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Crittenden Compromise Resolutions (1860)
A package of amendments and congressional resolutions meant to appease Southern secessionists by offering legal protections for slavery.
Missouri Compromise (1820)
1820 compromise over the expansion of slavery into new territories applying for statehood
Daniel Webster, "The Constitution and the Union" Speech to the Senate, March 7, 1850
Speech delivered by Daniel Webster urging compromise between the free and slave states, 1850
Abraham Lincoln, Letter to Allen N Ford (1846)
Lincoln’s response to the charge that he openly opposed Christianity.
The Lincoln Douglas Debates (1858)
Series of eight public debates across Illinois between Senate candidates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas in 1858
Abraham Lincoln, Speech on the Repeal of the Missouri Compromise, 1856
Lincoln’s speech opposing the Kansas-Nebraska Act and reflecting on the relationship between popular government and moral principle.
Abraham Lincoln, House Divided Speech (1858)
Speech delivered by Abraham Lincoln at the Republican State Convention in Springfield, Illinois on June 16, 1858
Abraham Lincoln, Letter to Henry Pierce (1859)
1859 letter written by Abraham Lincoln honoring Thomas Jefferson
Abraham Lincoln, Second Lecture on Discoveries and Inventions (1859)
Lincoln’s 1859 lecture on the social consequences of technological developments.
Abraham Lincoln, Address before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society (1859)
Lincoln’s address discussing the connection between technology, labor, freedom, and slavery.
Abraham Lincoln, Autobiographies of 1858 through 60
Three autobiographies written by Lincoln for various purposes related to his political career.
Abraham Lincoln, Letter to Alexander Stephens (1860)
A letter to secessionist Alexander Stephens detailing Lincoln’s intentions regarding slavery once he is inaugurated President.
Abraham Lincoln, Letter to Lyman Trumbull, (1860)
One of Lincoln’s first acknowledgements that he was considering entering the race for the 1860 Republican presidential nomination.
Abraham Lincoln, Letter to George Latham (1860)
Lincoln’s letter of encouragement to his son’s friend George Latham, who was rejected from Harvard University.
Abraham Lincoln, Exchange with Grace Bedell (1860)
Lincoln’s reply to an 11-year-old girl who suggested that he grow out his beard to improve his chances of being elected.
Abraham Lincoln, Cooper Union Address (1860)
Lincoln’s speech arguing that America’s founders intended to restrict the spread of slavery.
Abraham Lincoln, First Inaugural Address (1861)
Abraham Lincoln’s first speech to the nation upon taking office, in which he addresses the crisis of southern states’ secession.
Abraham Lincoln, Fragment on the Constitution and the Union (1861)
Lincoln’s reflection on the relationship between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Abraham Lincoln, Farewell Address (1861)
Lincoln’s heartfelt remarks upon departing Illinois for Washington to be inaugurated.
Abraham Lincoln, Address in Independence Hall (1861)
Lincoln’s reflections on the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the brewing crisis over secession, delivered a few weeks before his inauguration.
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