The Missouri Compromise was a legislation that admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a non-slave state. Missouri applied for statehood in 1817. However, anti-slavery politicians feared upsetting the power balance between pro-slavery and anti-slavery states in the Senate. Maine wanted independence from Massachusetts and became a free state through the Missouri Compromise.
Later, James Tallmadge tried to add anti-slavery to the amendment. It provided for the emancipation of those already there when they reached the age of 25. The House of Representatives passed this amendment, but in the Senate, it failed. This ultimately divided the North and South more.
In 1819, a petition for statehood from Maine was presented to Congress. At the time, the United States of America had 22 states, half of them being free states and the other half being slave states. The Senate admitted Maine as a free state and Missouri with no slavery restrictions.
The Louisiana Territory implemented a ban on slavery north of the 36ยบ 30' latitude line. However, the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 repealed a part of the Missouri Compromise. As a result, settlers were given the authority to decide whether they wanted slavery in Kansas and Nebraska, which caused tension.
Overall, this caused a lot of uproar in the United States and many disputes between the North and South for many years regarding slavery.
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