What legislative act admitted Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state?

The Missouri Compromise is the legislative act that specifically addressed the admission of Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. Enacted in 1820, this compromise was a crucial piece of legislation that aimed to maintain a balance between slave and free states in the Union following the westward expansion of the United States.

As part of the Missouri Compromise, Missouri entered the Union as a slave state, while Maine was admitted as a free state. This arrangement was significant because it helped to temporarily ease tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. Additionally, the compromise established a geographical line (the 36°30′ parallel) that would determine the status of slavery in future territories added from the Louisiana Purchase: states north of this line would be free, while those south could permit slavery.

In contrast, the Wilmot Proviso was introduced in 1846 to ban slavery in any territory acquired from Mexico but did not address state admissions specifically. The Compromise of 1850 dealt with the status of territories acquired after the Mexican-American War and did not focus on Missouri and Maine. The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 allowed those territories to determine their own status regarding slavery through popular sovereignty, which directly conflicted