About this episode: 

The year was 1860. The nation was coming apart and yet, its political parties made plans to come together - to gather in convention despite deep-seated and festering sectional issues, each to nominate a candidate and approve platforms that, as it turned out, united regions but not a nation. That meant dark consequences, ensuring this country would reap a cataclysmic whirlwind. With today’s polarization as an historical backdrop, this is the story of the most divisive presidential election in the history of this nation - the election of 1860.

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Some Characters Mentioned In This Episode: 

Stephen A. Douglas

William Lowndes Yancey

William Henry Seward

Richard J. Oglesby

John C. Breckinridge

John Bell

Additional References In This Episode:

Map of Final Election Results, 1860

Get The Guide:

Want to learn more about the Civil War? A great place to start is Fred's guide, The Civil War: A History of the War between the States from Workman Publishing. The guide is in its 9th printing.

Producer: Dan Irving