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United States Civil War Period
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Cooper Union Address
Lincoln addresses his Cooper Union speech, which is considered one of his most important speeches that helped him soon achieve the presidency. Lincoln explains how he does not want to expand slavery, and he claims that the Founding Fathers would agree with him. -
Jackson assigned to Harpers Ferry
Thomas Jackson, Confederate General, nicknamed "Stonewall" Jackson, is assigned to command Harpers Ferry. -
Lincoln Nominated for Presidency
Abraham Lincoln, a one-time U.S. representative from Illinois, is nominated for the U.S. presidency by the Republican National Convention meeting in Chicago, Illinois. -
Grace Bedell writes to Lincoln
11 year old Grace Bedell writes a letter to Abraham Lincoln, suggesting he grow a beard for the Presidential Election. Lincoln follows her advice and because of this, he is now most commonly associated with his beard. -
Lincoln is Elected President
Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln defeats three opponents in the campaign for the presidency. Although Lincoln won the Electoral College by a large majority, 180 to 123 for all other candidates, the popular vote showed just how split the nation was. -
James Chesnut resigns from Senate
After South Carolina calls for a convention on secession, James Chesnut becomes the first Southerner to resign from the Senate, and he is followed by James H. Hammond. -
Crittenden Compromise
Senator John J. Crittenden proposes the Crittenden Compromise, an unsuccessful attempt to solve the secession crisis. The proposition was suspended on December 31, after South Carolina officially secedes. -
South Carolina Secession
South Carolina secedes from the United States. They were the first to secede from the Union, with other states soon following. -
SC Issues Declaration
South Carolina issues the “Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union” which was a proclamation explaining why they seceded from the Union. -
Anderson concentrated at Fort Sumter
Major Robert Anderson of the Union army, secretly concentrates his small force at Fort Sumter, which will later become the unofficial start of the Civil War. -
Artillery fires at Charleston Harbor
Artillery fires on the Star of the West from Morris Island as it crosses into the main entrance channel to Charleston Harbor. As the ship comes about, Fort Moultrie opens fire, also with cannon shot. A mile and a half from Fort Sumter, the ship withdraws. -
Confederate States of America is formed
The Convention of Seceded States adopts a provisional constitution, officially forming the Confederate States of America. -
Davis chosen for C.S.A President
The CSA Convention settles on Jefferson Davis as president, and they select Alexander Stephens, both pro-Union and a friend of Abraham Lincoln, as vice-president. -
Fort Sumter is fired upon!
Confederate forces along the shore of Charleston Harbor fire on Fort Sumter under the command of Major Robert Anderson. Anderson arranges a surrender with Texas Senator Louis Wigfall on the morning of the 13th. -
Final States Resign from Union
Virginia secedes from the Union, followed within five weeks by Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. The Union will soon have 21 states and a population of over 20 million. -
Anaconda Plan Final Outline
Winfield Scott proposes and submits his final outline to McClellan, and even though he retires a year after, the Anaconda plan is used as the Union's main plan and objective to win the war. -
Battle of Philippi
This is the first land engagement of the Civil War between American and Confederate forces in Philippi, West Virginia. There were a small number of causalities, and the rebels retreated. -
Battle of Bull Run(Manassas)
About 25 miles southwest of Washington the first major battle of the Civil War takes place. The Confederates were victorious. -
Winfield Scott Resigns
Winfield Scott is relieved from duty as Supreme Comander of the United States, and McClellan takes over. -
Trent Affair
The British mail packet Trent, carrying James M. Mason and John Slidell, Confederate commissioners to London and Paris, is halted in the Bahama Channel by the U.S. warship San Jacinto. -
Battle of Fort Henry
This battle was the first significant Union victory of the American Civil War, which was a big morale boost for the Northerners. -
Battle of Fort Donelson
After Fort Henry, General Grant began his assault on nearby Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. On February 16, after Confederate forces under General Floyd failed to break through Grant’s lines, the Confederates surrendered the fort. -
Battle of Shiloh/Pittsburg Landing
This was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. Led by Grant, this was a Union victory -
Battle of Seven Pines/Fair Oaks
This battle took place in Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the part of an offensive up the Virginia Peninsula by Union Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan, in which the Army of the Potomac reached the outskirts of Richmond. The Union won. -
Battle of Second Bull Run
The Battle of Second Bull Run, or Second Manassas, was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Lee's Army against Pope's Army, and a battle of much larger scale and numbers than the First Battle of Bull Run. -
Battle of Harpers Ferry
As Lee's Confederate army invaded Maryland, a part of his army under "Stonewall" Jackson surrounded, bombarded, and captured the Union garrison at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia), a major victory at relatively minor cost. -
Battle of Antietam/Sharpsburg
The Union army under McClellan defeats the Army of Northern Virginia under Lee, resulting in the bloodiest day in American history. Both sides lost a large amount of soldiers, with over 20,000 in total. -
Lincoln Removes McClellan
After Antietam, McClellan disobeyed Lincoln's orders to chase after Lee's army, and Lincoln was fed up with McClellan's sluggish actions, so he decided to replace him with Ambrose E. Burnside. -
Battle of Fredericksburg
This battle contained the largest amount of soldiers in the Civil War, coming up to about 200,000 men. The newly appointed Union general, Burnside, out-numbed and attempted to fight Lee's army. However, Lee's army was able to defeat the Union army, diminishing Northern morale. -
