HST 501 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Roger B. Taney, Whitey Bulger, Free Soil Party

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: History
• Course: HST 501
• Professor: Peter Wronski

Document Summary

A quick recap of the collapse of the second party system in america: the whigs and the democrats split. The northern whigs split again into conscience whigs (anti-slavery) and cotton whigs (pro-slavery). The democratic party splits into barnburner democrats (anti-slavery) and war democrats (pro-slavery). Cotton whigs and southern whigs defect to the democratic party. Conscience whigs and barnburner democrats defect and help form the free soil party. From there you get fusion parties where the know-nothings first make their appearance. The conscience whigs, barnburner democrats and the free soil party come together in 1854 to form the republican party inaugurating the third party system in america. The above key terms are what professor wronsky considers to be the key milestones in some of the events that are leading up to the war. Dred scott decision (1857): a supreme court case and a monumental one.