Request a brochure
Civil War Encyclopedia
Blue and Gray Trail
Civil War in Georgia
On the Blue and Gray Trail
Civil War by state
Today in the Civil War
Battles
Images
Places
Feature Stories
Links
Search
Who we are
Kansas becomes a state
Civil War Encyclopedia >> Politics
| May 30, 1854 | President Franklin Pierce signs the Kansas-Nebraska Act into law. | Kansas |
| Bleeding Kansas | ||
| Causes of the Civil War | ||
| Kansas-Nebraska Act | ||
| Franklin Pierce | ||
| March 30, 1855 | Kansas elects its first territorial legislature. Pro-slavery Missourians cross the border into Kansas to vote against Freestate candidates | Kansas |
| July 2, 1855 | The Kansas legislature, meeting in Pawnee and controlled by pro-slave forces, expels all "Free-staters" and moves the legislature to Shawnee Mission, near the Missouri state line | Kansas |
| September 5, 1855 | Free-staters meet in Big Springs, Kansas to elect representatives to a constitutional convention in Topeka | Kansas |
| November 2, 1855 | Topeka Constitution adopted by the Free Staters | Kansas |
| December 15, 1855 | "Topeka Constitution" is ratified | |
| January 24, 1856 | Franklin Pierce rejects the Topeka Constitution because the vote did not constitute "...the body politic" | Kansas |
| Franklin Pierce | ||
| March 24, 1856 | President Franklin Pierce sends all "...documents touching the affairs of the Territory of Kansas" between the dates of January 1, 1855 and June 30, 1855 to the House of Representatives to comply with an earlier request | Kansas |
| Franklin Pierce | ||
| May 19, 1856 | Charles Sumner begins his "Crime against Kansas" speech, which concludes tomorrow | Kansas |
| Bleeding Kansas | ||
| Sumner and Brooks | ||
| Preston S. Brooks | ||
| Charles Sumner | ||
| October 5, 1857 October 6, 1857 |
Kansas free-staters win control of the legislative branch in elections | Kansas |
| December 2, 1857 | "Free-staters" take control of the Kansas legislature following their election in October | Kansas |
| December 21, 1857 | Lecompton Constitution ratification vote. Voters were not voting for the Constitution, rather they were voting for the Constitution with slavery or the Constitution without slavery. With freestaters waiting for the vote on January 4, pro-slavery factions easily carry the vote | Kansas |
| Lecompton Constitution | ||
| March 23, 1858 | Free-stater convention convenes in Leavenworth, Kansas | Kansas |
| April 3, 1858 | Leavenworth Constitution is adopted by a Free-stater constitutional convention. It is opposed by the Buchanan administration because it does not represent the people of the state | Kansas |
| James Buchanan | ||
| May 4, 1858 | James Buchanan signs the English Bill | |
| English Bill | ||
| James Buchanan | ||
| August 2, 1858 | In a straight up or down vote required by the U. S. Congress for admission, the Lecomption Constitution as modified by the English Bill is overwhelmingly defeated. It is so bad that both pro-slave and freestate factions vote against it. The state must approve a different constitution. | Kansas |
| English Bill | ||
| Lecompton Constitution | ||
| July 5, 1859 July 29, 1859 |
The 4th Constitutional Convention, Wyandotte, Kansas | Kansas |
| Bleeding Kansas | ||
| July 5, 1859 | The fourth Kansas Constitutional Convention is convened in Wyandotte, Kansas. | Kansas |
| July 29, 1859 | The Wyandotte Constitution is adopted by the convention | Kansas |
| October 4, 1859 | The Wyandotte Constitution is ratified by the state of Kansas. It abolishes slavery. | Kansas |
| January 29, 1861 | Kansas admitted to the Union | Kansas |
| Bleeding Kansas |
For more than 6 years Kansas had struggled to become a state. Four separate constitutions had been written: Topeka, Lecompton, and Leavenworth had failed to satisfy factional politic demands in the United States. Finally, in 1859 a document was drafted at Wyandotte. In the past, the Southern senators would have rejected the application, but at the start of 1861, because of their reduced number, the bill passed the Senate and was sent to Buchanan for his signature.
Links appearing on this page:
Links appearing on this page:
Civil War Encyclopedia >> Politics
Kansas becomes a state was added in 2005
Battles | Places | Events by year | Events by date | Feature Stories |
Bookstore | Links | Who We Are |