Contents
Kansas became a free state on January 29, 1861. This happened after the state was admitted to the Union on January 29, 1861. The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 had created the Kansas Territory, which allowed for popular sovereignty with regard to slavery.
Checkout this video:
Pre-Civil War
Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state on January 29, 1861. This event occurred just before the outbreak of the American Civil War. It is notable because it increased the number of free states in the United States and contributed to the growing divide between the slave states and the free states.
Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854
In May 1854, Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois introduced the Kansas-Nebraska bill in an effort to organizing the western territories. The act divided the Nebraska Territory along the 40th parallel and created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. Importantly, the actRepeal of Missouri Compromise. The act allowed for “popular sovereignty” which meant that the settlers in each territory would vote on whether or not to allow slavery. This essentially put the issue of slavery back up for debate and led to bloody conflict in Kansas, which became known as “Bloody Kansas.” Ultimately, this act led to the Civil War.
“Bleeding Kansas”
“Bleeding Kansas” is a term used to describe the period of violence and Civil War-like conflict in the United States prior to the actual Civil War. The name refers to the violence that occurred in the Kansas Territory as settlers fought over whether or not Kansas would be a free state or a slave state.
The violence began in 1854 when Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which allowed settlers in those territories to decide for themselves whether or not to allow slavery. This led to an influx of pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers into Kansas, and soon the territory was consumed by violence as each side fought for control.
The situation became so bad that in 1856, President Franklin Pierce even sent federal troops to quell the unrest, but they were unable to stop the fighting. Finally, in 1861, after years of bloodshed, Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state.
Civil War
The Civil War was fought from 1861-1865. It was a war between the Confederate States of America, made up of 11 southern states that seceded from the United States, and the Union states, made up of 23 northern states. The primary cause of the war was slavery and states’ rights.
Kansas in the Civil War
Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state on January 29, 1861, less than two months before the outbreak of the Civil War. Prior to that time, the territory had been embroiled in fierce battles between proslavery and antislavery factions, which came to be known as “Bleeding Kansas.”
The Civil War began on April 12, 1861, with the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in South Carolina. On May 24, a pro-Confederate mob destroyed Lawrence, Kansas, in retribution for an antislavery raid on Osceola. In response, John Brown led a group of abolitionists on a raid of the federal arsenal at Harper’s Ferry in Virginia (now West Virginia). Brown was captured and hanged for treason on December 2.
Kansas furnished approximately 18,000 men to fight for the Union army during the Civil War. The state also saw action on its own soil, particularly along the Missouri-Kansas border. In 1863, William Quantrill led a group of Confederate bushwhackers on a raid of Lawrence in which more than 150 men and boys were killed. This event became known as the “Lawrence Massacre.”
The Civil War came to an end with the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House in Virginia on April 9, 1865. Kansas was afterwards instrumental in endeavoring to heal the nation’s wounds by enacting some of the earliest civil rights legislation in the United States.
Emancipation in Kansas
The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 overturned the Missouri Compromise, which had prohibited slavery in all territories west of Arkansas and north of the 36° 30′ parallel. The new law allowed white male settlers in those territories to determine whether or not to allow slavery within their jurisdictions. This doctrine of “popular sovereignty” exacerbated tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery elements in the United States, and was one of the primary causes of the American Civil War.
In December 1860, following the election of Abraham Lincoln as President, representatives from South Carolina convened a convention in Charleston and adopted an ordinance of secession, declaring that their state had seceded from the United States. This set off a chain reaction of secession among other slaveholding states in the lower South, who subsequently formed the Confederate States of America.
Kansas became a free state on January 29, 1861, when President James Buchanan signed a bill admitting it to the Union. The admission of Kansas as a free state was one factor that led to the outbreak of the Civil War later that year.
Post-Civil War
In 1861, Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state. This came after years of struggle and conflict over the issue of slavery. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 had caused a great deal of unrest and violence, and it was not until the Civil War was coming to a close that the issue was finally settled.
Kansas Constitution of 1859
On January 29, 1861, Kansas became the 34th state of the Union. The state constitution, which had been drafted in Wyandotte (now part of Kansas City, Kansas), was ratified by a vote of 10,421 to 9,104. The new state constitution prohibited slavery and was strongly pro-Union.
In October 1864, the Missouri Legislature passed a law that would have abolished slavery in Missouri. But this law was never put into effect, and Missouri remained a slave state.
On January 11, 1865, the U.S. Congress proposed the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which would abolish slavery nationwide. This amendment was ratified by the states on December 6, 1865. So even though slavery was not abolished in Missouri until 1865, Kansas had been a free state since 1861.
Kansas Constitution of 1861
The Kansas Constitution of 1861 was drafted in Wyandotte (now Kansas City, Kansas) on July 29, 1861, and ratified by popular vote on October 4. It was declared in effect on January 29, 1862. The constitution was drafted in response to the pro-slavery Lecompton Constitution of 1858.
The 1861 constitution prohibited slavery in Kansas and was later used as a model for other state constitutions and the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The constitution was replaced by a new constitution in 1866, which granted African Americans the right to vote.
The 1861 constitution was approved by a vote of 10,421 to 527. It was declared in effect on January 29, 1862. The constitution was used as a model for other state constitutions and the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
Kansas Constitution of 1865
In January 1865, a constitutional convention convened in Wyandotte, Kansas (now part of Kansas City, Kansas), to discuss statehood for the territory. The convention produced a constitution that was ratified by the people of Kansas in October 1865 and formally adopted when Kansas was admitted as a state on January 29, 1866.
The constitution formed a state government with three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial. It also prohibited slavery and protected the civil rights of African Americans living in Kansas. The constitution was based on the U.S. Constitution and the principles of federalism, which divide power between the national and state governments.
The executive branch is headed by the governor, who is elected to a four-year term. The governor is responsible for carrying out the laws of the state and for preparing the state budget. The governor can veto legislation passed by the legislature and can call special sessions of the legislature to address pressing issues.
The legislature, called the General Assembly, is made up of two chambers: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senators serve four-year terms, while representatives serve two-year terms. The General Assembly has the power to pass laws, approve budgets, and ratify treaties.
The judicial branch is headed by the Supreme Court, which is made up of seven justices who are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. The Supreme Court has final authority on all questions of law raised in cases before it.
