On a party line vote, the U.S. Senate votes to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia

After protracted debate, the United States Senate passed the contentious bill to abolish slavery in the District of Columbia with a vote of twenty-nine for, fourteen against, and five senators not voting. The tally showed a distinct partisan divide since all the affirmative votes came from Republicans, while all the Democrats and Unionists voted against or absent. One Republican, John Henderson of Missouri, voted in the negative. The House voted the bill through on April 11, 1862, and President Lincoln signed it into law on April 16, 1862.  (By John Osborne)