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Nicole Trewhella's Civil War Timeline
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Pemberton Mill collapses
In Lawrence, Massachusetts, the structurally deficient Pemberton Mill collapses, trapping 500 people in the ruins and eventually killing 250 after the ruins catch fire. The incident inspires Elizabeth Stuart Phelps's story "The Tenth of January." -
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln gave a speech at Cooper Union in New York City. Lincoln delivered a forceful and well-reasoned argument against the spread of slavery, and became an overnight star and a leading candidate for the upcoming presidential election. -
Five Points
Abraham Lincoln visited the Five Points, the most notorious slum in America. He spent time with children at a Sunday school, and an account of his visit later appeared in newspapers during his presidential campaign. -
The Pony Express
The Pony Expressed as a mail service delivering messages, newspapers, and mail. They started to used Horse to ship mail along a 2,000 mile route. -
The Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention, meeting in Charleston, South Carolina, cannot agree on a nominee. The only thing they can agree on is to continue the debate in Baltimore the next month -
Albert Hicks
Albert Hicks, a pirate convicted of murder, was hanged on present day Liberty Island in New York Harbor before thousands of spectators. -
Annie Oakley
Annie Oakley, sharpshooter who became an entertainment phenomenon, was born in Ohio. -
Election of 1860
Abraham Lincoln was elected as the 16th president of The United States. He was a Republican and won with 180 electoral votes and 1,866,452 popular votes. -
South Carolina
South Carolina was the first state seceded from The United States. -
"Ordinance of Secession"
In response to Lincoln's election, the state of South Carolina issued an "Ordinance of Secession" and declared it is leaving the Union. Other states would follow. -
Mississippi
Mississippi was the second state seceded from The United States. -
Flordia
Florida was the third state seceded from The United States. -
Alabama
Alabama was the fourth state seceded from The United States. -
Georgia
Georgia was the fifth state succeeded from The United States -
Louisiana
Louisiana was the sixth state succeeded from The United States. -
Texas
Texas was the seventh state to succeeded from The United States. -
Beginning of the Confederacy
Representatives for six states met in Montgomery, Alabama where they names the Confederate States of America. -
Confederacy's President
Jefferson Davis of Mississippi was elected the Confederacy's first president. He was also an American politician who was a Democratic U.S. Representative. -
Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865. After a long standing controversy over slavery and state's rights, war broke out in April, 1861, when Confederates attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina, shortly after Abraham Lincoln was elected. -
Tennessee
Tennessee was the last state succeeded from The United States. -
Fort Henry
General Ulysses S. Grant gives the United States its first major victory of the war by capturing Fort Henry Tennessee. -
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. -
Henry David Thoreau
Death of writer and naturalist Henry David Thoreau, author of Walden. -
Homestead Act
Congress passes the Homestead Act, which allows citizens to settle on up to 160 acres of surveyed but unclaimed public land and receive title to it after making improvements and residing there for five years. -
Pacific Railroad Act
Congress passes the Pacific Railroad Act, which authorizes the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Companies to build a transcontinental rail line along the 42nd parallel and provides public lands and subsidies for every mile of track laid. -
Battle of Malvern Hill
Robert E. Lee attacked George B. McClellan, whose men made a gallant stand in front of the James River. Lee called off his attack after failing to break the Union line. -
Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act
Congress passes the Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act, which targets the Mormon community by prohibiting polygamy in United States territories. The law is ignored in Utah. -
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas[1] was fought August 28–30, 1862[2] in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. -
The Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was fought in western Maryland. It becomes known as the "America's Bloodiest Day." -
Mathew Brady's Gallery
Photographs taken by Alexander Gardner were put on public display at Mathew Brady's gallery in New York City. The public was shocked by the carnage depicted in the photographic prints. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Issued after the Union victory at Antietam, the Emancipation Proclamation had both moral and strategic implications for the ongoing Civil War. -
Fort Hindman / Battle of Arkansas Post
General McClernand's Union troops surround Fort Hindman, Arkansas. It was fought from January 9 to 11, 1863 near the mouth of the Arkansas at Arkansas Post, as part of the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. -
State of Confederacy Address
President Davis delivers his "State of Confederacy" address. -
Massachusetts
Massachusetts Governor receives permission from Secretary of War to raise a militia organization for men of African descent. -
