US History › Section G · Reform and a decade of crisis › Topic G.8
John Brown and the election of 1860
In 1859 John Brown tried to start a war against slavery from a federal armoury in Virginia. A year later the election of Abraham Lincoln, carried by northern votes alone, convinced the Deep South to leave the Union.
In this topic
- A country losing its middle ground
- John Brown
- The raid on Harpers Ferry
- Trial and execution
- Worked example: Brown's last note
- Two reactions to one man
- The Democrats split
- The Republicans choose Lincoln
- The result and secession
- Worked example: reading the 1860 results
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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