Philodemic Society debates about slavery, race, and secession, 1830-1875

Dublin Core

Title

Philodemic Society debates about slavery, race, and secession, 1830-1875

Subject

Slavery--Georgetown University; Debating Societies--Slavery

Description

In his 2018 History honors thesis, ""Let us form a body guard for Liberty" – Conceptions of Liberty and Nation in Georgetown College’s Philodemic Society, 1830–1875," Jonathan Marrow (GU '18) compiled data on over 1,200 debates held by Georgetown's Philodemic Society from 1830-1875. The students frequently debated topics related to slavery, race, and secession, as Marrow's data reveals. See below for a list of debates by topic and date, with the outcome of the debate indicated for each entry. Marrow compiled this data from the Philodemic Society's Amanuensis Books, which are available through Digital Georgetown in the Philodemic Society Archive.

Creator

Jonathan Marrow

Publisher

Digital Georgetown

Date

2018

Contributor

Jonathan Marrow, Adam Rothman

Rights

Jonathan Marrow

Relation

GSA78

Format

Thesis

Language

English

Type

Thesis

Identifier

GSA244

Coverage

1830-1875

Text Item Type Metadata

Text

Debates Related to Slavery Date Vote
Should slaves be liberated? December 12, 1830 Negated
Have the different States of the Union the right to send off their free coloured population? February 26, 1832 Affirmed 11-9
Would the expulsion of all Negroes, both bond[ed] and free contribute to the welfare of the nation? March 11, 1832 Affirmed 11-9
Would the abolition of slavery be beneficial to the Union March 3, 1833 Affirmed 11-10
Would the abolition of slavery be beneficial or not to the union? October 28, 1833 Negated
Is the institution of slavery just? March 28, 1844 Negated 2-10
Is slavery consistent with republican institutions? January 18, 1845 Affirmed 13-1
Is slavery consistent with a republic? January 4, 1846 Affirmed 8-4
Is slavery consistent with Republican institutions? January 3, 1847 Affirmed 11-4
Would the abolition of slavery be detrimental to the country? December 12, 1847 Affirmed 13-3
Is slavery consistent with a republican govenrment? June 25, 1848 Negated 4-6
Should slavery be restricted from our new territories? April 21, 1849 Affirmed 8-7
Would the abolition of slavery in the D.C. be consistent with justice? November 18, 1849 Negated 3-12
Would the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia be consistent with policy? April 21, 1850 Negated 1-7
Would the expulsion of all negroes, both slaves and freemen, contribute to the welfare of the country? June 22, 1851 Negated 1-12
Whether or not the Nebraska bill should pass Congress? March 5, 1854 Affirmed 13-4
Is slavery an evil as it exists in America? October 29, 1854 Negated 3-11
Has Congress a right to exclude slavery from the territories & from the District of Columbia? March 4, 1855 Negated 5-9
Should the African slave trade be reopened? May 20, 1855 Negated 3-12
Is slavery an evil? February 17, 1856 Negated 3-5
Is the extension of slavery beneficial to the welfare and prosperity of the Union? February 1, 1857 Affirmed 7-4
Is the extension of slavery beneficial to the welfare and prosperity of the Union? October 24, 1858 Affirmed 15-8
Has the emancipation of slaves been beneficial to the South? February 5, 1874 Negated 5-10
Debates Related to Race
Were the English justifiable in depriving the Indians of this country? October 19, 1834 Affirmed 4-2
Whether or not Florida should be given to the Indians? January 12, 1840 Negated 2-10
Should Bloodhounds be employed in the Florida war March 27, 1841 Tied 5-5, chair negated
Were the whites justifiable in expelling the Indians from this country? February 27, 1842 Negated 5-7
Were the Americans justifiable in employing bloodhounds against the Indians November 6, 1842 Negated 6-10
Was the treatment of the Whites towards the Indians justifiable? March 12, 1843 Negated
Who are the more miserable, the Indians chased from their lands & properties or the Negroes brought from the shores of Africa and reduced to slavery? October 27, 1844 Not voted upon
Which is the most deserving of our pity, the Indian or the Negro? December 20, 1846 Affirmed 10-5
Which deserves more our pity, the Negro or the Indian? October 16, 1848 Negated 4-9
Whether the whites had a right to dispossess the Indians of their territories in America? November 25, 1849 Negated 6-11
Did the Indians orginally emigrate from the Eastern Continent? April 7, 1850 Affirmed unanimously
Were the Whites justifiable in expelling the aborigines? January 19, 1851 Negated 6-9
Whether the Indian or the African has received more injuries from the hand of man? April 13, 1851 Affirmed 12-7
Were the white justifiable in driving the aborigines from their lands? January 23, 1853 Negated 5-10
Are Negroes more worthy of sympathy than Indians? October 28, 1855 Negated 3-7
Which is harder, a negroe's head or a brick-bat? June 29, 1856 Affirmed 5-4
Which is the better material for constructing breast-works and fortifications, niggers' heads or cotton bales? January 18, 1857 Affirmed 5-4
