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ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY: July 6, 1854 First state Republican Party officially organized in Jackson, Michigan, to oppose Democrats’ pro-slavery policiesOn July 6, 1854, a mass gathering of about 1,000–10,000 people in Jackson, Michigan, is widely recognized as the first official organization of the Republican Party The National Constitution Center The meeting, held under a grove of ancient oaks known as “Under the Oaks”, was a direct response to the Kansas-Nebraska Act of May 1854, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and allowed new territories to decide on slavery through “popular sovereignty” https://www.experiencejackson.com/things-to-do/history/under-the-oaks/