Millard Fillmore

Birth-Death: (1800 - 1874 ) Term: (1850-1853 )

Sectionalism was growing at a very fast pace during Fillmore's presidency. After the United States "bought" Mexican territories, heated debates arose about the spread of slavery to the territories. Fillmore tried to fix this problem with the Omnibus bill, however this backfired and eventually led to the Civil War.

Domestic Events of Millard Fillmore

    Milliard Fillmore took over the presidential office after Zachary Taylor died on July 9, 1850. During the election of 1848 the Whig party split on the slavery issue, as the Northerners were tired of avoiding it. The issue was being debated more and more now, especially the concept of slavery in the territories.

    The spark that set off the fire was California's desire to join the Union. The gold rush had begun in 1848 when John Sutter discovered gold and continued throughout 1849. California quickly applied for statehood. When California applied, the South was presented with a problem, there were no areas that could come in as potential sister-states. In addition, there was talk of abolishing slavery in the territories, and the Southern aristocracy was worried.

    The compromise that settled the debate, the Compromise of 1850, admitted California to the Union, and settled the issue of slavery in the newly acquired territories. It repealed the Missouri Compromise and instead divided the country along the 37th parallel. The two territories (New Mexico and Utah) that formed would not be dictated to on the issue of slavery. Instead, when the territories applied for statehood the people would decide their fate. In return, the North agreed to pass a Fugitive Slave Bill, which permitted the arrest of fugitive in the free states.

    The Compromise, and especially the Fugitive Slave Bill, angered many northerners. When Harriet Beecher Stowe published her book Uncle Tom's Cabin describing the life of a slave, the North was overwhelmed by emotion, and many people vowed to abolish slavery.