Do savage nations possess a right to the soil May 6, 1860 Affirmed 7-3
Do savage nations possess a right to the soil? March 23, 1862 No vote recorded
Should negroes have the right of suffrage? February 18, 1866 No vote recorded
Was the expulsion of the Indians from the Eastern States justifiable? March 25, 1866 No vote recorded
Did the Moors at the time of the reconquest of Granada by Ferdinand and Isabella possess a right to the soil? April 16, 1866 Negated 2-3
Which is the nobler, the Indian or the Whiteman? December 16, 1866 Affirmed 5-3
Do savage nations possess a full right to the soil? May 16, 868 Affirmed 6-5
Should a hostile or conciliatory policy be pursued towards the Indians? November 29, 1868 Affirmed
Would the introduction of the Chinese into the Southern states be beneficial? October 17, 1869 Negated
Which was the superior race, the Mongolian or Caucasian? March 27, 1870 Negated 6-7
Is the conferring of the suffrage upon the negroes of our country calculated to promote the prosperity of the United States? November 27, 1870 No vote recorded
Could America avoid the policy pursued in regard to the Indians? March 4, 1875 Affirmed 14-4
Debates Related to Disunion and Secession
Is nullification justifiable? December 5, 1847 Affirmed 6-4
Ought nullifcation to be extended to one state? May 18, 1849 Affirmed 10-7
Would the south be justifiable in separating from the north? January 6, 1850 Affirmed 7-6
Has a state the right to secede from the Union? October 20, 1850 Affirmed 10-6
Whether the influences which tend to perpetuate, be stronger than those which tend to dissolve the union of the United States? February 29, 1852 Affirmed 11-3
Whether the circumstances which tend to perpetuate are greater than those which tend to dissolve the union of the U.S. March 20, 1853 Negated 6-7
Are the circumstances which tend to perpetuate greater than those which tend to dissolve the Union? April 24, 1853 Negated 8-10
Do present circumstances tend more to dissolve than to perpetuate the Union? October 16, 1853 Negated 4-15
Is the extension of territory calculated to endanger the preservation of the Union? November 27, 1853 Affirmed 13-7
Has a state to the right to secede from the Union? December 18, 1853 Affirmed 8-6
Were the political doctrines of John C. Calhoun in any manner detrimental to the welfare of the country? May 21, 1854 Affirmed 10-9
Has a state a constitutional right to secede? January 21, 1855 Negated 4-9
Does the present political condition of the country argue its preservation or destruction? April 22, 1855 Affirmed 6-5
Can a state nullify a law of Congress and remain in the Union? June 10, 1855 Negated 4-9
Does the present state of the country argue the preservation or destruction of the Union? January 13, 1856 Affirmed 9-3
Do the indications of the present time threaten a dissolution of the Union? January 4, 1857 Tie 3-3, chair negated
Does the present position of affairs of United States tend to their preservation or downfall? January 10, 1858 Affirmed 10-1
Has a state the right to secede from the Union? November 9, 1858 Tied, chair negated
Should the South now secede from the Union? December 11, 1859 Affirmed 8-5
Should Democrats or South Americans assist in the election of Sherman or any Black Republican? December 18, 1859 Negated 1-11
Should governor Wise have sent so many troops to Charlestown? January 8, 1860 Affirmed 8-2
Should Southern Democrats vote for Douglas for President if he be nominated by the Charleston Convention? February 26, 1860 Affirmed 6-5
Whether as the Union now stands under the present constitution & the fact of slavery in some states should the qustion of slavery be agitated either privately or publicly? March 4, 1860 Negated 3-9
Whether the Union will be dissolved in the case of the election of Lincoln as President of the U.S. October 13, 1860 Negated 1-9
Ought the Southern States to oppose the coercion of any States of the Union, should any secede in the event of a Black Republican President November 18, 1860 Affirmative, 8-1
Are the Southern states justifiable in seizing upon the property of the Federal Government? February 17, 1861 Tied 5-5
Is a nation ever justified in rising against its rulers? March 1, 1863 Affirmed 9-2
Which is more efficiacious in quelling rebellion or for preserving tranquillity, a lenient or despotic exercise of power? November 11, 1866 Affirmed 8-4
Are the influences which tend to perpetuate, greater than those which tend to dissolve the Union of the U.S.? March 6, 1870 Negated
Has a state a right to secede? February 27, 1873 Negated 5-10
Have states the right to secede from the Union? November 13, 1873 Tied, chair negated
Has a state the right to secede? October 15, 1874 Negated 6-7

Citation

Jonathan Marrow, “Philodemic Society debates about slavery, race, and secession, 1830-1875,” Georgetown Slavery Archive, accessed October 5, 2024, http://slaveryarchive.georgetown.edu/items/show/266.

Geolocation