Slave states and free states facts for kids

An animation showing the free/slave status of U.S. states and territories, 1789–1861. The American Civil War began in 1861. The 13th Amendment, effective December 6, 1865, abolished slavery in the U.S.

Before 1865 in the United States, a free state was a state where slavery was against the law. A slave state was a state where slavery was legal. From 1812 to 1850, slave states wanted to keep the number of free states equal to their own. This was to maintain political power. So, new states often joined the country in pairs, one free and one slave.

Even in free states, some people were still held in slavery until the 1840s. Laws like the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 said that if an enslaved person escaped to a free state, they had to be returned. These laws caused many disagreements between the states.

Slavery was legal in all Thirteen Colonies before the American Revolution. But after the Revolution, some states began to end slavery. Pennsylvania was first in 1780. By the early 1800s, all Northern states had started to end slavery, often gradually. Vermont banned slavery in 1777, even before it became a state.

Slavery caused deep divisions in the United States. It was a big problem when the U.S. Constitution was written in 1787. Later, events like the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and the Compromise of 1850 showed these tensions. Slavery was the main reason for the American Civil War in 1861.

Just before the Civil War, there were 19 free states and 15 slave states. Kansas became a free state after a long, violent struggle. During the war, slavery ended in many places. Finally, the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed in December 1865, made slavery illegal everywhere in the U.S.

The Start of Free and Slave States

Slavery in the Colonies

During the American Revolution (1775–1783), some colonies began to end slavery. The U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1789, let each state decide on slavery.

In the early years of the United States, a clear difference between North and South appeared.

Slavery was a legal practice in all Thirteen Colonies. It began in 1619 when enslaved Africans arrived in Virginia. Most enslaved people were Africans brought to America through the Atlantic slave trade.

During the American Revolution, many people started to question slavery. The Declaration of Independence spoke of equality. This made the idea of slavery seem wrong to many. Some Black Americans fought for freedom during the war. Others joined the British, who offered them freedom.

Early Efforts to End Slavery

In the 1770s, enslaved Black people in New England asked their governments for freedom. Several Northern states began to end slavery. Pennsylvania did so in 1780. New Hampshire and Massachusetts followed in 1783. Connecticut and Rhode Island acted in 1784. Vermont banned slavery in 1777, before it became a state.

By 1804, all Northern states had either ended slavery or planned to do so gradually. This meant some people remained enslaved for many more years. In the South, new states like Kentucky (1792) and Tennessee (1796) allowed slavery. By 1804, there were eight slave states and eight free states. The Mason-Dixon line and the Ohio River became a dividing line between them.

Slavery and the U.S. Constitution

When the U.S. Constitution was written in 1787, slavery was a big debate. To reach an agreement, the Constitution mentioned slavery without using the word "slave." For example, the Fugitive Slave Clause referred to "Persons held to Service or Labor." This meant enslaved people who escaped had to be returned.

Another compromise allowed Congress to ban the international slave trade after 20 years. This ban took effect in 1808. However, it led to a growth in the domestic slave trade within the U.S. This trade remained legal until 1865.

The Missouri Compromise of 1820 created a line to divide future slave and free territories.

The Three-fifths Compromise was another agreement. It said that 60% of the enslaved population would count towards a state's population. This number was used to decide how many representatives a state would have in Congress. Slave states wanted to count all enslaved people. Northern states argued they should not count at all, as they were not considered citizens.

New Territories and Growing Conflict

Expanding Westward

When Arkansas became a state in 1836, there were 13 slave states. Michigan's statehood in 1837 kept the balance between slave and free states.

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 banned slavery in the Northwest Territory. This area was north of the Ohio River. Six free states were created from this territory: Ohio (1803), Indiana (1816), Illinois (1818), Michigan (1837), Wisconsin (1848), and Minnesota (1858).

By 1815, the country was split. Half the states had ended slavery or were ending it. The other half, mostly in the South, wanted to keep slavery.

By 1845, Texas and Florida joined as slave states. This made slave states outnumber free states until Iowa joined as a free state in 1846.

Politicians worried about the balance of power in the Senate. Each state had two senators. If there were equal numbers of free and slave states, the Senate was evenly split. This allowed slave states to block laws they didn't like. As free states grew in population, they gained more power in the House. So, keeping the Senate balanced became very important to slave states. New states were often admitted in pairs to maintain this balance.

The Missouri Compromise

The question of whether Missouri should be a slave state caused a big argument. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 solved this for a time. It drew a line across the Louisiana Purchase territory. North of this line, new states would be free states. South of the line, they would be slave states. As part of this deal, Maine joined as a free state in 1821.

Texas and the Mexican Cession

When Texas joined the U.S. as a slave state in 1845, it caused more conflict. The U.S. also gained vast new lands from Mexico in 1848 after the Mexican–American War. These new territories, like California, brought up the slavery debate again.

As part of the Compromise of 1850, California became a free state. This upset the balance in the Senate. To try and keep some balance, California had to send one senator who supported slavery and one who opposed it.

