On October 16, John Brown and twenty followers seize the Federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia (Now West Virginia). They are captured two days later by U.S. Marines led by Colonel Robert E. Lee.
"Bleeding Kansas," the violent conflict between pro- and anti-slavery forces begins on November 21 with the death of a free-soiler by a pro-slavery advocate. The violence will continue until 1859 and result in the death of 56 people.
The Compromise of 1850 a series of five bills, is passed on September 9. The Compromise allows California to enter the Union as a free state, gives New Mexico Territory the option of allowing or outlawing slavery, and creates a new Fugitive Slave Law.
