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Period: to
Civil War
Civil War -
Pony Express begins
The Pony Express was a mail service delivering messages, newspapers, and mail. -
U.S. Secret Service was created
The U.S. Secret Service was created to arrest counterfeiters and protect the president. -
Charles Goodyear dies on July 1, 1860
Charles Goodyear, inventor or the vulcanization process for rubber, died on July 1, 1860. -
Ulysses S. Grant assumed command of Federal forces
Ulysses S. Grant assumed command of Federal forces at Cape Girardeau, MI. This happened September 1, 1860. -
South Carolina governor William Henry Gist intends to secede
Governor William Henry Gist notifies other South states that South Carolina is considering secession as an option. -
Abraham Lincoln is elected President
Abraham Lincoln is elected as the 16th President of the United States. He was elected on November 6, 1860. -
The First Secession Convention meets in Columbia, South Carolina
On December 17, 1860, people met in Columbia, South Carolina to discuss the first ever Secession Convention planning to happen. -
The Crittenden Compromise
The Crittenden Compromise was an unsuccessful proposal introduced by United States Senator John J. Crittenden. It aimed to resolve the secession crisis of 1860–1861 by addressing the fears and grievances about slavery that led many slave-holding states to contemplate secession from the United States. -
South Carolina secedes from the Union
South Carolina is the first slave state to secede from the Union. This happened on December 20, 1860. -
Major Robert Anderson concentrated his small federal force at Fort Sumter
Major Robert Anderson, under cover of darkness, concentrated his small federal force at Ft. Sumter, SC. This was on December 26, 1860. -
Mississippi secedes from the Union
Mississippi is the second slave state to secede from the Union. This happened January 9th, 1861. -
Florida secedes from the Union
Florida is the third slave state to secede from the Union. This happened January 10, 1861, right after Mississippi. -
Jefferson Davis appointed President of the Confederate States
Jefferson Davis is appointed the first President of the Confederate States of America at Montgomery, Alabama, a position he will hold until elections can be arranged. -
Abraham Lincoln becomes President
Abraham Lincoln becomes President and is sworn into office on March 4, 1861. -
Southern forces fire upon Fort Sumter
The South forces had fired upon Fort Sumter, South Carolina. This has officially begun the Civil War. -
President Lincoln calls for 75,000 Militia
President Lincoln issues a public declaration that an insurrection exists and calls for 75,000 militia to stop the rebellion. As a result of this call for volunteers, four additional southern states secede from the Union in the following weeks -
Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina secede from the Union
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. -
Battle of First Bull Run
The Battle of Bull Run (or First Manassas), is fought near Manassas, Virginia. This happened on July 21, 1861. -
Battle of Wilson's Creek in Missouri
Battle of Wilson's Creek, Missouri.The Union Army under General Nathaniel Lyon, attack Confederate troops and state militia southwest of Springfield, Missouri, and after a disastrous day that included the death of Lyon, are thrown back. The Confederate victory emphasizes the strong southern presence west of the Mississippi River. -
Battle of Ball's Bluff in Virginia
Colonel Edward D. Baker, senator from Oregon and a friend of President Lincoln, led troops across the Potomac River only to be forced back to the river's edge where he was killed. -
Battle of Mill Springs in Kentucky
Battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky. The Union victory weakened the Confederate hold on the state. -
Surrender of Fort Henry in Tennessee
The lost of this southern fort on the Tennessee River opened the door to Union control of the river. -
Battle of Roanoke Island, North Carolina
A Confederate defeat, the battle resulted in Union occupation of eastern North Carolina and control of Pamlico Sound, to be used as Northern base for further operations against the southern coast. -
Surrender of Fort Donelson in Tennessee
This primary southern fort on the Cumberland River left the river in Union hands. It was here that Union General Ulysses S. Grant gained his nickname "Unconditional Surrender". -
Battle of Shiloh in Tennessee
Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston, a veteran of the Texas War of Independence is killed on the first day of fighting. The Union victory further secures the career of Union General Ulysses S. Grant. -
First Battle of Winchester in Virginia
After two weeks of maneuvering and battles at Cross Keys and Front Royal, General "Stonewall" Jackson attacks Union forces at Winchester and successfully drives them from the city. The victory is the culmination of his 1862 Valley Campaign. -
Battle of Seven Pines near Richmond in Virginia