Battle of Stone's River
This battle, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought into the new year 1863. It took place in central Tennessee, and the Union ended up victorious. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Abraham Lincoln issued this proclamation The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." -
Lincoln relieves General Burnside
Abraham Lincoln relieves General Ambrose Burnside from command of the Army of the Potomac, and he replaced him with General Joseph "Fighting Joe" Hooker. -
Enrollment Act Passed
This act, also known as the Civil War Military Draft Act, was a legislation passed by the United States Congress during the American Civil War to enlist more men for the Union Army. This event led to the week-long New York Draft Riots. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
This battle was one of Lee’s greatest victories during the American Civil War.He split his troops in two, confronting and surprising Union General Hooker, even thought they were outnumbered. -
Siege of Vicksburg
Lasting until July 4, 1863, this was the final major military action in the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Grant and their Army of the Tennessee crossed the Mississippi River and drove the Confederate Army of Mississippi, led by Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton, into the defensive lines surrounding the fortress city of Vicksburg, Mississippi. -
West Virginia enters the Union
West Virginia was admitted into the Union as the 35th U.S. state. In April, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the admission of West Virginia into the Union effective on this day. -
Battle of Gettysburg
In the bloodiest three days in American history, General Lee advances into Pennsylvania where he meets Meade (Union). First battling north of the city, by the second day Union forces had retreated south, forming a strong line as men arrived almost continuously. On the third day, the infamous Pickett's Charge allowed the Union forces to win. -
Battle of Chickamauga
Braxton Bragg’s Army of Tennessee defeated a Union force commanded by General William Rosecrans at this battle. This victory was one of the last for the Confederacy in the region that November. -
Gettysburg Address
Lincoln gave this speech on this day in dedication of Soldier's National Cemetery, a cemetery for Union soldiers killed at the Battle Of Gettysburg. -
Battle of Missionary Ridge
Grant breaks the siege of Chattanooga Tennessee by routing the Confederates under General Braxton Bragg at Missionary Ridge. Grant missed an opportunity to destroy the Confederate army when he chose not to pursue the retreating Rebels, but Chattanooga was secured. -
Battle of the Wilderness
This battle, fought May 5–7, was the first battle of Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. With almost 30,000 causalities, the result was inconclusive, but the Union forces continued to fight. -
Sherman begins campaign to Atlanta
On this day, Sherman begins his campaign to capture Atlanta, Georgia, which will be known as Sherman's March to the Sea. -
Battle of Cold Harbor
This battle took place about 10 miles northeast of Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital. The result was a Confederate victory, and it was the final battle in Grant's Overland campaign. -
Battle of Lynchburg
Two miles outside Lynchburg, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War, the Union Army under Hunter attempted to capture the city but was repulsed by Confederate General Early. -
Battle of Jonesboro
Sherman launches the attack that finally secures Atlanta, Georgia, for the Union, and forces Confederate General Hood’s army to evacuate the area. The fall of Atlanta was significant in securing the reelection of Abraham Lincoln in the fall. -
Lincoln Reelected
Northern voters easily endorse the leadership and policies of President Abraham Lincoln when they elect him to a second term. With his re-election, there was not going to be peace between the Union and Confederacy without a fight. -
Sherman begins March to the Sea
On this day, Sherman began his March to the sea across Georgia, setting fire to Atlanta and weakening the Southern states greatly. His march lasted until December 21, over a month later. -
Battle of Franklin
The Battle of Franklin was fought in Franklin, Tennessee, as part of the Franklin–Nashville Campaign of the American Civil War. It was one of the worst defeats for the CSA. -
Battle of Nashville
The weakened Confederate Army of Tennessee was nearly destroyed when a Union army commanded by General Thomas swarmed over the Rebel trenches around Nashville. The result was a Union victory, and the end of the Army of Tennessee as a fighting force. -
Sherman "reaches the sea"
After a half-year campaign, Sherman and his men finally finished their March to the sea and "reached it" at Savannah, Georgia. The damage Sherman and his men made would be remembered for centuries. -
House passes the 13th Amendment
The U.S. House of Representatives passes the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, abolishing slavery in America.The amendment states, “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude…shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” -
Sherman begins Carolinas Campaign
This was the final campaign in the Western Theater of the Civil War. General Sherman advanced north from Savannah, Georgia, through the Carolinas, with the intention of linking up with Union forces in Virginia. -
Capture of Columbia
This event took place during the Carolinas Campaign of the American Civil War. The state capital of Columbia, South Carolina, was captured by Union forces under Sherman. Much of the city was burned. -
Battle of Fort Stedman
This battle, also known as the Battle of Hare's Hill, was fought during the final days of the Civil War. Lee made Fort Stedman his last attack of the war in a desperate attempt to break out of Petersburg, Virginia. The attack failed, and the Confederate forces began to steadily fall. -
Battle of Sailor's Creek
This battle was fought near Farmville, Virginia, as part of the Appomattox Campaign, near the end of the American Civil War. This was the last major engagement between the Union and Confederate forces before the end of the War. -
Lee surrenders!
