The main reason for the creation of the Compromise of 1850 was the disagreement between slave states and free states. After the Mexican American War, new land was acquired for the United States. The slave states and the free states kept arguing over the condition of the new territory: Was it a state with slaves or not? A US politician, Henry Clay, was determined to find a solution for the problem. 20 years before he resolved issues over the spread of slavery with the Missouri Compromise. The Compromise of 1850 contained 5 separate bills. The first bill declared California as a free state, making it the 16th. In exchange for this, no restrictions would be placed in Utah or New Mexico regarding slavery. The compromise also abolished slave trade in Washington D.C., which contained the most slave trade. It did not rule out slavery itself, just slave trade alone. Texas lost its territory in New Mexico, but one of the bills in the compromise gave them compensation of $10 million. Lastly, the Compromise of 1850 passed a Fugitive Slave Law, saying that citizens of the northern states must return runaway slaves back to the south and to their owners. This was the most talked about bill of the compromise and the southern states biggest gain. Even though this law was enforced, the northern states refused to. There were many pros and cons to the Compromise of 1850, it just depends on how you look at it. The north seemed to benefit the most from the compromise, seeing as Senate now sided with the free states.
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