Town Hall

Slavery in the south up until 1865 was the main topic of interest, as most wealthy white men bought, sold and owned slaves as property. The northern states were against slavery. Some big names of men in the South were Henry Clay and John Hammond. They all owned slaves and a plantation, with Henry owning around 60 and John Hammond owning around 300 slaves on his own plantation. Everybody in the south believes that it was white power over the backs, and legally they were allowed to own them and force them to do labor in critical conditions. Although nowadays when you think about how messed up it sounds, it used to be the normal thing. 

People like Alexis De Tocqueville and Frederick Douglass played important roles in the north. They were both anti-slavery. De Tocqueville believed that whites should hold power over blacks, but not in the way that is enforced. He believed that it was messed up for whites to own blacks and order them around and have them do labor for them. He wrote a book on the culture in America, and he tried to ban slavery in French Colonies. Frederick Douglass was a former slave in Maryland, and when he escaped he became one of the most notable activists of the era. His writings inspired many to jump to the anti-slavery boat. Douglass joined several anti-slavery organizations in Massachusets and regularly went to abolitionist meetings. Everybody had their different views on slavery back in the 1800’s, and you can not judge how things used to be currently because they were the laws back then, and you do not know what everytone thought. 

York Town Hall