UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The second installment of the Redwood Empire Civil War Roundtable met Feb. 1 at the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake.

Twenty people attended the event to hear Zane Jensen’s presentation of “The Secession Commissioners” and Phil Smoley’s presentation of “Attempts at Compromise.”

Jensen explained the situation that South Carolina faced when it was the first state to secede.

“They were desperate to get the other southern states to join them, so they sent out commissioners to spread fear of a slave rebellion if they stayed in the Union,” Jensen said.

Did the commissioners' tactics work? Jensen believes so.

“In many cases, within a day of the commissioners speaking to a state assembly, that state voted for secession,” Jensen said.

Smoley spoke of Sen. John Crittenden of Kentucky who proposed a series of Constitutional Amendments that promised to protect slavery where it was, to allow for popular sovereignty in the southern territories and strengthen the Fugitive Slave Law.

When Crittenden’s proposal got shot down, a peace conference was formed. It was made up by several former congressmen, governors, cabinet members, federal judges and even a former president. Ultimately, the peace conference also was a failure.

In the end, no compromise could be found. Level heads on both sides knew what that would mean. Crittenden’s own family was divided on the issue, one child fought for the north, and one for the south.

“Crittenden ruined his health trying to find a way to avoid the coming conflict,” Smoley said. “What it did to his family was devastating.”

So what caused the war: States rights or slavery?

“Folks have been debating this for over 150 years, and it can still create heated, passionate discussions,” Smoley stated. “It’s definitely a lot more complicated than is often commonly assumed.”

The next roundtable is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. Monday, March 7, at the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake.