Final answer:
The passage of the Missouri Compromise LEAST strengthened the economic linkage of the North and the Midwest in the antebellum era.
Step-by-step explanation:
The development that LEAST strengthened the increasing economic linkage of the North and the Midwest during the antebellum era was the passage of the Missouri Compromise. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was a legislative agreement that aimed to maintain a balance between free states and slave states by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. While it temporarily resolved political tensions, it did not directly contribute to the economic linkage of the North and the Midwest like the construction of the Erie Canal, the expansion of the railroad network, and the development of telegraph communication did.