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I've always been fascinated by alternative US emancipation strategies that could have happened without war. Generally this involves a moderate gradual emancipationist party winning seats in the upper South legislatures and phasing in gradual emancipation, perhaps through a "liberation of the womb" policy together with compensation for slave owners.
Had an abolitionist governor been elected without strong support in the legislature, what could he have done singlehandedly? Perhaps use the power of the governorship to gradually build up support for his party? Push for voluntary emancipation laws to be liberalized? It would be a fine line to walk, but its likely that without a civil war, places like Missouri, Maryland and Delaware might have been dealing with such a situation by the 1870's.
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