Reg Ankrom's Books

Stephen A. Douglas, Western Man

The Early Years in Congress, 1844-1850

By: Reg Ankrom

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Stephen A. Douglas, Western Man

The Early Years in Congress, 1844-1850

By: Reg Ankrom

It didn't take long for freshman Congressman Stephen A. Douglas to see the truth of Senator Thomas Hart Benton's warning: slavery attached itself to every measure that came before the U.S. Congress. Douglas wanted to expand the nation into an ocean-bound republic. Yet slavery and the violent conflicts it stirred always interfered, as it did in 1844 with his first bill to organize Nebraska. In 1848, when America acquired 550,000 square miles after the Mexican War, the fight began over whether the territory would be free or slave. Henry Clay, a slave owner who favored gradual emancipation, packaged territorial bills from Douglas's committee with four others. But Clay's "Omnibus Bill" failed. Exhausted, he left the Senate, leaving Douglas in control. Within two weeks, Douglas won passage of all eight bills, and President Millard Fillmore signed the Compromise of 1850. It was Douglas's greatest legislative achievement. This book, a sequel to the author's Stephen A. Douglas: The Political Apprenticeship, 1833-1843, fully details Douglas's early congressional career. The text chronicles how Douglas moved the issue of slavery from Congress to the ballot box.

Average ratings

N/A

Write a review

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

380

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

1476673764

ISBN 13

9781476673769

Stephen A. Douglas

The Political Apprenticeship, 1833-1843

By: Reg Ankrom

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Stephen A. Douglas

The Political Apprenticeship, 1833-1843

By: Reg Ankrom

When newly elected Illinois State Representative Abraham Lincoln first saw 5'4" Stephen A. Douglas, he sized him up as "the least man I ever saw." With the introduction of Douglas's first bill in 1834, Lincoln soon thought differently. The General Assembly not only passed the bill, it appointed the 21-year-old Douglas State's Attorney of Illinois' largest judicial district, replacing John J. Hardin, one of Lincoln's most powerful political allies. It was the first of many Douglas-Lincoln contests in the decade ahead. Struggles over banking, internal improvements, party organizations, the seat of government and slavery--even romantic rivalry--put them on opposing sides long before the 1860 presidential election. These battles were Douglas's political apprenticeship and he would use what he learned to obstruct Lincoln--his friend and nemesis--while becoming the most powerful Democrat in the nation.

Average ratings

N/A