Compromise of 1850

What was the Compromise of 1850

  The Compromise of 1850 was five bills passed to help divide the land that was gained after the Mexican-American War.  It admitted California as a free state, giving Utah and New Mexico territories with the decision to be slave or free to be determined by popular sovereignty, ending the slave trade in Washington, D.C., and passing the Fugitive Slave Act.

In Favor of the Free States/North

  Admitting California as a free state was obviously in favor of the North because another state meant more representatives than the South in the House and Senate. Turning the capital free was a really big thing for the free states.  I mean like the most important city in your entire country and it is free. That's a pretty big deal.  Letting Utah and New Mexico use popular sovereignty to decide whether to

This is how the States were Divided When the Compromise of 1850 was Made

be a free state or slave state really wasn't in favor of either side, but the fact that there were far more people in the North than the South kind of tips the balance to the North.  Because the North's population is so much higher, it's more likely that those states would become free states.

In Favor of the Slave States/South

  Really, the only thing that was fully in the South's favor was the passing of the Fugitive Slave Act.  It was passed on September 18, 1850, by Congress. However, this new law was huge, absolutely amazing.  This law said that if you found an escaped slave, you had to give that slave back to its owner, and if you were caught helping an escaped slave, you would go to jail.  Most people that weren't in favor of slavery would help an escaped slave, but most of those people wouldn't risk their life for a slave and stranger.  Because of this, slaveholders wouldn't really have to worry about their slaves escaping, just this is enough to match the North's benefits.