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Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was crafted and shaped by Henry Clay to please both the North and the South. It first proposed that California be admitted to the U.S. as a free state. Additionally, it would make a more effective fugitive slave law. Finally, it created the idea of popular sovereignty, which gave territories the right to decide if they wanted to become a free or slave state. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was a slave whose owner took him from Missouri, a slave state, to Illinois and Wisconsin, free territories, and back to Missouri. Scott argued in court that he should be free because he formerly lived on free land. It took years before the Supreme Court came to the conclusion that Scott was not a citizen and, thus, couldn't sue in court. Furthermore, they ruled being in a free territory didn't make him free because territories cannot take away property. -
1860 Election
The election of 1860 took place between Republican Abraham Lincoln, Democrat Stephen Douglas, Democrat John Breckinridge, and Constitutional Union candidate John Bell. While the Northern Democrats supported Douglas, Southern Democrats backed John Breckinridge. As a result, the party could not rally enough votes and Lincoln became the winner with less than half of the popular vote and without even appearing on the ballot in most southern states. His election begins the south's secession. -
South Carolina Secedes
Shortly after Lincoln won the presidential election, South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union. They felt they had lost their voice in government and knew slavery would be at risk of being abolished. This act was extremely significant as 10 states soon followed South Carolina and formed their own country, the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy went on to unanimously elect Jefferson Davis as their president. -
Battle of Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter marks the beginning of the American Civil War. Fort Sumter was located on an island in Charleston harbor. When the Confederacy formed, Lincoln decided to neither abandon or reinforce the fort in fear of starting the war. Though he only ever sent food into the fort, the Confederates could not have Union soldiers on their land and began bombing it. The Confederacy would win this first battle in the end. -
Battle of Bull Run
The first major battle of the Civil War was the Battle of Bull Run a few months after Fort Sumter. Taking place right outside of Washington, D.C., the battle went back and forth between the Confederates and Union having the upper hand. Ultimately, the South won. This victory not only made it clear to the North that the South would put up a real fight, but led to a high morale among Confederate soldiers. -
Emancipation Proclamation
While Lincoln did not believe the federal government had the power to abolish slavery where it already existed, he began to find ways to end it with his new powers as president. Because the Confederacy was using slaves as resources to build forts and grow food, Lincoln decided, as commander in chief, he would take Confederate "supplies" and emancipate slaves. This became the Emancipation Proclamation and led to more dedicated soldiers fighting for the north. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg began on July 1 and lasted for three days. After the first two days, the Union had suffered more casualties and had been driven out of Gettysburg; however, they still held positions on some high ground south of Gettysburg. On the third day, the Confederates charged Union lines and were met with heavy artillery. They were forced to pull back and the Union won this battle. This is notably the turning point of the war and Lee's first mistake in battle. -
Surrender at Appomattox
In April of 1865, the Union conquered Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy. With morale low and nothing left to do, Lee met Grant and surrendered the war. The surrender at Appomattox would signal the end of a four year long Civil War and force the south to come back into the Union without slavery. -
Lincoln's Assassination
Only five days after the surrender at Appomattox, Lincoln and his wife attended the theater in Washington. Before the play was over, John Wilkes Booth crept up behind Lincoln and shot him in the back of the head. Lincoln died the next day. This confirmed that though slavery and secession were no more, the south would still rebel and the government and African Americans would face opposition. It would also be the start of Andrew Johnson's presidency. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment is responsible for abolishing slavery within the United States. It stated that "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime," would be legal any longer. This was a gigantic step for the abolitionist movement and would only lead to more and more rights being granted to African Americans. -
Johnson Impeached
With Lincoln's assassination, Johnson was in power. Johnson was a Tennessee native but remained loyal to the United States during the war. However, Johnson did not agree with the radical Republicans' plans to punish the south and vetoed all of Congress's plans for reconstruction. As a result, Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act, knowing he would violate it, and impeached him. This would be the first president impeached and showed Congress, not the president, was in charge of reconstruction. -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment was ratified in July of 1868. It prevented states from denying rights and privileges to any U.S. citizen, which now is defined as "any person born or naturalized in the United States." This overturned the Dred Scott decision. Also, it stated that no former Confederate Officials could hold political office. -
1868 Election
The 1868 presidential election included Ulysses Grant and Horatio Seymour. With the help of more than 500,000 Southern African Americans vote, Grant and the Republican Party won. This stressed the importance of the African-American vote. -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment stated that no one could be kept from voting because of their race, color, or previous condition of servitude. It was a major victory for all African Americans and Radical Republicans.
