Series 1 — The Fires Before the War: Bleeding Kansas (1854–1860) — Article 6
Discover how the Election of 1860 pushed Missouri to the brink. Fear, fractured loyalties, and political turmoil made civil war nearly unavoidable.
Table of Contents
Election of 1860
By November 1860, Missourians weren’t just choosing a president — they were choosing what future their state would fight for.
After six years of Bleeding Kansas bloodshed, political street fights, pulpit wars, and newspaper propaganda, the Election of 1860 hit Missouri like a hammer blow. The nation fractured at the ballot box, and Missouri stood directly on the fault line.
This is the story of the election that made war all but inevitable.
Why the Election of 1860 Was Different
Missouri had seen ugly elections before. Fraud, intimidation, and brawls at polling places were routine long before the 1860 campaign began.
But this election carried a different weight.
By 1860:
- Bleeding Kansas violence had normalized raiding and retaliation.
- Newspapers had turned politics into a moral crusade.
- Preachers were dividing congregations from the pulpit.
- Families had already split into Unionist and Southern camps.
Missourians believed — genuinely — that the outcome of the Election of 1860 would decide whether their farms burned, their rights vanished, or their state was dragged into a federal war.
Politics wasn’t debate anymore.
It was survival.
A Four-Way Race Exposes Missouri’s Divide
The Election of 1860 wasn’t just Lincoln vs. the South. In Missouri, it was a political four-front battle:
Abraham Lincoln (Republican)
- Opposed the expansion of slavery westward
- Seen in Missouri as a threat to Southern rights
- Not even on the ballot in many Missouri counties
Stephen A. Douglas (Northern Democrat)
- Supported “popular sovereignty”
- Promised Missourians they could vote slavery up or down
- Drew urban and moderate support
John C. Breckinridge (Southern Democrat)
- Defended slavery’s national protections
- Backed by pro-secession Missourians
John Bell (Constitutional Union Party)
- Ran on compromise and preserving the Union
- Appealed strongly to border-state voters desperate to avoid war
Missouri — unlike the Deep South — didn’t unite behind a single candidate.
It fractured four ways, each faction convinced that the others would destroy the state.
Fear Politics: What Missourians Were Told to Expect
Missourians didn’t go into the election calmly. Newspapers and stump speakers framed the 1860 campaign as a fight for survival.
Pro-Union papers warned:
- “A Breckinridge victory will drag Missouri into disunion.”
- “Secession means burned farms and ruined trade.”
Pro-Southern papers countered:
- “A Lincoln victory will bring federal troops to our door.”
- “The North will outlaw your property, your rights, your future.”
And in border counties —
where Kansas raids and Missouri counter-raids were still fresh wounds — fears only grew sharper.
When fear becomes identity, compromise dies.
By Election Day, Missourians weren’t choosing a president.
They were choosing a side.
Missouri Votes — and the Results Foreshadow War
Missouri’s election returns created a map that looked like a political battlefield:
- Douglas won the state, but only by a hair.
- Bell performed strongly, reflecting calls for compromise.
- Breckinridge dominated pro-Southern strongholds.
- Lincoln received almost no support, but his national victory blew open Missouri’s crisis.
To the South, Lincoln’s win meant tyranny.
To Republicans, it meant stopping the expansion of slavery.
To Missouri?
It meant a choice that could no longer be avoided.
A State at the Crossroads
When Lincoln won the presidency, pressure hit Missouri from all sides:
Southern Neighbors Demanded Solidarity
Arkansas and Tennessee expected Missouri to stand with them.
Unionists Warned of Economic Ruin if Missouri Seceded
St. Louis merchants feared losing river commerce.
German communities feared living under a pro-slavery state.
Moderates Hoped for Compromise — But the Window Had Closed
Years of propaganda, pulpit wars, and vigilante violence had done their work.
Missouri Wasn’t Debating Anymore — Missouri Was Dividing
The Election of 1860 didn’t start the Civil War. But it ensured the bleeding frontier would soon become a battlefield.
Looking Ahead
With the Election of 1860, Missouri’s fate was sealed.
The bleeding border, the propaganda wars, the militias, and the fractured loyalties had all pushed the state to the edge — and Lincoln’s victory shoved it over.
This concludes Series 1: The Fires Before the War — Bleeding Kansas (1854–1860).
Next Thursday (December 11, 2025), we begin Series 2: From Secession to Pea Ridge (1860–1862) — where the crisis finally erupts into open conflict.
We’ll follow Missouri through secession debates, the Camp Jackson Affair, the first major battles, and the struggle to secure control of the state.
The frontier firestorm is over.
The Civil War in Missouri is about to begin.
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Check Out These Missouri Civil War (Overview) Articles
Missouri Civil War: Why This Forgotten Story Matters
Civil War In Missouri: 6 Questions You Should Ask
Bleeding Kansas: Missouri’s Volatile Border War (1854–61)
Missouri – 3 Reasons It Was the Civil War’s Western Key
General Lyon Takes Missouri: 1861’s Breaking Point
Guerrilla Warfare in Missouri: Chaos Explodes (1861–65)
The Cloak and Dagger Side of Missouri’s Civil War
Missouri Women at War: Discover The Unsung Heroes
General Order No. 11 – Missouri’s Burnt District
Price’s Raid (1864): Missouri’s Last Daring Gamble
Check Out These In Depth Articles About The Five Phases Of The Civil War In Missouri
Missouri’s Civil War (1854–1900): Explore The Complete Guide
Series 1: The Fires Before The War – Bleeding Kansas (1854 – 1860)
Bleeding Kansas: The Missouri and Kansas Border Ignites
The Kansas-Nebraska Act – Unleashing Pandora’s Box
Border Ruffians & Free-Staters — The Border Turns Hostile
Bleeding Kansas Massacres — Fire and Vengeance on the Border
Missouri State Militias – How They Rose From Border Chaos
Propaganda — How Words Fueled Missouri’s Civil War
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