-
Republican Party is formed
The Republican Party is founded in the Northern United States by forces opposed to the expansion of slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act passed
Kansas-Nebraska Acts passes, effectively repealing the Missouri Compromise, allowing for popular sovereignty which allowed each state to decide if it wanted to allow slavery or not via the opinion of its citizens. The Act also leads to the violent uprising known as "Bleeding Kansas" the first of many Antislavery v Pro-slavery feuds leading up to the American Civil War. -
Lincoln gives his Gettysburg Address
Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address speech at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery, in which he articulates that this Civil War is a test of the nations strength and unity and that all those who had died had not died in vain as their country they fought for will once again be unified under God and freedom. -
Abraham Lincoln Elected President
Lincoln is elected in 1860 as the 16th President which is generally known as the kick-start of the American Civil War -
South Carolina votes to secede from the United States
South Carolina becomes the first state to secede from the federal Union. -
Jefferson Davis elected president of the Confederacy
Davis is unanimously elected to the provisional presidency of the Confederacy by a constitutional convention in Montgomery, Alabama. -
Confederate forces fire on Fort Sumter
The South Carolina militia fire on Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina. The attack ends with a loss for the U.S. army and officially becomes the first battle of the American Civil War. -
Richmond becomes the capital of the Confederacy
Richmond, Virginia is named the new Capital of the Confederacy. -
First Battle of Bull Run is fought
The First Battle of Bull Run, called the Battle of First Manassas by Confederate forces, becomes the first major battle of the American Civil War. The battle is fought in Prince William County, Virginia and results in a victory for the Confederates -
The Merrimack and the Monitor fight of the Virginia coast
The Confederate Merrimack ship faces off against the Union Monitor ship and the battle becomes the first battle to utilize "ironclad" ships, transcending and completely changing the way naval warfare worked. -
Period: to
Battle of Shiloh
Takes place in southwestern Tennessee, part of the war's Western Theater. The battlefield is located between a small, undistinguished church named Shiloh and Pittsburg Landing on the Tennessee River. During the Battle, Two Union armies combine to defeat the Confederate Army of Mississippi. -
Robert E. Lee is named commander of the Army of Northern Virginia
General Robert E. Lee takes command of the Army of Northern Virginia, the driving forces of the Confederate army, after Joseph E. Johnston was wounded and Gustavus Woodson Smith suffered what may have been a nervous breakdown at the Battle of Seven Pines. -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam, also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, was fought between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union Major General George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek. The battle resulted in a victory for the Union, however also became what is known as the bloodiest single day in American history with more than 22,000 casualties in total within the day. -
Period: to
Battle of Fredicksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War in which the Confederate States of America took an impactful victory -
Emancipation Proclamation is announced
The Emancipation Proclamation, was the executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863. The Proclamation had the effect of changing the legal status of more than 3.5 million enslaved African Americans in the Confederate states from enslaved to free. As soon as slaves escaped the control of their enslavers, either by fleeing to Union lines or through the advance of federal troops, they were permanently deemed free. -
Period: to
Battle of Chancellorsville
A major battle in the Civil War, resulting in a win for the Confederate Army and mass casualties for the Union Forces. -
Period: to
Battle of Gettysburg
The battle that is widely considered the Civil War's turning point, in which the Union defeats the Confederacy in a three day battle in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. -
Confederates surrender at Vicksburg
The Battle of Vicksburg ends in a victory for the Union and results in the Confederates to surrender, ending the Vicksburg Campaign. -
Period: to
New York City draft riots
The New York City draft riots begin causing violent disturbances in Lower Manhattan, The riots become the largest civil and most racially charged urban disturbance in American history -
Lincoln suspends habeas corpus
President Lincoln issues the Presidential Proclamation 94 which suspends the writ of habeas corpus. (The writ of habeas corpus is a tool preventing the government from unlawfully imprisoning individuals outside of the judicial process) -
Atlanta is captured
The Union captures Atlanta, the supply hub for the Confederate forces which gives the Union a significant advantage. -
Abraham Lincoln defeats George McClellan to win re-election
After the conclusion of Lincoln's first term in office, he runs once again and easily defeats Democratic candidate George McClellan by landslide. Thus beginning the second term of Abraham Lincoln's presidency. -
Period: to
Sherman begins his March to the Sea
Following Atlanta being captured by Union forces, Union soldiers march through Georgia only ending after having captured the port of Savannah. The Union forces follow a "scorched earth" policy, destroying military targets as well as industry, infrastructure, and civilian property, disrupting the Confederacy's economy and transportation networks. -
Freedman’s Bureau is created
Congress passes “An Act to establish a Bureau for the Relief of Freedmen and Refugees” to provide food, shelter, clothing, medical services, and land to displaced Southerners, including newly freed African Americans. -
Lincoln gives his second inaugural address
Abraham Lincoln delivers his second inaugural address during his second inauguration as President of the United States. Within the Address, President Lincoln articulated how the defeated rebels should not be treated as lesser citizens and that America as a Country must regain its unity. He ended the Address by recognizing the unmistakable evil of slavery. -
Richmond falls to the Union Army
The Confederate Capitol, Richmond, Virginia falls to the Union. -
Congress passes the 13th Amendment
Congress passes the 13th Amendment, officially abolishing slavery under the constitution. -
Robert E. Lee surrenders at Appomattox
Appomattox becomes the first officially battle of the Civil War when Confederate general Robert E. Lee admits defeat and ends the war with a victory for the Union, however battles still go on for a few weeks as the news takes time to reach all of the Confederate and Union forces. -
Abraham Lincoln is Assassinated
Less than a year into his second term, Lincoln is Assassinated in Ford's Theater by confederate sympathizer and radicalist John Wilkes Booth who intended to revive the Confederacy by taking out major federal officials once the Civil War had concluded. -
John Wilkes Booth is killed
12 days after fleeing from the scene of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth is found to be hiding in a tobacco barn which is set on fire to kill or draw out Booth. As the barn sets ablaze and Booth tries to scurry out, he is seen and shot by Sergeant Boston Corbett.