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Abraham Lincoln Elected
Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States and served under an already divided nation. The southern states have already withdrawn from the Union and formed their own Confederacy. Many people say that Lincoln's election is a cause of the Civil War. -
Period: to
Civil War
The Civil War was a turning point in American History. This event ultimately defined the direction of the country. Slavery was a touchy issue even at the signing of the Constitution, so tensions between the two regions were destined to happen. More Americans lost their lives during the Civil War than in any other armed conflict. -
South Carolina Secedes
South Carolina is the first state to secede from the Union. South Carolina did more to propogate the southern cause than any other state. -
Mississippi Secedes
Mississippi is the second state to secede from the Union. -
Florida Secedes
Florida is the third state to secede from the Union. -
Alabama Secedes
Alabama is the fourth state to officially secede from the Union. -
Georgia Secedes
Georgia is the fifth state to secede from the Union. -
Louisiana Secedes
Louisiana secedes from the Union. -
Texas Secedes
Texas secedes from the Union. By this time, the Confederacy is formed and is attempting to gain control of forts and garrisons within Confederate territory. -
The Confederacy is Born
The Confederacy of the United States is formed by a loose alliance of southern states. -
James Buchanan's term ends
James Buchanan's Presidential term ends. He is regarded in American history as one of the worst Presidents because of his inability to deal with the secession crisis. -
Lincoln becomes President
Abraham Lincoln becomes the 16th President of the United States -
Fort Sumpter
On the morning hours of April 12th, Gen. Brig. P. G. T. Beauregard led the offensive against Fort Sumpter. This officially started the conflict between the North and South that would be known as the Civil War. -
A Call to Arms
Lincoln's Secretary of Scate William Seward calls for 75,000 volunteers to defend federal bases and to restore the Union. -
Virginia Secedes
Virginia secedes from the Union. -
Arkansas Secedes
Arkansas secedes from the Union. -
North Carolina Secedes
North Carolina secedes from the Union. -
Tennessee Secedes
Tennessee secedes from the Union. -
Union Blockade
Circa July 1861- In order to effectively shut down the southern economy, the Union proposed a blockade. By July, it was then possible for most major ports to be effectively blockaded, crippling the already archaeic southern economy. -
Battle of Bull Run
This was the first major conflict between the Union and the Confederacy. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson and a brigade of Virginians defended Manassas Valley from Union soldiers. Both sides experienced heavy losses. The war, both sides soon found out, would be long and bloody. -
Revenue Act of 1861
The Revenue Act of !861 was a piece of legislation that adopted the first income tax on U.S. citizens. It was passed primarily because southern democrats resigned their seats when their own states left the Union. This legislation was crucial in funding the war for the North. -
The "Moniter" And the "Merrimac"
Out of a necessity to weaken the North's great sea advantage, the Confederacy retrofits a Union frigate into an iron-sided vessel rechristened as the C. S. S. Virginia. It fought the Union's own ironsided ship, the "Merrimac" close to a draw, but not before the Virgina sank two Union warships off the coast of Virginia. -
"Stonewall" Jackson defeats Union forces at Shenadoah Valley
Circa May 1862- "Stonewall" Jackson commands a force of Confederate soldiers which causes the Union soldiers to retreat across the Potomac, scrambling to defend Washington, D.C. -
Battle of Shiloh
Union forces commanded by Ulysses S. Grant, defend against Confederate soldiers in Shiloh, Tennessee. Union forces were on the verge of defeat but by morning time the next day, reinforcements came and the Union army was on the offensive. Both sides experiences heavy losses of around 12,000 men each. -
A New Commander
Major-General Henry Halleck was named general-in-chief of the Union army -
The Fall of Harper's Ferry
Harper's Ferry falls to Confederate forces along with an armory and a surplus amount of supplies -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was the bloodiest day of the War, with under 5,000 Americans losing their lives. The battle convinced the French and British to hold off officially recognizing the Confederacy, which gave Lincoln time to give his preliminary "Emancipation Proclamation" speech. -
Lincoln's Replacements
