Presidential Proclamation 28 of August 10, 1821, by President James Monroe Declaring the Admission of the State of Missouri as a Member of the Union to be Complete
8/10/1821
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To achieve an agreement among the states, the Founders did not fully address the issue of slavery in the Constitution but left it for future generations to resolve. As the country matured, the unresolved issue of slavery grew more contentious. The issue came to head when Missouri, which allowed slavery, applied for statehood in 1819. To maintain an equal number of free and slave states, Congress adopted legislation—known as the Missouri Compromise—that also admitted Maine, which had previously been part of Massachusetts, as a free state and prohibited slavery above the 36º 30´latitude in the Louisiana Territory. The Compromise allowed Congress to continue working and kept sectional disagreements at bay, at least temporarily. President James Monroe signed, and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams certified, Presidential Proclamation 28 on August 10, 1821, officially announcing that Missouri had entered the Union.
This primary source comes from the General Records of the United States Government.
National Archives Identifier:
7873512Full Citation: Presidential Proclamation 28 of August 10, 1821, by President James Monroe Declaring the Admission of the State of Missouri as a Member of the Union to be Complete; 8/10/1821; Presidential Proclamations 1 Thru 79; Presidential Proclamations, 1791–2016; General Records of the United States Government, Record Group 11; National Archives Building, Washington, DC. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/presidential-proclamation-28-of-august-10-1821-by-president-james-monroe-declaring-the-admission-of-the-state-of-missouri-as-a-member-of-the-union-to-be-complete, April 19, 2024]