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Election of 1860
The election of 1860 was between Republican Abraham Lincoln and Decorate John C. Breckenridge. Breckenridge was a strong southern politician who based his campaign on slavery witch was a large problem at this time. -
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Civil WarTimeline
Civil WarTimeline -
New England Shoe Workers
Twenty thousand New England shoe workers strike and subsequently win higher wages. -
Pony Express
The pony express was a system of mail service by relays of riders on horses, established in 1860 between Missouri and California, through the Rocky Mountains. It operated for only a year and a half, until a telegraph line eliminated the need for it. -
Republican National Convention of 1860
The 1860 Republican National Convention, also known as the 2nd Republican National Convention, was a nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States, held in Chicago, Illinois. This is where Abraham Lincoln won the Republican vote. -
Census of 1860
It was the eighth Census conducted in the United States starting June 1, 1860, and lasting five months. It determined the population of the United States to be 31,443,321, an increase of 35.4 percent over the 23,191,875 persons enumerated during the 1850 Census. -
Henry Rifle
Benjamin Henry made improvements to the original Henry rife. This gun would become the main weapon used by the union army. -
Dust Storms sweep the nation
Server drought throughout the mid. west causes large dust storms that plague the nation. Kansas in particular was hit hard causing 30,000 settlers to leave the area. -
Abraham Lincoln is elected president
Abraham Lincoln is elected sixteenth president of the United States, he is the first Republican president in the nation who represents a party that opposes the spread of slavery -
Crittenden Compromise.
It was a 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 seceded from the Union
South Carolina was the first state to leave the union. They feared a end to their way of life. -
Mississippi seceded from the Union.
Mississippi was the second state to leave the union. Followed in the foot steps of South Carolina. -
Florida Secedes from union
Florida delegates who were meeting in the state capital, Tallahassee, voted to secede from the U.S. Florida became one of the six original Southern states to form the Confederate States of America -
Alabama Seceded from Union
After the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, plus prior secession of South Carolina, Mississippi, and Florida, the Alabama delegates also voted to secede from the United States -
Georgia Seceded from the Union
There decision to leave the United States had far-reaching and unintended consequences all Southerners. Secession began after President Lincoln's election in the belief that his Republican Party was aggressively anti-slavery. -
Louisiana seceded from union
It then joined the Confederate States of America. Louisiana was the sixth state to secede. -
Texas Seceded from Union
Houston refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy and was replaced in March 1861 by his lieutenant governor. Texas' move completed the first round of secession -
Confederate States of America officially formed
Jefferson Davis 1st and last Confederate President of the Confederate States of America. These states defied Lincoln & northern control by seizing union forts within their borders -
Virginia Seceded from Union
The Commonwealth of Virginia became a prominent part of the Confederate States of America when it joined the Confederacy during the American Civil War. As a Southern slave-holding state, Virginia held a state convention to deal with the secession crisis, -
Arkansas Seceded from Union
Arkansas was a Confederate state, though it had initially voted to remain in the Union. Following the capture of Fort Sumter in April 1861, Abraham Lincoln called for troops from every Union state to put down the rebellion, and Arkansas and several other states seceded. -
Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run (the name used by Union forces), also known as the First Battle of Manassas (the name used by Confederate forces), was fought in Prince William County, Virginia, just north of the city of Manassas and about 25 miles west-southwest of Washington, D.C. -
Great Flood of 1862
The Great Flood of 1862 was the largest flood in the recorded history of Oregon, Nevada, and California . It was preceded by weeks of continuous rains and snows in the very high elevations that began in Oregon in November 1861 and continued into January 1862. -
Invasion of Fort Henry
General Ulysses S. Grant gives the United States its first major victory of the war, by capturing Fort Henry, Tennessee. -
Jefferson Davis Inaugurated
Jefferson Davis is officially inaugurated in Richmond, Virginia, to a 6-year term as president of the Confederate States of America. -
Union no longer recognizes Fugitive Slave Laws
The U.S. federal government forbids all Union army officers from returning fugitive slaves, thus effectively annulling the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 and setting the stage for the Emancipation Proclamation. -
Battle of Yorktown
The battle begins when Union forces under General George B. McClellan close in on the Confederate capital Richmond, Virginia. -
Lincoln signs the Homestead Act
The Homestead Act encouraged Western migration by providing settlers 160 acres of public land. In exchange, homesteaders paid a small filing fee and were required to complete five years of continuous residence before receiving ownership of the land. -
Robert E. Lee takes control
Robert E. Lee takes control of the Army of Northern Virginia. It was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. -
Pacific Railway Acts,
Abraham Lincoln signs into law the Pacific Railway Acts, authorizing construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad -
Morgan's Raid
At Buffington Island in Ohio, Confederate General John Hunt Morgan's raid into the North is mostly thwarted when a large group of his men are captured while trying to escape across the Ohio River. -
West Virginia Joins the union
President Abraham Lincoln signs an act that admits West Virginia to the Union (thus dividing Virginia in two) -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Lincoln issues the second executive order of the Emancipation Proclamation, specifying ten Confederate states in which slaves were to be freed. -
Transcontinental Railroad consultation begins
Ground is broken in Sacramento, California on the construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States. -
Libby Prison Escape
109 Union soldiers escape from the Confederate prison in Richmond, Virginia, 59 making it back to their home territory. -
Enrollment Act is signed
Also known as the Civil War Military Draft Act,[1] was legislation passed by the United States Congress during the American Civil War to provide fresh manpower for the Union Army -
Southern bread riots
In Richmond, Virginia, about 5,000 people, mostly poor women, riot to protest the exorbitant price of bread. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
