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Period: to
civil war
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Election of Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln was elected for his first term in 1860 this caused southern states to leave the union. -
Secession of South Carolina
The doctrine of state's rights, the legality of secession, and the institution of black slavery had been issues of debate in the United States for decades before the election of Abraham Lincoln brought on the secession of the Southern states. -
Formation of the Confederate States
In February 1861, representatives from the seven seceded states met in Montgomery, Alabama to found the Confederate States of America. -
Firing on Fort Sumter
The Battlie of Fort Sumter was the bombardment and surrender of Fort Sumter, near Charleston, South Carolina, that started the American Civil War. This started april 12 and ended april 13. -
First Battle of Bull Run
In July 1861 the northern newspapers pressured President Lincoln to bring a quick end to the rebellion of the southern states. Adding to the strain was Lincoln's awareness that the ninety-day enlistments of the recruits who had responded to his call to arms after the attack on Fort Sumter were rapidly coming to an end. -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam marked the culmination of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the Northern states. Guiding his Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac River in early September 1862, the great general daringly divided his men, sending half of them, under the command of General Thomas Jackson, to capture the Union garrison at Harper's Ferry. -
Emancipation Proclamation
As the nation approached its third year of bloody civil war. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." -
Battles of Gettysburg and Vicksburg
While the U.S. Civil War battles of Vicksburg and Gettysburg were both fought during the first week of July, 1863, they could not have been more different from one another. Union General Ulysses S. Grant's seizure of the vital Confederate seaport of Vicksburg, Mississippi, was the result of brilliant military strategy. What occurred at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on the other hand, was a complete accident. Still, both battles turned the tide of the war in the North's favor and ensured Un -
Gettysbug Address
This address, said to have been written by President Lincoln on the back of an envelope while he was on a train en route to give the speech, is regarded by many as one of the top two or three greatest speeches in American history. Others regard it as without peer. The speech was given on the occasion of the dedication of a civil war cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania on the fields of Gettysburg (now the Soldiers' National Cemetery). It has been memorized by generations of Americans. -
Reelection of Abraham Lincoln
On this day in 1864, Northern voters overwhelmingly endorse the leadership and policies of President Abraham Lincoln when they elect him to a second term. With his reelection, any hope for a negotiated settlement with the Confederacy vanished. -
Surrender at Appomattox Court House
With his army surrounded, his men weak and exhausted, Robert E. Lee realized there was little choice but to consider the surrender of his Army to General Grant. After a series of notes between the two leaders, they agreed to meet on April 9, 1865, at the house of Wilmer McLean in the village of Appomattox Courthouse. The meeting lasted approximately two and one-half hours and at its conclusion the bloodliest conflict in the nation's history neared its end.