Border States: Which state was a border state that remained in the Union?

Border States: Which state was a border state that remained in the Union?

• A. Maryland
• B. Texas
• C. Oregon
• D. New Hampshire

Answer: (A)

Border states were slave states that did not secede from the Union, and their loyalty changed how the Civil War unfolded. Maryland fits this idea perfectly. It bordered the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., so keeping Maryland in the Union helped prevent the Confederacy from isolating or threatening the capital and controlling crucial routes and rivers. Because of its strategic importance, the Union acted to keep Maryland from joining the Confederacy, including strong wartime measures. Maryland stayed in the United States, even though some residents supported the Confederacy, which is what makes it the border state that remained in the Union. The other options aren’t border states that stayed in the Union: Texas joined the Confederacy, while Oregon and New Hampshire were Union states not classified as border states.

Border states were slave states that did not secede from the Union, and their loyalty changed how the Civil War unfolded. Maryland fits this idea perfectly. It bordered the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., so keeping Maryland in the Union helped prevent the Confederacy from isolating or threatening the capital and controlling crucial routes and rivers. Because of its strategic importance, the Union acted to keep Maryland from joining the Confederacy, including strong wartime measures. Maryland stayed in the United States, even though some residents supported the Confederacy, which is what makes it the border state that remained in the Union. The other options aren’t border states that stayed in the Union: Texas joined the Confederacy, while Oregon and New Hampshire were Union states not classified as border states.