How did northerners react to the Compromise of 1850?

1 Answer
Jul 9, 2016

The North was not generally pleased; the South benefited more.

Explanation:

The South:

  • Fugitive Slave Act (allowed whites to find their runaway slaves and take them to court, but technically gave power to whites to bring any black person to court, slave or not; judge always decided in favor of white plaintiff; act was clearly unfair and in favor of the South)

  • Utah & New Mexico Territories Choose For Slavery By Popular Sovereignty (gave choice to the people, created new territories which could account for the expansion of slavery; another pro for the South)

The North:

  • California Admitted As Free State (another free state to even the balance between free and slave states, a benefit for the North)

  • Slave Trade Ends In Washington D.C. (the slave trade becomes prohibited in the nation's capital, however slavery was still legal; not much of a change, but a positive change nonetheless)