On March 15, 1820, Maine was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state. Its admission was part of the Missouri Compromise, which sought to balance free and slave states. Under the arrangement, Maine entered as a free state while Missouri would enter as a slave state. This balance aimed to ease tension between North and South in the Senate. The compromise was only a temporary solution, as sectional conflict continued to grow. Maine’s statehood is often discussed in the wider context of the politics of slavery and expansion.
