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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC03678.02 |
| From Archive Folder | Documents Relating to 1850 |
| Title | Samuel Shethar to unknown discussing the Compromise of 1850 |
| Date | 22 August 1850 |
| Author | Phelps, Samuel Shethar (1793-1855) |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Docketed with blue ink. Possibly to J. H. Barrett (refer to GLC03678.01). Discusses the Compromise of 1850 (the Pearce Act) in detail. Phelps offers his opinion on the act, which related to the extension of slavery in territories acquired by the Mexican American War: "... this country is and will remain a desert and neither slavery or population will ever exist there." Phelps voted for the Compromise of 1850 because, "there was danger that the govt. itself might be dissolved if these questions about slavery were not disposed of... It was not violence that I apprehended but the... silent workings of disease in the body politic." Notes that other supporters include Webster, Winthrop, Green, Truman Smith and others (presumably Senators Daniel Webster, Robert Winthrop, and Albert Green). |
| Subjects | Compromise of 1850 Slavery African American History American West Westward Expansion Law Government and Civics Congress |
| People | Phelps, Samuel Shethar (1793-1855) Barrett, Joseph Hartwell (1824-1910) Green, Albert Collins (1792-1863) Winthrop, Robert Charles (1809-1894) Webster, Daniel (1782-1852) Smith, Truman (1791-1884) |
| Place written | Washington, D.C. |
| Theme | Slavery & Abolition; Law; Government & Politics; Westward Expansion; African Americans; The Mexican War |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1493-1859 |
| Additional Information | Phelps was a Senator from Vermont 1839-1854. Barrett, from Ludlow, Vermont, was a lawyer, teacher, and the editor of several newspapers. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859 |
| Related documents | Samuel Shethar to J. H. Barrett Relates that an article by E. D. Barber in the "Brandon Post" provided misinformation regarding the Clayton Bill of 1848 |
| Transcript | Show/hide |