USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Congress established Maine as the 23rd state under the Missouri Compromise of 1820. This arrangement allowed Maine to join the Union as a free state, with Missouri entering a year later as a slave state, thereby preserving the numerical balance between free and slave states in the nation.

Detailed explanation-2: -Few Northerners wanted to abolish slavery; most wanted slavery, and black people, to remain in the South. Maine provided a solution for the dilemma Missouri caused. Congress declared in 1819 that Maine’s admission as a free state would be tied directly to Missouri’s entrance as a slave state.

Detailed explanation-3: -After months of debate, the Missouri Compromise saved the day: Missouri would be admitted as a slave state, and a new state-Maine-would be created as a free state. To avoid future problems, they also mapped out which parts of the rest of America’s territory could become slave and free states.

Detailed explanation-4: -The U. S. Congress admitted Maine and Missouri together to maintain an equal number of slave and free states: Maine would enter as a free state, not allowing slavery, while Missouri would enter the Union simultaneously as a slave state, allowing slavery. Neither side wanted to let the other gain a political advantage.