Abraham Lincoln's Peoria speech was made in Peoria, Illinois on October 16, 1854. The speech, with its specific arguments against slavery, was an important step in Abraham Lincoln's political ascension.
The 1854 Kansas–Nebraska Act, written to form the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, was designed by Stephen A. Douglas, then the chairman of the Senate Committee on Territories. The Act included language that allowed settlers to decide whether they would or would not accept slavery in their region.[1] Lincoln saw this as a repeal of the 1820 Missouri Compromise which had outlawed slavery above the 36°30' parallel.