The Civil War

Kansas is admitted

Jan 29, 1859

Kansas is admitted as a state with a constitution prohibiting slavery.

Lincoln

Apr 19, 1859

Lincoln orders a blockade of all Confederate ports

Fort Sumter

Apr 12, 1860

Fort Sumter is bombarded and surrenders to South Carolina troops led by P. G. T. Beauregard.

Abraham Lincoln is elected President

Nov 6, 1860

Abraham Lincoln is elected President, with Hannibal Hamlin as his Vice President.

South Carolina Secedes

Dec 20, 1860

This is the day that South Carolina Secedes from the Union.

Abraham Lincoln is sworn in

Mar 4, 1861

Abraham Lincoln is sworn in as 16th President of the United States of America.

Civil War begins

Apr 12, 1861

At 4:30 a.m. Confederates under Gen. Pierre Beauregard open fire with 50 cannons upon Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The Civil War begins

Virgina Secedes from the Union

Apr 17, 1861

Virginia secedes from the Union, followed within five weeks by Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina, thus forming an eleven state Confederacy with a population of 9 million, including nearly 4 million slaves. The Union will soon have 21 states and a population of over 20 million.

President Lincoln issues a Proclamation of Blockade

Apr 19, 1861

President Lincoln issues a Proclamation of Blockade against Southern ports. For the duration of the war the blockade limits the ability of the rural South to stay well supplied in its war against the industrialized North.

President Lincoln son dies

Feb 20, 1862

President Lincoln is struck with grief as his beloved eleven-year-old son, Willie, dies from fever, probably caused by polluted drinking water in the White House.

Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation

Jan 1, 1863

Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation, which declares that slaves in the seceded states are now free.

West Virgina is Born

Jun 20, 1863

Residents of the western counties of Virginia did not wish to secede along with the rest of the state. This section of Virginia was admitted into the Union as the state of West Virginia on June 20, 1863.

Thirteenth Amendment

Jan 31, 1865

Congress passes the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolishes slavery throughout the United States.

Lincoln is inaugurated

Mar 4, 1865

Lincoln is inaugurated as President for a second term.

Lincoln dies

Apr 15, 1865

Lincoln dies, and Andrew Johnson is inaugurated as President.