Taking a Stand in the Antebellum Era

What does it take to stand up for an idea?  Why do some people choose to take action to address a wrong, while others choose to stand by and watch?  What do primary sources reveal about how people in the Upper Valley of Vermont and New Hampshire took action to address the problem of slavery during the antebellum era?

We have assembled a set of primary source packets that provide examples of how citizens took a stand for (or against) antislavery. Some individuals participated in direct action, some supported causes they believed in by making financial contributions, some took a stand through music, others took action even though their neighbors disapproved.

Thinking Skills:  Contextualizing documents; synthesizing primary source docs to answer an EQ.

Prior Knowledge Needed: These primary sources provide insight in to how men and women in the Upper Valley participated (or didn’t participate) in reform movements during the antebellum era. An overview of issues related to anti-slavery and women’s reform would be helpful–especially the Underground Railroad, the Fugitive Slave Act (1850), The Kansas/Nebraska Act

Link to the Packet

Process for Analyzing the Documents:

Step 1: Source the document

• Who wrote the document? 
• When was it written? 
• Where was it written? 
• Why was it written? 

Step 2: Closely read the document

• Underline key words the author used 
• Summarize what the document is about 

 Step 3: Contextualize the document

• What was going on at the time that might have influenced the person or people who created the document or are described by it? 
• Can you think of any noteworthy events or trends? 

Step 4: Make a claim

• How did the individual stand up for a principle or a belief? 
• What were some challenges or risks involved in taking such a stand? 
• What choices did the individual have in choosing to take a stand? 
• What might have been some consequences and effects of their actions? 
• Why do you think the person acted the way s/he did?

The Expansion of Slavery

Understanding why the expansion of the United States is key to understanding causes of the Civil War can be difficult for students. This political map and the chart below can help.

Reynolds’s Political Map of the United States (1856)

Spiraling Questions

Descriptive Questions:

When was this map published?

What do the different colors mean?

Interpretive Questions:

What is the Missouri Compromise Line and why is it highlighted?

What could happen if the Missouri Compromise was repealed?

Analytical Questions:

Why do you think this map was published?

Expanding the Federation Chart

Spiraling Questions

Descriptive Questions:

Using the Reynold’s Map and the chart, trace with your finger the admissions of each State beginning with Kentucky in 1790. What direction does your finger travel?

What do the numbers in each box mean?

Interpretive Questions:

Why were the states admitted as sets?

Look at the newspaper notice below the chart. What does it mean to have a “free soil” platform?

Analytical Questions:

Who had more power by the 1850s? North or South?

Why would the creation of the Republican party threaten the South?

New teaching kits on abolition in Vermont

Have you visited Rokeby Museum?

Rokeby Museum is one of the best-documented Underground Railroad sites in the country and it is here in Vermont! Rowland Thomas and Rachel Gilpin Robinson were devout Quakers and radical abolitionists, and they harbored many fugitive slaves at their family home and farm during the decades of the 1830s and 1840s. Among the thousands of letters in the family's correspondence collection are several that mention fugitive slaves by name and in some detail.

Rokeby has just created two teaching kits about abolition:

Speaking Truth to Power

A new multi-media kit presents the stirring words of America’s radical abolitionists and introduces middle and high school students to their principles, tactics, and ideas. Each of the eight speeches – recorded by professional actors – opens the door on a chapter of abolitionist history. The teachers’ guide includes historical and biographical background, text of the recordings, discussion questions, student activities and worksheets, and primary source documents. The kit also includes exhibit panels, period illustrations for student investigation, and a selection of books for further reading. Excellent enrichment for Vermont and American history, speech, and civics courses. Two-week rental is $30 (you are responsible for the cost of return) if we ship the kit; $20 if you pick it up.


Frederick Douglass in Vermont

Did you know that Frederick Douglass – the greatest African American of the 19th century – toured Vermont early in his career? The kit provides newspaper reports of his 1843 speech in Ferrisburgh, a recording of the speech (read by a professional actor), questions for classroom discussion, student activities, and 15 copies of Douglass’s Narrative. Appropriate for middle and high school courses in Vermont and American history, civics, and journalism. Two-week rental is $25 (you are responsible for the cost of return) is we ship the kit; $20 if you pick it up.

For more information about the kit, contact:

ROKEBY MUSEUM
Attn: Jane Williamson, Director
4334 Route 7
Ferrisburgh, VT 05456
Phone: 802.877.3406

e-mail: rokeby@comcast.net