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The Civil War
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Cooper Union Speech
Historians say that this was one his most important speeches, that may even won him the presidency. It expressed his views on slavery and how he did not want to spread it into Western Territories. -
Pony Express Established
The mail delivering service was established. This service would deliver mail of the upcoming events such as the South Carolina's secession and the winner of the 1860 presidential election. This service brought all those events to the west from the east and vice versa. -
John Bell For President?
The US Constitutional Union Party holds it convention for their nominee for president. John Bell is nominated for the role of President of the United States -
Abraham Lincoln Selected by Republicans
The Republicans meet to pick their presidential nominee. The party selects Abraham Lincoln to be their nominee for the presidency. -
Stone's Prairie Riot
Riots in Payson and Plainville, Illinois take place. The riots are between Republican Wide Awakes and armed Democratic supporters of Stephen Douglas. -
Lincoln Wins
Lincoln wins the election for president against John C. Breckinridge. Lincoln's victory is seen as complete loss of control of the government for the south. -
The Proposal of the Crittenden Compromise
An unsuccessful proposal introduced by US Senator John Crittenden. It tried to stop the secession by targeting the fears and grievances about slavery made many slave states to think more about secession from the United States. -
South Carolina Secedes
South Carolina becomes the first state to secede from the United States. They secede due to Lincoln winning the election and fear that they loss all their power in government. -
Harriet Tubman's Last Escape
Harriet Tubman arrives in Auburn New York, on her last mission to free slaves, having evaded capture for 8 years on the Underground Railroad -
Crittenden Compromise Tabled
The compromise presented by Crittenden to solve the issue of secession was tabled. This was most likely due to South Carolina seceding. -
Mississippi Leaves the Union
Mississippi votes to leave the Union. This makes Mississippi the second state to secede. -
Florida Leaves the Union
Florida decides to secede from the United States. This makes Florida the third state to secede from the Union. -
Alabama Leaves the Union
Alabama votes to secede from the United States. This vote makes Alabama the fourth state to leave the Union. -
Georgia Secedes from US
Georgia votes to leave the Union, and join the confederacy, This makes Georgia the fifth state to secede. -
Louisiana Secedes
Louisiana decides to leave the Union. This makes Louisiana the sixth state to secede from the United States. -
Texas Secedes
Texas secedes from the United States of America. The secession made Texas the seventh state to secede. -
Fort Sumter Attacked
Fort Sumter is attacked by Confederate forces. This attack is the "unofficial" first battle in Civil War. -
Virginia Secedes
Virginia secedes from the United States. This makes Virginia the eighth state to secede. -
Robert E. Lee Resigns From US Army
Robert E. Lee resigns from the United States army to lead the Confederate Army. He led the Confederate Army because his home state joined, he opposed what the Confederacy stood for. -
Battle of Bull Run
The Battle of Bull Run is seen as the first battle in the Civil War but is actually the second. The result of the war is a Confederate victory that sent the Union troops in retreat. -
Jefferson Davis Inaugurated
Jefferson Davis is inaugurated in Richmond, Virginia. He was inaugurated to a 6 year term as a president. -
Battle of Pea Ridge
The battle was a major Union victory against the Confederates. The result was the Confederates were shut out of Missouri. -
US Makes Steps to Ending Slavery
U.S. federal government forbids all Union army officers from returning fugitive slaves, thus effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850. -
Battle of Yorktown
The battle begins when Union forces under General George B. McClellan close in on the Confederate capital Richmond, Virginia -
Pacific Railway Acts
United States President Abraham Lincoln signs into law the Pacific Railway Acts, authorizing construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad -
Lincoln Meets With African-American Leaders
President Abraham Lincoln meets with African-American leaders. This is the first time a President has done such a thing. He suggests the African-American populous should migrate to Africa or Central America, but this advice is rejected. -
Battle of Chantilly
Confederate General Robert E. Lee leads his forces in an attack on retreating Union troops in Chantilly, Virginia, driving them away -
Battle of Antietam
Union forces defeat Confederate troops at Sharpsburg, Maryland, in the bloodiest day in U.S. history with over 22,000 casualties. -
McClellan is Fired!
