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The 24th State
Missouri becomes a part of the union as the 24th state. This balances the union at 12 slave and 12 free states. -
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Antebellum
The antebellum era, or the era before the war, was a significant era transforming America into two major parts, the slave labor south and the free labor north. -
President Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson or "Old Hickory" became the seventh president of the United States. He fought politically against what he thought was an undemocratic aristocracy, adding to his appeal to the common citizens. He is found the twenty dollar bill. -
General Winfield Scott
General Winfield Scott served as an active general longer than anyone else in American history. Many historians consider him the best American commander of his time. Over the course of his 47 year career, he commanded forces in the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Black Hawk War, the Second Seminole War, and briefly the American Civil War. -
Abraham Lincon becomes President
Abraham Lincoln became the sixteenth president of the United States. During the election he received only 40% of the popular votes but he still managed to defeat the three other candidates. -
The Start of the War
The attack on Fort Sumter off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, signals the beginning of the Civil War. -
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Civil War
The Civil war was a bloody war fought between the slave states (who declared succession and formed the Confederate States of America) and the "free states." At the beginning of the war the northern states had a combined population of 22 million people, as where the southern states only had a combined population of 9 million. -
Virginia Seceded
On April 17 convention voted to secede and on May 23, 1861 the articles were ratified. With the entry of Virginia into the Confederacy, a decision was made to move the Confederate capital from Montgomery, Alabama, to Richmond because the defense of Virginia's capital was vital to the Confederacy's survival. -
The Battle of Bull Run
The Union troops were hoping to seize Manassas, VA, which contained a vital railroad, but the confederate troops were waiting for the Union troops to arrive resulting in the first large battle of the Civil War. In the end the Confederate forced defeated the Union but they left behind a lot of casualties, wounded and missing. The Union casualties were 460 killed and 1,124 wounded and the Confederate casualties were 387 killed and 1,582 wounded. -
Robert E. Lee Joins the Civil War
Abraham Lincoln asked Robert E. Lee to join as commander on the Federal forces, but he declined because he did not want to fight against his state Virginia. Instead he accepted a general's commission in the newly formed confederate states. His first military engagement in the Civil War was at Cheat Mountain, Virginia. The Union was victorious but Robert E. Lee withheld his reputation. -
The Battle of Antietam
General Lee planed to strike Union territories but a messenger in Maryland but a confederate messenger dropped a copy of the battle plans which was later found by a Union soldier. This resulted in a long battle resulting in a draw. -
The Begining of the Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, is considered the wars most important engagement but it amounted to the largest number of casualties at 51,112 men. Robert E. Lee's troops accidently ran in to Union troops so he ordered an attack on the enemy's center at Cemetery Ridge but things turned for the worst, so they ordered an assault called the "Pickett's Charge," this managed to pierce the Union lines but eventually failed, forcing Lee to withdraw his army toward Virginia. -
The Surrender at Appomattox
General Lee attempted to halt the Union Army in Petersburg, VA. The Union seized Petersburg on April 2, 1865 and then Richmond on the next day, and then the Union forces cut General Lee off from leading his remaining army to North Carolina. This forced General Robert E. Lee to surrender to General Grant by waving a white flag on top of a hill overlooking the Appomattox River on April 9, 1865. General Grant later accepted General Lee's surrender in the Appomattox Court House. -
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Reconstruction Era
The reconstruction era was the period after the American Civil War when the southern states were reorganized and restored into the Union. -
Abraham Lincons Assasination
John Wilkes Booth, a famous actor and Confederate sympathizer, shot President Abraham Lincoln at a play at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C resulting in his death. This tragic event happened just five days after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, ending the American Civil War. -
Ex parte Milligan
This was a United States Supreme Court case that ruled that the application of military tribunals to citizens when civilian courts are still open is unconstitutional. This decision was very controversial because it was one of the first cases after the end of the Civil War. -
Civil Rights Bill Passed
Congress passed the Civil Rights Bill protecting the civil rights of African-Americans in the awakening of the Civil War. -
Nebraska Joins the United States
Nebraska is the 37th state to join the United States of America. -
General Ulysses S. Grant
General Grant was a very successful general in the second half of the Civil War. Under Grant, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military. Grant was also the 18th president of the United State. He was a highly effective president eliminating the Ku Klutz Klan and establishing the first civil service reforms. -
President Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford was the 19th president of the United States. As president, he oversaw the end of Reconstruction, began the efforts that led to the civil service reform, and attempted to restore the division left over from the Civil War and Reconstruction era.
