In the year 1803, the Louisiana Purchase led to American unity until 1819. However the American Westward Expansion era was a time of uncertainty and chaos. During the years 1800-1850 this vision of unity was lost and disunity set in.
Many events impacted westward expansion, one of which was the Missouri Compromise. In 1818, Missouri petitioned Congress for permission to enter the Union as a slave state. The major problem was it would upset the balance of the equal 11 to 11 free and slave states. In 1819, New York Representative James Tallmadge proposed an amendment to ban slavery in Missouri even though there were numerous slaves living there. …
