Question

Before the Guns: The Roads to Civil War - Part 1 - American Civil War Anniversary Series

What was the Kansas-Nebraska Act?
simple explantion

Answer 1

The Kansas-Nebraska Act was a piece of legislation passed by the U.S. Congress in 1854 that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It allowed the settlers in those territories to decide for themselves whether they would allow slavery within their borders, a concept known as "popular sovereignty." This act effectively repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which had prohibited slavery in that area, and led to increased tensions and violent conflicts between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers, often referred to as "Bleeding Kansas." The act was significant in escalating the divisions between the North and South, contributing to the onset of the American Civil War.