in the Union:
 Missouri
Kentucky West Virginia
Maryland Delaware
1.
Why did most Southerners support states’ rights?
A. they wanted the right to regulate the sale of cotton
B. they wanted each state to have its own system of government
C. they did not believe in paying federal taxes
D. they felt that individual states should decide the issue of slavery
2.
Abolitionists wanted to end _________
A. vigilante justice
B. slavery
C. states’ rights
D. the Kansas-Nebraska Act.
3.
Why did slavery take root in Texas ?
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4.
What issues began to split the nation apart ?
_________________________________________________________________________
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5.
How did Texas make the decision to secede from the United States ?
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