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Harpers Ferry gets seized
Abolitionist John Brown leads a small group on a raid against a federal armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), in an attempt to start an armed slave revolt and destroy the institution of slavery. -
President Lincoln is elected president
On this day in 1861, Abraham Lincoln becomes the 16th president of the United States. In his inauguration speech Lincoln extended an olive branch to the South, but also made it clear that he intended to enforce federal laws in the states that seceded. -
Confederates fire on Fort Sumter
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Period: to
Civil War
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Manassas First Battle (Bull Run)
On July 21, 1861, Union and Confederate armies clashed near Manassas Junction, Virginia, in the first major land battle of the American Civil War. Known as the First Battle of Bull Run (or Manassas), the engagement began when about 35,000 Union troops marched from the federal capital in Washington, D.C. to strike a Confederate force of 20,000 along a small river known as Bull Run. -
Robert E. Lee takes command of Va Forces
The newly created Army of Northern Virginia, however, had no ancient fame. Its first conflict, dubbed the Seven Days' Battles, was gruesome and exhausting, but it would define the character of Lee's soldiers; they were tough, resilient, and willing to suffer great casualties to push the Union forces back. -
The battle of Antietam
The Army of the Potomac, under the command of George McClellan, mounted a series of powerful assaults against Robert E. Lee’s forces near Sharpsburg, Maryland, on September 17, 1862. -
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg on December 13, 1862, involved nearly 200,000 combatants, the largest concentration of troops in any Civil War battle. -
Battle of Stones River
In late December 1862, Union and Confederate forces clashed at the Battle of Stones River, near Murfreesboro, Tennessee, during the American Civil War (1861-65). On December 31, Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s 35,000 troops successfully attacked the 42,000-strong Union force commanded by Major General William Rosecrans. -
Ford's Theatre
Ford's Theatre is a historic theatre in Washington, D.C., used for various stage performances beginning in the 1860s. It is also the site of the assassination of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. After being shot, the fatally wounded president was carried across the street to the Petersen House, where he died the next morning.
The theatre was later used as a warehouse and office building, and in 1893 part of it collapsed, causing 22 deaths. It was renovated and re-opened as a th -
13th Amendment Ratified
On this day in 1865, the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, officially ending the institution of slavery, is ratified. -
The Battle of Five Forks
In late March 1865, Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant ordered Major General Philip H. Sheridan to push south and west of Petersburg with the goal of turning Confederate General Robert E. Lee's right flank and forcing him from the city. -
Appomattox Court House
On April 9, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee (1807-70) surrendered his approximately 28,000 troops to Union General Ulysses S. Grant (1822-85) in the front parlor of Wilmer McLean’s home in Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War (1861-65).
