Free Soil Party

E19992

The Free Soil Party was a short-lived mid-19th-century American political party that opposed the expansion of slavery into western territories and helped lay the groundwork for the later Republican Party.


Statements (50)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States political party
defunct political party
political party
category 19th-century political party in the United States
color green
coreBelief slavery should not expand beyond existing slave states
western lands should be reserved for free white labor
country United States of America
surface form: "United States"
dissolved 1854
formedFrom Liberty Party members
anti-slavery Democrats
Whig Party
surface form: "anti-slavery Whigs"
founded 1848
headquartersLocation Buffalo
surface form: "Buffalo, New York"
historicalEra Antebellum period
historicalSignificance contributed to realignment of U.S. party system in 1850s
helped lay groundwork for Republican Party
ideology abolitionism
anti-slavery
free labor
free soil
keyPolicy opposition to expansion of slavery into western territories
support for Wilmot Proviso
support for free homesteads in the West
support for internal improvements
legislativeImpact elected several members to U.S. Congress
mergedInto Republican Party
notableConvention Buffalo convention of 1848
notableElection 1848 United States presidential election
surface form: "United States presidential election of 1848"

1852 United States presidential election
surface form: "United States presidential election of 1852"
notableMember Charles Sumner
Gerrit Smith
Henry Wilson
Joshua R. Giddings
Salmon P. Chase
opposed Compromise of 1850 provisions favoring slave interests
expansion of slavery into Mexican Cession territories
position center-left
precededBy Barnburner Democrats
Conscience Whigs
Liberty Party
presidentialCandidate John P. Hale
Martin Van Buren
regionOfSupport New England
New York
Northern United States
slogan Free Soil, Free Speech, Free Labor, and Free Men
succeededBy Republican Party
supported admission of free states from western territories
vicePresidentialCandidate Charles Francis Adams Sr.

Referenced by (14)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Bleeding Kansas crisis hasParticipant Free Soil Party
this entity surface form: "Free-Soil settlers"
Benjamin Wade memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
Charles Sumner memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
Hannibal Hamlin memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
Henry Wilson memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
Martin Van Buren memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
Salmon P. Chase memberOfPoliticalParty Free Soil Party
subject surface form: "Charles F. Adams"
subject surface form: "Martin Van Buren"
William Cullen Bryant politicalAlignment Free Soil Party
this entity surface form: "Free Soil movement"
Republican Party predecessor Free Soil Party