# Free Soil **Free Soil** was the antebellum doctrine that slavery must not be allowed to expand into the western territories — "free soil, free labor, free men." Less radical than abolitionism (which sought to end slavery where it already existed), it kept new lands open for free white labor. It was the platform of the [[Free Soil Party]] and a core plank carried into the early [[Republican Party]]. > [!note] Stub > Minimum-viable page created to resolve inbound wikilinks. Expand as the cluster grows.