Harriet Beecher Stowe- Harriet Beecher Stowe was an abolitionist who wrote the widely influential novel, Uncle Toms Cabin. The deep emotional appeals that the book presented captured the nations attention and exposed the brutality of slavery. This book was one of the factors that upstarted the movement against slavery.
Charles Sumner- Charles Sumner was a member of the Republican party known as the Radicals. Sumner was a friend of Abraham Lincoln, and both of them fought for the freedom of black slaves in the south. He is well known for the incident in which he was beaten by Preston Brooks in the senate, in 1856.
John Brown- John Brown was an abolitionist who took decisive and even violent action to free slaves. He formed armed groups of followers and slaves and went on rampages, killing slave owners and freeing slaves. This led to his eventual capture after a failed raid of the federal armory.
Stephen Douglas- Stephen Douglas was a U.S. Senator, and Lincoln's opposition in the 1860 election (the famous Lincoln- Douglas debates). He also played a large part in the formation of the Kansas- Nebraska Act, and the compromise of 1850.
Abraham Lincoln- Arguably one of the United States greatest presidents, Lincoln led America successfully through its greatest crisis. He steered the Union to victory in the Civil War, and ended slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation. He is well known for his famous speech, the Gettysburg Address.
Jefferson Davis- Jefferson Davis was the leader of the Confederate states during the civil war. He formed the confederate armies to fight the North, and was a major driving force behind the south's actions.
Ulysses S. Grant- Ulysses S. Grant was a commander in chief of the Unions army, and led them to victory over the Confederates. After the Civil War, Grant became the eighteenth president of the United States.
Robert E. Lee- Robert E. Lee was a talented general for the Confederate States. After declining Lincolns offer to command the Union army, Lee instead decided to command the Confederate army in Northern Virginia. He fought for the south until his eventual surrender to Ulysses S. Grant.
William Tecumseh Sherman- A prominent general for the Union army during the Civil War. He was best known for his rampages through Georgia and Carolina in which he and his armies destroyed the south's Military and economic resources.