The Fight for Kansas

By 1858, there were 17 free states, including California (1850) and Minnesota (1858). They outnumbered the 15 slave states.

In 1854, the Kansas–Nebraska Act changed the rules. It allowed settlers in new territories to vote on whether to allow slavery. This idea was called "popular sovereignty." In Kansas, people who supported slavery and those who opposed it rushed in to vote. This led to violent clashes known as "Bleeding Kansas."

People who wanted Kansas to be a free state were called Free-Staters. They fought against pro-slavery groups. The violence grew throughout the 1850s. Eventually, the North stopped Kansas from becoming a slave state. When Southern members of Congress left in 1861, Kansas was quickly admitted as a free state.

The admission of Minnesota in 1858 and Oregon in 1859 as free states further tipped the balance in the Senate.

Slave and Free State Pairs

The table below shows how slave and free states were often admitted in pairs to keep the balance in the Senate.

By the start of the Civil War in mid-1861, with Oregon (1859) and Kansas (1861) joining, there were 19 free states and 15 slave states.

From 1812 to 1850, keeping the number of slave and free states equal in the Senate was very important. States were often admitted in pairs:

California joined as a free state in 1850 without a matching slave state. However, some agreements were made to please the slave states. Three more free states joined just before the Civil War, ending the Senate balance.

The Civil War and the End of Slavery

Division of states during the Civil War. Blue states were part of the Union. Light blue states were border states that allowed slavery but stayed in the Union. Red states formed the Confederacy.

The American Civil War (1861–1865) eventually ended slavery. Eleven slave states left the U.S. to form the Confederacy. Four slave states—Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri—remained loyal to the Union. These were called border states.

In 1863, West Virginia was created from parts of Virginia that stayed with the Union. It joined as a state committed to ending slavery gradually. Nevada, a free state, joined in 1864.

Special Cases of Slavery

West Virginia's Path to Freedom

During the Civil War, a Union-loyal government in Virginia wanted to create a new state. This new state would be called West Virginia. The issue of slavery caused delays. Senator Charles Sumner did not want a new slave state. Senator Benjamin Wade supported statehood if it included a plan for gradual emancipation.

A compromise, known as the Willey Amendment, was added to the state's constitution. It planned for slavery to end gradually. President Lincoln signed the bill on December 31, 1862. Voters in West Virginia approved this plan in March 1863.

On January 1, 1863, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This declared enslaved people in Confederate states to be free. It did not apply to the border states or Union-controlled areas. West Virginia became the 35th state on June 20, 1863. It was the last slave state admitted to the Union. In February 1865, West Virginia's legislature completely abolished slavery. They also approved the 13th Amendment. Template:Abolition of slavery in the United States

Slavery in Washington D.C.

The District of Columbia was formed from land given by Maryland and Virginia, both slave states. The slave trade there was banned by the Compromise of 1850. To keep their slave-trading businesses, a part of D.C. called Alexandria County rejoined Virginia in 1847. Slavery remained legal in D.C. until 1862. Congress passed the DC Compensated Emancipation Act that year, ending slavery there.

Utah Territory and Forced Labor

Utah Territory legalized slavery in 1852, even though it was not yet a state. Brigham Young and his group of Mormon pioneers arrived in Utah in 1847. They allowed slavery, ignoring Mexico's ban on it. In 1862, President Lincoln signed a law ending slavery in Utah and all other U.S. territories.

California and Native American Labor

California's state constitution banned slavery. However, an 1850 law allowed the forced labor of Native Californians. This law permitted Native American children to be "apprenticed" to white settlers. It also punished Native Americans who were homeless by forcing them to work. Between 10,000 and 27,000 Native Americans, including many children, were forced into labor. In April 1863, California ended all forms of legal forced labor for Native Americans.

The Final End of Slavery

At the start of the Civil War, 15 of the 34 U.S. states allowed slavery. Eleven of these states formed the Confederacy. The four border states (Maryland, Missouri, Delaware, and Kentucky) stayed with the Union.

The U.S. Congress became strongly against slavery after Southern members left in 1861. In 1862, Congress abolished slavery in the District of Columbia.

Freedom for enslaved people in the South usually came as the Union army advanced. The Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 declared enslaved people in Confederate areas free. But they only truly gained freedom when Union forces reached their location.

West Virginia ended slavery completely in February 1865. The Unionist government of Virginia also voted to end slavery in March 1864. Arkansas and Louisiana abolished slavery through new state constitutions in 1864. Maryland and Missouri ended slavery in late 1864 and early 1865. Tennessee abolished slavery in February 1865.

Slavery legally continued in Delaware, Kentucky, and New Jersey until December 18, 1865. On that date, the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified. This amendment abolished slavery throughout the entire United States, except as punishment for a crime. This finally ended the difference between slave and free states.

See also

In Spanish: Estados libres y estados esclavistas para niños

• Border states (American Civil War)
• Golden Circle (proposed country)
• Quilombo
• Slavery in the colonial United States
• Slavery in the United States
• Wilmot Proviso
• History of slavery in the United States by state