President Abraham Lincoln removes George B. McClellan as commander of the Union Army. McClellan was seen unfit to lead the Union by Lincoln. -
Virginia is Split
Union President Abraham Lincoln signs an act that admits West Virginia to the Union, this divided Virginia in two. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Lincoln issues the second executive order of the Emancipation Proclamation, in which Confederate states's slaves were to be freed. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
General Robert E. Lee defeats Union forces with 13,000 Confederate casualties, among them Stonewall Jackson who was shot by his own men, and 17,500 Union soldiers. -
Battle of Gettysburg
Union forces under George Meade defeat a Confederate invasion by Robert Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg, the largest battle of the war. The total number of deaths on both sides was 28,000 Confederate and 23,000 Union. -
First African American Military Unit
The first African American military unit, 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, unsuccessfully assaults Confederate Fort Wagner. Their valiant fighting proves the worth of African American soldiers during the war. -
Robert E. Lee Tries to Resign
Following his defeat in the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation to Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Davis denies this request and Robert E. Lee continues to lead the army. -
Battle of Wauhatchie
Forces under General Ulysses S. Grant, fought through the night, stump a Confederate attack led by General James Longstreet. Union forces are able to then open a supply line into Chattanooga, Tennessee -
Gettysburg Address
President Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address at the military cemetery ceremony in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This speech was for all the Union soldiers killed at the Battle of Gettysburg. -
Battle of Lookout Mountain
Near Chattanooga, Tennessee, Union forces led by General Ulysses S. Grant capture Lookout Mountain. The forces then begin to break the Confederate siege of the city led by General Braxton Bragg -
Battle of Missionary Ridge
Missionary Ridge in Tennessee, Union forces led by General Ulysses S. Grant break the Siege of Chattanooga. They did so by routing Confederate troops under General Braxton Bragg -
Battle of Mine Run
Union forces under General George Meade position against troops led by Confederate General Robert E. Lee. Meade's forces could not find any weaknesses in the Confederate forces and give up trying after 5 days -
H.L. Hunley
The tiny Confederate submarine Hunley torpedoes the USS Housatonic. This made the Hunley the first submarine to sink an enemy ship. The submarine and its crew of 8 are also lost. -
Grant Gets Promoted
President Abraham Lincoln appoints Ulysses S. Grant commander in chief of all Union armies. This makes Grant a figurehead of the Union and popular around the states. -
Battle of Piedmont
Union forces under General David Hunter defeat a Confederate army at Piedmont, Virginia, taking 1,000 prisoners.This victory for the Union served as a major morale booster for the troops. -
Arlington National Cemetery Established
Arlington National Cemetery is established when 200 acres of the grounds of Robert E. Lee's home Arlington House are officially set aside as a military cemetery by U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M Stanton. This cemetery is still a major part of the United States today, and is highly respected. -
Battle of Globe Tavern
Forces under Union General Ulysses S. Grant cut a vital Confederate supply line into Petersburg, Virginia. They tried by attacking the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, forcing the Confederates to use wagons -
Lincoln Wins...Again!
Abraham Lincoln is reelected in a huge victory over George B. McClellan. This is the second time that Lincoln has "defeated" McClellan, both by firing him and now the defeat in the election. -
Sherman's March to the Sea Begins
Union General Sherman burns Atlanta and starts to head down south, causing devastation to crops and mills and living off the land. -
General Hood Fails to Stop Sherman
Confederate General John Bell Hood invades Tennessee in an attempt to draw Union General Sherman from Georgia. This attempt did not work and Sherman kept going forward. -
Kilpatrick Saves the March to The Sea
Waynesboro, Georgia, forces under Union General Judson Kilpatrick prevent troops led by Confederate General Joseph Wheeler from interfering with Union General Sherman's march to Savannah, Georgia. Therefore he saved Sherman's March to the Sea. -
Sherman's March to the Sea is Completed
The march ends as Major General Sherman captures the port of Savannah, Georgia. Sherman path of devastation in the South is seen as a major Union triumph. -
Confederacy Suffers Heavy Losses
In Virginia, Confederate forces capture Fort Steadman from the Union. Lee's army suffers heavy casualties during the Battle of Fort Steadman, around 2,900 plus 1,000 captured in the Union counterattack. Confederate positions are weakened and after the battle, Lee's defeat is only a matter of time. -
Evacuation Sunday
