Yet, even as the nation reveled in a youthful optimism reserved for emerging powers, it was becoming increasingly divided on the most volatile topic of the day—slavery. With each new territory claimed—each new state established, tensions mounted, and the nation drifted closer to a seemingly inevitable armed conflict. When conflict finally did erupt in earnest, it appeared for a time that the “great experiment,” not yet even one hundred years old, might be torn asunder. While the nation was rife with…
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