General Joseph Johnston, commander of the Confederate army in Virginia is wounded and replaced by Robert E. Lee who renames his command the "Army of Northern Virginia". -
Battle of Second Bull Run
The Battle of Second Bull Run (or Second Manassas) is fought on the same ground where one year before, the Union army was defeated and sent reeling in retreat to Washington. -
Battle of Antietam in Maryland
The bloodiest single day of the Civil War. The result of the battle ends General Lee's first invasion of the North. It was a Union victory. -
Battle of Fredericksburg in Virginia
The Army of the Potomac, under General Ambrose Burnside, is soundly defeated by Lee's forces after a risky river crossing and sacking of the city. -
The Emancipation Proclamation goes into Effect
Applauded by many abolitionists including Frederick Douglass, there are others who feel it does not go far enough to totally abolish slavery. -
Conscription begins in the North
Conscription, or the drafting of soldiers into military service, begins in the North. It had begun in the South the year before. -
Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia
General Lee's greatest victory is marred by the mortal wounding of "Stonewall" Jackson, who dies on May 10. Soon after, Lee asks Jefferson Davis for permission to invade the North and take the war out of Virginia. -
Siege of Vicksburg in Mississippi begins
Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant attack Confederate defenses outside the city on May 19-22. If Vicksburg falls, the Mississippi River will be completely controlled by the Union. -
Second Battle of Winchester in Virginia
Confederate troops under General Richard Ewell defeat Union troops under General Robert Milroy, clearing the Shenandoah Valley of Union forces. -
Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania
The bloodiest battle of the Civil War dashes Robert E. Lee's hopes for a successful invasion of the North. -
Battle of Chickamauga in Georgia
The Union Army of the Cumberland under General William Rosecrans is defeated and nearly routed by the Confederate Army of Tennessee commanded by General Braxton Bragg. -
Abraham Lincoln gives the Gettysburg Address
On November 19, 1893, Abraham Lincoln gives the Gettysburg Address speech. It is one of the most powerful speeches in US history. -
Battle for Chattanooga
Union forces break the Confederate siege of the city in successive attacks. The decisive Union victory sends the Confederate Army south into Georgia where General Bragg reorganizes his forces before resigning from command on November 30. -
Siege of Knoxville in Tennessee
Confederate troops under General James Longstreet lay siege to the city of Knoxville held by Union forces under General Ambrose Burnside. Longstreet finally attacks on November 30 but is repulsed with heavy losses. -
Andersonville Prison Camp opens in Georgia
In Georgia, Camp Sumter Prison Camp opens. Universally referred to as Andersonville Prison Camp, it will become notorious for overcrowded conditions and a high death rate among its inmates. -
Ulysses S. Grant is appointed Lieutenant General
Ulysses S. Grant is appointed lieutenant general, a rank revived at the request of President Lincoln. Grant assumes command of all Union Armies in the field the following day. -
The Red River Campaign begins
As part of an overall Union strategy to strike deep into various parts of the Confederacy, a combined force of army and navy commands under General Nathaniel Banks begins a campaign on the Red River in Louisiana. -
Battle of Sabine Crossroads or Mansfield in Louisiana
This is the first major battle of the Red River Campaign in Louisiana. -
Battle of Cold Harbor in Virginia
Relentless and bloody Union attacks fail to dislodge Lee's army from its strong line of defensive works northeast of Richmond. -
Battle of the Crater at Petersburg in Virginia.
After a month of tunneling by soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry, a massive mine was exploded under a Confederate fort in the Petersburg siege lines. The infantry charge that followed was poorly coordinated and by day's end, Confederate counterattacks had driven out the Union troops and the siege lines remained unchanged. -
Battle of Jonesborough in Georgia
The final southern counterattack against Union troops outside the city of Atlanta fails. -
Third Battle of Winchester in Virginia
Union forces under General Philip Sheridan attacked the Confederate army under Jubal Early near the city of Winchester and drove them southward, up the Shenandoah Valley. -
Lincoln is reelected President
Abraham Lincoln is reelected president of the United States. -
Battle of Nashville in Tennessee
The Confederate Army under John Bell Hood is thoroughly defeated and the threat to Tennessee ends. -
President Lincoln is inaugurated for second term
President Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated for his second term as president in Washington, DC. -
Union troops occupy Richmond and Petersburg in Virginia.
