Free-Soilers


 * //Free-Soilers//**

The Free-Soil Party was a short-term political party in the United States, which was active from 1848 to 1852. Its main purpose was opposing the expansion of slavery into the western territories. They argued that free men on free soil had a moral and economic superior system to slavery. Abolitionists are distinguished from free-soilers, but the groups came to act together in an antislavery cause. To The Free-Soilers, slavery was viewed as a "social bad because it hurt free men." However, the abolitionists denounced slavery as being sinful. Although The Free-Soilers were a short-lived party, they were influential in the 19th century, because of their opposition for expansion of slavery. The Free-Soilers sent two senators and fourteen representatives to the thirty-first Congress, elected in 1848. The party's most important legacy was a path for anti-slavery Democrats to join the new Republican Party. Their main goal was to gain the land to the west, and to keep the land free of slaves, although they were against the expansion of slavery, they didn't oppose the idea of it. The Free-Soilers long term impact, was to allow anti-slavery Democrats an easy transition into the Republican Party. Due to their motives, they were afraid that it would allow southerners to bring their slaves into new lands. Overall, The Free-Soilers were an exceptional part of our history, because they helped end slavery, which benefitted the slaves as well as the abolitionists, because of their actions they helped influence people, which led to the Civil War.