General Robert E. Lee defeats Union forces with 13,000 Confederate casualties, among them Stonewall Jackson (lost to friendly fire), and 17,500 Union casualties. -
54th Massachusetts
The first African-American regiment, leaves Boston, Massachusetts to fight for the Union. -
Battle of Gettysburg
Union forces under George G. Meade turn back a Confederate invasion by Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Gettysburg, the largest battle of the war (28,000 Confederate casualties, 23,000 Union). -
New York Draft Riots
In New York City, opponents of conscription begin 3 days of violent rioting, which would later be regarded as the worst in the history of the U.S. with around 120 killed. -
General Robert E. Lee Quits
Following his defeat in the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation to Confederate President Jefferson Davis (Davis refuses the request upon receipt). -
Navajo Migration
Bands of Navajo led by the U.S. Army are relocated from their traditional lands in eastern Arizona Territory and western New Mexico Territory to Fort Sumner in the Pecos River valley. At least 200 died along the 300-mile trip that took over 18 days to travel on foot. -
USS Housatonic is Torpedoed
The tiny Confederate submarine Hunley torpedoes the USS Housatonic, becoming the first submarine to sink an enemy ship (the sub and her crew of 8 are also lost). -
Ulysses S. Grant in charge of Union Army
President Abraham Lincoln appoints Ulysses S. Grant commander in chief of all Union armies. -
Fake Draft
The New York World and the New York Journal of Commerce publish a fake proclamation that President Abraham Lincoln has issued a draft of 400,000 more soldiers. -
Siege of Petersburg
The Siege of Petersburg begins. Union forces under General Grant and troops led by Confederate General Robert E. Lee battle for the last time. -
Battle of Atlanta
Outside of Atlanta, Georgia, Confederate General Hood leads an unsuccessful attack on Union troops under General Sherman on Bald Hill. -
Battle of Globe Tavern
Forces under Union General Ulysses S. Grant try to cut a vital Confederate supply-line into Petersburg, Virginia, by attacking the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad, forcing the Confederates to use wagons. -
Confederates leave Atlanta
Confederate General Hood evacuates Atlanta after a 4-month siege mounted by Union General Sherman -
Gettysburg Address
U. S. President Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address at the military cemetery dedication ceremony in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. -
Sherman's March to the Sea
At Waynesboro, Georgia, forces under Union General Judson Kilpatrick prevent troops led by Confederate General Joseph Wheeler from interfering with Union General Sherman's campaign of destroying a wide swath of the South on his march to Savannah, Georgia -
No more slavery in Tennesse
Tennessee adopts a new constitution that abolishes slavery. -
South uses African troops
The Confederate States of America agrees to the use of African American troops. -
Southern Congress Shuts down
The Congress of the Confederate States of America adjourns for the last time. -
Fort Stedman Captured
In Virginia, Confederate forces capture Fort Stedman from the Union. Lee's army suffers heavy casualties during the Battle of Fort Stedman—about 2,900, including 1,000 captured in the Union counterattack. Confederate positions are weakened. -
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. -
Union takes Richmond
Richmond is captured by Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant. -
Civil War is Over
General Robert E. Lee surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending the American Civil War. -
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln:
Actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth shoots and mortally wounds U. S. President Abraham Lincoln while Lincoln is attending an evening performance of the farce Our American Cousin at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C.. -
Inauguration of Andrew Johnson
President Lincoln dies of his gunshot wound early this morning and Vice President Andrew Johnson becomes the 17th President of the United States -
Ku Klux Klan is formed
Formed by six Confederate Army veterans, with support of the Democratic Party, in Pulaski, Tennessee, to resist Reconstruction and intimidate "carpetbaggers" and "scalawags", as well as to repress the freed slaves. -
United States Capitol
The second United States Capitol dome is completed in Washington, D.C. after 11 years of work; it survives to the modern day. -
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; -
Vetoes the Civil Rights Acts
U.S. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Acts of 1866. -
Congress Overrides the Veto
Congress overrides President Jackson's veto on the Civil Rights Acts of 1866. -
Supreme Court is Downsized
The Judicial Circuits Act reduces the number of United States circuit courts to nine and the number of Supreme Court justices to seven. -
General of the Army
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. -
United States turns to Metric System
The Metric Act of 1866 becomes law and legalizes the use of the metric system for weights and measures in the United States. -
National Union Convention
The National Union Convention is held in Philadelphia with hopes to reconcile the Radical Republicans in Congress with the Re constructionist policies of President Andrew Johnson -
President Andrew Johnson goes on Speaking Tour
President Andrew Johnson goes on his Swing Around the Circle speaking tour to gain support for his Re constructionist policies and Democratic Party candidates in the upcoming elections. -
House of Representatives elections
Despite President Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle tour, the Republican Party wins in a landslide. -
John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge opens
It was between Cincinnati, Ohio and Covington, Kentucky, becoming the longest suspension bridge in the world at that time. -
"Blacks can vote !"
African-American men are granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia. -
Nebraska is a state
Nebraska is admitted as the 37th U.S. state -
USA buys Alaska
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." -
Kidder massacre
A Sioux and Cheyenne war party kills U.S. Second Lieutenant Lyman Kidder, along with an Indian scout and ten enlisted men in Kansas. -
The Subway is born
The first elevated railroad in USA begins service in New York, leading the way for the current day subway. -
Harvard School of Dental Medicine is created
In Boston, Massachusetts, the Harvard School of Dental Medicine is established as the first dental school in the United States. -
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. -
Order of the Patrons of Husbandry
Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Order of the Patrons of Husbandry (better known today as The Grange). -
First Large Scale Train Crash in U.S
49 people are killed in a train crash in Angola, New York. Making it the first large scale train crash in U.S.