General Robert E. Lee surrenders at the Appomattox Court House, Virginia, ending the Civil War and allowing the Union to win. -
Lincoln is murdered at Ford's Theatre
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on Good Friday while attending the play Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. He was pronounced dead a day later, at the age of 56. -
Jefferson Davis Captured
Jefferson Davis, president of the fallen Confederate government, is captured with his wife and entourage near Irwinville, Georgia, by a part of Union General James H. Wilson’s forces. -
CSS Shenandoah lowers flag
On this day, the CSS Shenandoah lowers the last Confederate flag, symbolically showing the final end of the Confederacy. -
Adoption of 13th Amendment
Following its ratification, the 13th Amendment is formally adopted into the U.S. Constitution, abolishing slavery completely. -
The Liberator Last Issue Published
After the end of the Civil War, William Lloyd Garrison published his last issue of The Liberator, announcing “my vocation as an abolitionist is ended.” -
Johnson Vetoes Civil Rights Bill
President Andrew Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Bill, but it will be passed by congress later. The act declared that all persons born in the United States were now citizens, without regard to race, color, or previous condition. -
Civil Rights Act of 1866 Enacted
This was the first United States federal law to define citizenship and affirm that all citizens are equally protected by the law, and it was mainly intended to protect the civil rights of Africans born in or brought to the U.S. -
Judicial Circuits Act of 1866
This act reorganized the United States circuit courts and provided for the gradual elimination of several seats on the Supreme Court of the United States. It was signed into law by President Andrew Johnson, and denied him the opportunity of appointing any justices to the Supreme Court. -
Tennessee is Readmitted into the Union
Tennessee became the first Confederate state to be readmitted into the Union. It ratified the 14th Amendment, which guaranteed citizenship rights to former slaves. As a result, Tennessee became the sole state during Reconstruction that did not have an appointed military governor. -
Grant Named 1st General of Army
On this day, Ulysses S. Grant was promoted to the rank of general of the Army, making him the first officer to wear five stars. -
National Union Convention
This convention was called in an attempt to help President Johnson, who was under heavy fire from both Radical Republicans and more moderate Republicans. The convention was not successful in unifying the country behind President Johnson, so he then launched a speaking tour. -
Johnson's Swing Around the Circle
This was a speaking campaign by President Johnson between August 27 and September 15, in which he tried to gain support for his Reconstruction policies and for his preferred candidates. The tour did not go well, as there were multiple riots by angered citizens. -
Frederick Douglass becomes 1st black delegate to a National Convention
Frederick Douglass, an African-American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman, becomes the 1st black delegate at a national convention. -
House of Representatives Elections
The 1866 elections were a decisive event in the early Reconstruction era, in which President Andrew Johnson faced off against radical Republicans in a dispute over whether Reconstruction should be lenient or harsh toward the defeated South. The Republicans won in a landslide, thanks to Johnson's failed attempts at speeches in his Swing Around the Circle. -
Congress expands suffrage in D.C.
Congress dominated by radical Republicans overrode a veto by President Andrew Johnson, thereby granting voting rights to all adult male citizens of the District of Columbia. -
Nebraska Admitted into the Union
Congress voted to admit Nebraska as a state provided that suffrage was not denied to non-white voters. The bill admitting Nebraska as a state was vetoed by President Andrew Johnson, but the veto was overridden in both Houses of Congress. -
First Reconstruction Act
The Reconstruction Act was passed, which had Southern states placed under martial law. Johnson had also vetoed this bill, but Congress passed it. -
Tenure of Office Act
Congress used this controversial law as the legal basis for its impeachment case against President Andrew Johnson in 1868. The bill prohibited the president from removing officials appointed by the Senate without approval. -
All-Black University Founded
This was a liberal arts college and university, and the founders decided to name the university for Major General Howard, a Civil War hero and Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, a U.S. government agency established in 1865 to aid freed blacks. -
Alaska Purchase
The United States' bought Alaska from the Russian Empire by a treaty ratified by the United States Senate, and signed by president Andrew Johnson. It is the largest state in the United States. -
African Americans vote in Municipal Election
Blacks were able to vote in a municipal election in Tuscumbia, Alabama. This was one of the first instances that African Americans could legally be allowed to vote. -
Impeachment Efforts against Andrew Johnson
On this date, the House Committee on the Judiciary refused to send articles of impeachment against President Andrew Johnson to the full House. This was one of the first attempts radical Republicans made to impeach Johnson. -
Several Southern States Admitted into Union
Congress passes a bill admitting Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, and South Carolina back into the Union, since they ratified the 14th amendment. -
First Elevated Railroad
On this day, the first elevated railroad begins service in New York.