Circa December 1862- Upset with the performance of his generals combined with the escape of Lee and McClellan's slow action, Lincoln replaces McClellan with Major-General Ambrose E. Burnside, who is then replaced with General Joseph Hooker. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point for the North because it effectively halted Robert E. Lee's invasion of the North. More Americans died in this battle than any other battle in the Civil War. -
New York City Draft Riots
The New York City Draft Riot was the largest civil insurrection in American history. The roiters were working-class Irish folk who hated that drafting could be avoided by the wealthier white males who only had to pay a fee. About 100 people died in the ensuing chaos. -
The Burning of Atlanta
Circa November 1864- General William Sherman captures Atlanta and encapsulates the city with "Total War" leaving behing a trail of destruction all the way to Savannah. -
Lincoln Re-elected
Due to General Sherman's victory in Atlanta, Lincoln wins the Presidential Election of 1864 by a wide margin. -
Freedman's Bureau
Circa March 1865- The Freedman's Bureau was established to help lift free blacks from the bongade of poverty. It found its best success through education, where it taught thousands of African-Americans the ability to read and wright, integral skills needed to survive in a modern economy. -
Surrender
The Confederacy surrenders to General Ulysses S. Grant with General Robert E. Lee signing surrender papers at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia -
Lincoln Dies
Lincoln dies today due to an assassination attempt by John Wilkes Booth in Ford Theatre. He was a southerner who sympathized with the southern cause. -
The Capture of Richmond
Circa April 1865- General Grant captures Richmond which was evacuated and burned in the final days of the war. -
Andrew Johnson Becomes President
After Lincoln's assassination, Andrew Johnson becomes President of the United States. Although rather intelligent given his humble upbringing, Johnson was the wrong man for the job and was impeached by the House of Representatives in 1867. -
Period: to
Reconstruction
Reconstruction was an era in American history where the deep divides between the Northern industrial region of the United States and the Southern agarian region tried to mend the deep fissure made that was the Civil War. Various programs were enacted so that the former Confederacy could once again rejoin their brothers in the Union. -
Mississippi Enacts Black Codes
Circa November 1865- Mississippi enacts the first of what was to be known as "black codes", a set of laws that tried to repress the freedoms and liberties gained by the newly emancipated African-Americans -
Tennessee Readmitted to Congress
Ratified the Fourteenth Amendment in 1866 and avoided martial Reconstruction -
Reconstruction Act
This piece of legislation divided the South into five military districts, each commanded by a Union general and policed by Union soldiers. -
Arkansas Readmitted to Congress
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North Carolina Readmitted to Congress
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Alabama Readmitted to Congress
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Florida Readmitted to Congress
Federal troops reinstated in Florida due to Hayes-Tildeen electoral bargain -
Louisiana Readmitted to Congress
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South Carolina Readmitted to Congress
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Ulysses S. Grant Elected President
Circa November 1869- Ulysses S. Grant served two terms in the White House following the Civil War. Although marred by scandals, his lasting legacy was making the nation stable during the rough time of Reconstruction. He served until 1877. -
Virginia Readmitted to Congress
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Mississippi Readmitted to Congress
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Texas Readmitted to Congress
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Georgia Readmitted into Congress
Originally admitted into Congress June 25th, 1868, military control resumed when blacks were ousted from the state legislature. -
Reconstruction Ends
Circa 1877- The last of the Union troops leave the South once and for all, signaling the end of Reconstruction. -
Works Cited
"Images." Wikimedia Commons. Wikimedia, 2013. Web. 27 May 2013. Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Andrew Bailey. The American Pageant: A History of the Republic.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2002. 434-99. Print. "Time Line of The Civil War, 1864." Time Line of The Civil War. Library of Congress, 2013. Web. 27 May 2013.