Union troops occupy Richmond and Petersburg in Virginia. This basically means the Union has a huge advantage since they captured the Confederate capital. -
End of the Civil War
Lee surrenders to Grant on April 9, 1865. -
President Lincoln is assassinated
President Abraham Lincoln is assassinated by actor John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theater in Washington, DC. On the same day, Fort Sumter, South Carolina is re-occupied by Union troops. -
Andrew Johnson takes Lincoln's place in Presidency
The inauguration of Andrew Johnson as the 17th President of the United States was held on April 15, 1865 at the Kirkwood House in Washington, D.C., following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. -
General Joseph Johnston signs the surrender document
General Joseph Johnston signs the surrender document for the Confederate Army of the Tennessee and miscellaneous southern troops attached to his command at Bennett's Place near Durham, North Carolina. -
Jefferson Davis is captured
Confederate President Jefferson Davis is captured near Irwinville, Georgia. -
Final Battle of Civil War
May 12, 1865- The final battle of the Civil War takes place at Palmito Ranch, Texas. It is a Confederate victory. -
Civil War officially ends
General Simon Bolivar Buckner enters into terms for surrender of the Army of the Trans-Mississippi, which are agreed to on June 2, 1865.The Civil War officially ends. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment abolished slavery in the United States on December 6, 1865. -
Reconstruction Era
Started in 1863, the Reconstruction is an ongoing event in the United States after the American Civil War -
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; U.S. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the bill on March 27, and Congress overrides the veto on April 9.[1] -
Congress approves the minting of a nickel
The U.S. Congress approves the minting of a nickel 5-cent coin (nickel), eliminating its predecessor, the half dime. -
The Great Fire of Portland in Maine
The Great Fire of Portland, Maine kills two and leaves 10,000 homeless in the worst fire in an American city at this time. -
Judicial Circuits Act
The Judicial Circuits Act reduces the number of United States circuit courts to nine and the number of Supreme Court justices to seven. -
Tennessee is the first US state to be readmitted to Union
Reconstruction: Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War. -
Ulysses S. Grant becomes first to have the rank of a modern day Five Star General
The U.S. Congress passes legislation authorizing the rank of General of the Army (modern-day "5-star general"); Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant becomes the first to have this rank. -
Metric Act of 1866
The Metric Act of 1866 becomes law and legalizes the use of the metric system for weights and measures in the United States. -
Western Union Telegraph Expedition to Alaska
Western Union Telegraph Expedition to Alaska begins its second season, the first after the death of Robert Kennicott. -
Republican Party wins House of Reps election
House of Representatives elections: Despite President Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle tour, the Republican Party wins in a landslide. -
African men are able to vote in District of Columbia
African-American men are granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia. -
Nebraska is admitted as 37th US state
Nebraska is admitted as the 37th U.S. state. -
Alaska Purchase Treaty is signed
The purchase of Alaska in 1867 marked the end of Russian efforts to expand trade and settlements to the Pacific coast of North America, and became an important step in the United States rise as a great power in the Asia-Pacific region. -
Alaska is purchases from Russia
Alaska is purchased for $7.2 million from Alexander II of Russia, about 2 cent/acre ($4.19/km²), by United States Secretary of State William H. Seward. The news media call this "Seward's Folly." -
First Elevated Railroad
The first elevated railroad in USA begins service in New York. -
Harvard School of Dental Medicine is established
In Boston, Massachusetts, the Harvard School of Dental Medicine is established as the first dental school in the United States. -
Luxembourg gained Independence
Luxembourg gained independence on September 9, 1867. -
First All Black University
Congress created the 1st all black university, Howard Univ. in Wash DC. -
Midway Island
The United States takes control of Midway Island. -
Congress looked to impeach Johnson
US Congress commission looked into impeachment of President Andrew Johnson.