Confederate President Jefferson Davis and most of his Cabinet flee the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, which is taken by Union troops the next day. -
Confederacy Surrenders
General Robert E. Lee surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, ending the American Civil War. -
Lincoln is Shot
Actor and Confederate supporter John Wilkes Booth shoots and mortally wounds U. S. President Abraham Lincoln while Lincoln is attending an performance. Doctors come to help the President in the theater then soldiers move his unconscious body to a house across the street. -
Lincoln Dies, Johnson is President
President Lincoln dies of his gunshot wound. Therefore, Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes the 17th President of the United States. -
Booth is Shot Dead
Union cavalry corner John Wilkes Booth in a Virginia barn, and cavalryman Boston Corbett shoots the assassin dead. -
Confederate Government Falls
Jefferson Davis meets with his Confederate Cabinet for the last time, in Washington, Georgia. The Confederate Government is officially over. -
Last Confederate Unit Falls
The last significant organized Confederate unit, Captain James Waddell, surrender to the British in Liverpool. -
13th Amendment Approved by Most of US
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution is declared ratified by three-quarters of the states of the United States. This shows major unification throughout the United States. -
KKK is Formed
The Ku Klux Klan is formed by six Confederate Army veterans, with support of the Democratic Party in Tennessee. They did it to resist Reconstruction and as well as to repress the freed slaves. -
Fisk University is Established
Fisk University, black university, is established in Nashville, Tennessee. This university shows how the African-Americans now were gaining more and more rights. -
The Liberator Ends
The last issue of the abolitionist magazine The Liberator is published in Boston. This last issue shows how America was changing for the better and the right to free slaves was no longer an issue. -
Civil Rights Act of 1866
The United States Congress overwhelmingly passes the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the first federal legislation to protect the rights of African-Americans. -
The Nickel is Created
The U.S. Congress approves the minting of a nickel 5-cent coin, eliminating its predecessor, the half dime. This is one of the first things that Congress has done together since the war. -
Red Cloud War Starts
An armed conflict between the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Northern Arapaho on one side versus the United States in Wyoming and Montana territories. -
Tennessee Joins the Union
Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War. -
General Grant Gets Promoted
The U.S. Congress passes legislation authorizing the rank of General of the Army. Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant becomes the first to have this rank. -
National Union Covention
National Union Convention is held in Philadelphia. The hope was to reconcile the Radical Republicans in Congress with the Reconstructionist policies of President Andrew Johnson -
Swing Around the Circle
President Andrew Johnson goes on Swing Around the Circle. The tour was to gain support for his Reconstructionist policies and Democratic Party candidates in the upcoming election. -
House of Representatives Elections 1866
The Republican Party wins in a landslide despite President Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle tour. -
Clarke School for the Deaf
Clarke School for the Deaf in Northampton, Massachusetts opens its doors for the first time, the first school for the deaf in the United States to teach deaf children how to communicate with others using the "oral method." The exact date it opened is unknown. -
African-American Men Gain Right to Vote in District of Columbia
African-American men are granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia. This signifies the growing rights of the African Americans. -
Nebraska is the 37th U.S. State
Nebraska is admitted as the 37th U.S. state, this shows the United States is starting to prosper again -
Alaska is Bought
Alaska is purchased for $7.2 million from Alexander II of Russia, about 2 cents per acre. United States Secretary of State William H. Seward is the one who does the deal. -
Atlantic Cable Quartz
The Atlantic Cable Quartz Lode mine is named in Montana. This mine was a common trend throughout the United States with the gold rush. -
Kidder Massacre
Sioux and Cheyenne war party kills U.S. Second Lieutenant Lyman Kidder, along with an Indian scout and ten enlisted men in Kansas. -
Elevated Railroad NY
The first elevated railroad in USA begins service in New York, showing the progress of the United States industrially. -
Control of Midway Island
The United States takes control of Midway Island. This action would later prove vital in WW2 specifically against the Japanese -
Medicine Lodge Treaty
Near Medicine Lodge Creek, Kansas, a landmark treaty is signed by southern Great Plains Indian leaders. The treaty requires Native American Plains tribes to relocate to a reservation in western Oklahoma. -
Train Crash in Angola
49 people are killed in a train crash in Angola, New York. This event comes shortly after the elevated railroad construction.
