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Congress Debates the Fate of the Nation: Analyzing The Wilmot Proviso & President Polk’s 1848 Map Center for Legislative Archives National Archives and Records Administration www.archives.gov/legislative Worksheet 2: Answer Key (Individual answers might vary) 1. What did the Wilmot Proviso say about slavery in the newly acquired Western territories? There could be no slavery or involuntary servitude in any territory gained by treaty from Mexico. 2. List three ways in which the Wilmot Proviso would have spurred unity and three ways it would have spurred division in America. Ways of Spurring Union Ways of Spurring Division Ended dispute over the Western territory acquired from Mexico Driven a “wedge” between Northern and Southern members of the Whig and Democratic Parties Removed the issue of the extension of slavery from politics Elevated slavery to a national political issue Preserved the parties as national institutions Strengthened the Free Soil party in the North 3. Write a hypothesis about whether the Wilmot Proviso would have primarily united or divided the nation and why. By elevating slavery to a national issue, and drawing a line between Northern and Southern members of both political parties, the Wilmot Proviso primarily divided the nation.

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CongressDebatestheFateoftheNation:AnalyzingTheWilmotProviso&PresidentPolk’s1848Map

CenterforLegislativeArchivesNationalArchivesandRecordsAdministration

www.archives.gov/legislative

Worksheet2:AnswerKey

(Individualanswersmightvary)

1. WhatdidtheWilmotProvisosayaboutslaveryinthenewlyacquiredWesternterritories?

TherecouldbenoslaveryorinvoluntaryservitudeinanyterritorygainedbytreatyfromMexico.

2. ListthreewaysinwhichtheWilmotProvisowouldhavespurredunityandthreewaysitwouldhavespurreddivisioninAmerica.

WaysofSpurringUnion WaysofSpurringDivisionEndeddisputeovertheWesternterritoryacquiredfromMexico

Drivena“wedge”betweenNorthernandSouthernmembersoftheWhigandDemocratic

PartiesRemovedtheissueoftheextensionof

slaveryfrompoliticsElevatedslaverytoanational

politicalissuePreservedthepartiesasnational

institutionsStrengthenedtheFreeSoilpartyin

theNorth

3. WriteahypothesisaboutwhethertheWilmotProvisowouldhaveprimarilyunitedordividedthenationandwhy.

Byelevatingslaverytoanationalissue,anddrawingalinebetweenNorthernandSouthernmembersofbothpoliticalparties,theWilmotProvisoprimarilydividedthenation.

CongressDebatestheFateoftheNation:AnalyzingTheWilmotProviso&PresidentPolk’s1848Map

CenterforLegislativeArchivesNationalArchivesandRecordsAdministration

www.archives.gov/legislative

Worksheet3:AnswerKey

Directions:Outline and labelthefollowingareasonthismap:a.theFreeStatesin1848,b.theSlaveStatesin1848,c.theNorthwestTerritory,d. IndianTerritory,e.the36°30’lineoflatitude,f.theOregonTerritory,g.theareaofthecountryaffectedbytheWilmotProviso. DrawinformationrequiredfromthePolkMapfacsimile.

CongressDebatestheFateoftheNation:AnalyzingTheWilmotProviso&PresidentPolk’s1848Map

CenterforLegislativeArchivesNationalArchivesandRecordsAdministration

www.archives.gov/legislative

Worksheet5:AnswerKey(Individualanswersmightvary)

1. ListfivesignificantdifferencesbetweenPresidentPolk’s1848mapandamapofthe

UnitedStatestoday.

1. Californiaismuchbigger–includingseveralotherstates2. Texasismuchbigger3. NewMexicoissmaller4. TheMexicanborderisfurthernorth5. OregonincludesthestatesofWashingtonandIdaho

2. ListfourexamplesofsignificanttypesofinformationmissingfromthePolkmap.

e.g.,informationaboutpopulation)1. Informationabouttheeconomy2. Informationabouttransportation(railroadsandcanals)3. Informationaboutagriculturalproduction4. Informationaboutclimateandweather

3. Writeaone-sentencestatementsummarizingtheargumentPresidentPolk’smapmadeaboutdividingtheWest.

MakingacompromiseaboutslaverybyextendingtheMissouriCompromiseline(36°30’)tothePacificwilldividethenewlyacquiredterritoryinawaythatcouldbeacceptabletoboththeNorthandSouth.

4. DirecteachgroupofstudentstowriteahypothesisonWorksheet3aboutwhetherthesolutionofferedbythePolkMapwouldhaveprimarilyunitedordividedthenationandwhy.Answerswillvary:ThePolksolutionmighthaveunitedNorthandSouthinacompromise,exceptthattheWilmotProvisohaddividedthem.AcceptingPolk’scompromisewouldhaverequiredrepresentativesofbothregionstobackoffpointsmadeinresponsetoWilmot–theNorthtoacceptslaveryintheWesternterritory,andtheSouthtoacceptlimitsonslaveryintheWesternterritory.

CongressDebatestheFateoftheNation:AnalyzingTheWilmotProviso&PresidentPolk’s1848Map

CenterforLegislativeArchivesNationalArchivesandRecordsAdministration

www.archives.gov/legislative

Worksheet6:Answer Key

Directions:UseinformationfromthetablesonPresidentPolk’smaptocreateandcolorthreecontrastingbargraphs.Useadifferentcolorforeachareaandlabeleachentry.(Note:ThearealabeledIndianTerritoryisnotincludedinthisanalysis.)

AreaofExistingFreeandSlaveStates(includingTexas)

AreaofStateandTerritoriesDividedasProposedbytheWilmotProviso

AreaofStatesandTerritoriesasProposedbyPresidentPolk'sMap

(Californiadividedat36°30’)SqMi2,200,0002,100,000 994,4352,000,000 N.W. 994,4351,900,000 Territory N.W.1,800,000 Territory1,700,0001,600,0001,500,0001,400,0001,300,0001,200,000 526,0781,100,000 California 204,3831,000,000 321,695 S. California900,000 325,530 325,530 N. California 325,530800,000 Texas Texas Texas700,000 341,463 341,463600,000 610,798 Oregon 610,798 Oregon 610,798500,000 SlaveStates SlaveStates SlaveStates400,000 454,340 454,340 454,340300,000 FreeStates FreeStates FreeStates200,000100,000

Free Slave Free Slave Free Slave