The document provides information about slavery in the United States prior to the Civil War, including how Africans were brought to America through the Middle Passage, the conditions slaves faced, and resistance efforts such as the Underground Railroad which helped slaves escape to freedom. Key events that further divided the country over the issue of slavery are examined, such as the Missouri Compromise of 1820 and the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 which increased tensions between abolitionists and slaveholders. Methods slaves used to communicate and assist each other in escaping via the Underground Railroad are described, despite facing severe punishments if caught.