Arizona
Congress organizes the Arizona Territory. -
West Virginia
West Virginia becomes the 35th state to enter the United States, but the first to enter where the terms slave and free no longer mattered. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The epic Battle of Gettysburg was fought in Pennsylvania. -
The New York Draft Riots
The New York Draft Riots began, and continue for several days. -
Thanksgiving
President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation declaring a Day of Thanksgiving to he observed on the last Thursday in November. -
Gettysburg Address
President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address while dedicating a military cemetery at the site of the Battle of Gettysburg. -
Archbishop John Hughes
Death of Archbishop John Hughes, an immigrant priest who became a political force in New York City. -
Mississippi
Sherman's march through Mississippi. -
Confederate submarine
Confederate submarine HL Hunley sinks Union ship Housatonic. -
Baltimore
US Catholic parish church starts up dedicated for African Americans. -
Battle of the Wilderness
Ulysses S. Grant is badly beaten on the field by Robert E. Lee but rather than retreat, Grant advances to Spotsylvania Court House. -
Battle of Spotsylvania Court House
In an inconclusive battle, General Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee battle for days southwest of Fredericksburg. -
Arlington National Cemetery
The first burial took place at Arlington National Cemetery. -
Battle of Cold Harbor
Robert E. Lee defeats General Ulysses S. Grant and General George Meade. -
Montana Territory
Congress organizes the Montana Territory and admits Nevada into the union, completing the political organization of the West under local governments loyal to the Union. -
Election of 1864
Abraham Lincoln won a second term as president, defeating General George McClellan in the election of 1864. -
"forty acres and a mule"
General William Tecumseh Sherman issued Special Field Orders, No. 15, which was interpreted as a promise to provide "forty acres and a mule" to each family of freed slaves. -
Fort Anderson
Union occupies Fort Anderson, North Carolina. -
The Thirteenth Amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery in America, was passed by the United States Congress. -
The Freedmen's Bureau
The Freedmen's Bureau, a new federal agency designed to help the freed slaves, began operation. -
Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address
Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated for his second term as president of the United States. Lincoln's second inaugural address is remembered as one of his most notable speeches. -
Confederate Flag
Confederate congress approves final design of "official flag". -
Inaugural Ball
President Lincoln's 2nd Inaugural Ball. -
President Abraham Lincoln Assassination
President Abraham Lincoln was shot at Ford's Theatre and died the next morning. -
Abraham Lincolns Death
Abraham Lincoln dies 9 hours after he is shot attending the play "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theatre in Washington. -
The Civil War Ends
The American Civil War was fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865. After a long standing controversy over slavery and state's rights, war broke out in April, 1861, when Confederates attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina, shortly after Abraham Lincoln was elected. -
Freedman's Bureau Bill
New Freedman's Bureau bill passed by Congress. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the bill that authorized military trial for those accused of "depriving Negroes of the Civil Rights" on the same day. -
State of Peace
The United States declares that a state of peace exists with Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia -
Ford's Theater
Congress appropriates $100,000 to buy Ford's Theater. It will house the Army Medical Museum, the Office of the Surgeon General and War Department records until 1893 -
Civil Rights Act
Congress overrides President Andrew Johnson's veto of the Civil Rights Act. -
Cholera Epidemic
Cholera epidemic begins in New York when an infected passenger arrives in New York. -
Equal Rights Association
American Equal Rights Association forms. -
14th Amendment
Thirty-ninth Congress approves the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. Its goal was to ensure the Civil Rights Acts passed. -
Tennessee
Tennessee readmitted into the United States. -
Ku Klux Klan
The U. S. Secret Service begins an investigation into the Ku Klux Klan. -
Philadelphia Fire
A fire in the Philadelphia ship-yard accidentally destroys a number of ships used during the Civil War. -
Nebraska
Nebraska becomes 37th US state. -
Reconstruction Act
1st Reconstruction act passed by US Congress. -
2nd Reconstruction Act
Congress passes 2nd Reconstruction Act over President Andrew Johnson's veto. -
Lincoln Memorial
Congress first approves building of Lincoln Memorial. -
Alaska
US buys Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000. 2 cents an acre. -
Reconstruction
Reconstruction of South begins, black voter registration. -
New Orleans
Blacks stage ride-in to protest segregation in New Orleans. -
Railroad
1st US elevated railroad begins service, NYC. -
3rd Reconstruction Act
US Congress passed 3rd Reconstruction Act over President Andrew Johnson's veto. -
Andrew Johnson
US President Andrew Johnson defies Congress suspending Secretary of War Edwin Stanton.
