Stephen Douglas

The Designer of the Kansas–Nebraska Act

April 23, 1813 Brandon, Vermont, United States

June 3, 1861 Chicago, Illinois, United States

Martha Denny Martin, Rose Adele Cutts

Stephen Douglas was a US Senator known for the ‘Freeport Doctrine’. He was popularly known as ‘Little Giant’, because he was short in physique but was an eminent, political figure in the 19th century. He was actively involved in the ‘Young America Movement’ that wanted to supplant the dogmas and the tenets of the past with a young and a more effective political system. He also ran for President opposite, Abraham Lincoln, who was a Republican candidate, but failed to make it. As a party leader, he was known to have been extremely quick-witted and skillful, with great control over his oratory skills. He was dexterous in terms of political issues and worked towards popularizing the principle of ‘popular sovereignty’. His long and fruitful career also involved him working for the US Senate, where he was responsible for settling slavery-related issues and also endorsed the ‘Dred Scott’ decision. Apart from his political career, the ‘Lincoln-Douglas Debates’ that he held time-and-again with his long-time rival, Abraham Lincoln, became some of the most famous in history and came to be known as the ‘debates that defined America’.