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Civil War Time span
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Cooper Union Speech
This speech was given by Abraham Lincoln. It talked about the views of the signers of the Constitution and said how at least 21 of the 39 believed Congress should control slavery in the territories instead of letting it expand. Through this speech, Lincoln was able to show that the founding fathers wanted Congress to regulate enslavement. This speech also helped him receive the 1860 Republican Nomination. His talks about his views on slavery by using the founding fathers to help his viewpoint. -
Lincoln Visits the Five Points
Abraham Lincoln went to the Five Points, which at the time was considered the slum in America. It was the most crime ridden place in Manhattan. The House of Industry was a charity that mainly housed and assisted poor and orphaned kids. Lincoln spent time, and talked with these kids, giving advice to them, and told them about his own life. He spent time with the children at a Sunday school, helping to lift their spirits. After his visit, it appeared in newspapers during his presidential election. -
Pony Express Begins
The Pony Express was a system of U.S. mail delivery system that had a planned route with stations along the way. Riders carried mail from station to station. Riders and horses would be changed out at stations to keep the delivery moving at a faster pace. Since there was no electronic communication, this was a key factor in fast communication. The Gold Rush, Mormon Exodus to Utah and thousands moving west using the Oregon Trail, created a need for fast mail service beyond the Rocky Mountains. -
John Bell Nominated
Bell's support of slavery and his vigorous defense of the Union brought him into the presidential nomination on the Constitutional Union ticket. He only carried Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. The Constitutional Union Party was a United States third party active during the 1860 elections. It held conservative Whigs, mostly from Southern United States, who wanted to avoid secession and refused to join a Republican or Democratic party. Bell was nominated as an attempt to avoid the slavery issue -
Census is taken
A census is an official count or survey of a population. It typically records various details of an individual. The census allows the government to know who we are and where we are going as a nation. It helps our communities determine where and what to build, it helps governments decide how to distribute funds, assistance and more. It started on Friday, June first and finished within five months. This census was able to give the government a better understanding of the people in the country. -
Abraham Lincoln Elected as president
This presidential election brought awareness to issues like secession, relationships between the federal government, states, territories, the issue of slavery and abolition. This election showed the divisions within the U.S. just before the Civil War. Out of four main candidates, Lincoln wound up winning the election. He had more electoral votes and more popular votes than the other candidates. Lincoln is the 16th president of the United States becoming the first Republican to win presidency. -
Federal Arsenal at Charleston
The Charleston arsenal produced a considerable amount of artillery and small arms ammunition starting from the Mexican-American War and up to the Civil War. The secession of South Carolina made the Arsenal a target for Charleston militia. The Charleston militia seized Federal Arsenal making it one of the first Federal properties taken by the Confederacy during the Civil War. The Charleston based military academy will go onto provide both military and artillery support to the South during the war -
Crittenden Compromise
The Crittenden Compromise was an unsuccessful proposal to permanently enshrine slavery in the U.S. Constitution. It makes it unconstitutional for future congresses to end slavery. It was introduced to the U.S. by Senator John J. Crittenden who was a Democratic slaveholder from Kentucky. He claimed the compromise would end the arguments over slavery and avoud a Civil War. It guaranteed permanent existence of slavery in slave states. It was to radical for it to work. -
South Carolina Secedes
South Carolina became the first state to secede from the federal Union. Abraham Lincoln's victory in the presidential election wasn't taken well by the South. South Caroline seceded as a result of the institutions of slavery, states rights, and tariffs. Radicals pushed for and led the secession. Secession is this idea of federalism and the doctrine of states rights. Technically there is no right for them the secede from the union. After South Carolina, other states started to secede as well. -
The South Seizes Federal Forts
Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina's Charleston Harbor. Buchanan refused to surrender southern federal forts to the seceding states but Southern state troops seized them. Many southerners thought a secession alone wasn't enough to safeguard homes, families, slaves, and sovereignty from potential abolitionists violence. They hoped to insure peaceful secession, preventing coercion, and possible slave insurrections so they seized federal property within each state's borders. -
Texas Seceds
Sixteen years after Texas joined the United States, tension over the issues of slavery and state's rights begun. A state convention voted in favor of secession. This was a measure that was then ratified by a popular vote and it made Texas become the seventh state to secede from the Union and the last to secede before the firing at Fort Sumter. It forced citizens of the upper South to choose between fighting against or with their Southern brethren once the Civil War started. -
Confederate States of America is formed
White supremacy and the institution of slavery were threatened by the November election of Lincoln. This gave Lincoln a platform that opposed the expansion of slavery in western territories. The Confederacy declared its secession in rebellion. It was created over the issue of slavery by secessionists in the Southern slave states, who believed the federal government was making them second class citizens. They refused to honor that belief and they thought slavery was beneficial to people of color. -
Fort Sumter
Major Anderson sends Lincoln a message on his inauguration day March 4, 1861. Southern troops demanded the surrender of Fort Sumter. Lincoln refused to surrender to abandon the fort. President Jefferson Davis is forced into being the aggressor. War was declared on April 12, 1861 and this battle started the Civil War. Fire begins to be unleashed on the fort. Thankfully no one dies, the fort surrendered, and over 4,000 rounds were fired. The bloodiest conflict in American history begins. -
Lincoln Requests an Army
President Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the state militias to gather 75,000 troops in order to suppress the rebellion. Lincoln said that freeing the slaves would weaken the power of the Confederate army, which he used to justify the Emancipation Proclamation as an act of a "military necessity". He insisted the was was being fought to retain the loyalty of the remaining border states. Lincoln insisted that the was was not about slavery or black rights but a war to preserve the Union. -
First Battle of Bull Run
This was the first battle following Fort Sumter. Union and Confederate armies met at Bull Run just 25 miles from D.C. The Union took the lead early in the battle, but with the help of General "Stonewall Jackson" and reinforcements, the Confederates won the battle. This battle shocked many people, as they believed the conflict between the North and the South would be short. It gave the South confidence in their strength. It's called Bull Run after a stream that ran through the battlefield. -
General McDowell is Replaced
During the First Battle of Manassas, McDowell was fighting against his old classmate Beauregard. The battle turned into a Union rout due to the inexperience of McDowell's troops. Following the Union defeat, McDowell requested to be removed from command. President Lincoln agreed because he believed the Union soldiers didn't view McDowell as a competent commander. Lincoln relieved McDowell of command and replaced him with George B. McClellan. -
Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries
General Butler and Flag Officer String-ham went from Fort Monroe to capture Hatteras Inlet, an important haven for blockade runners. The Navy bombarded Forts Clark and Hatteras, while the Union troops came ashore and attacked the rear of the Confederate batteries. This was the first combined operation of the Union Army and Navy in the Civil War and it resulted in the Union domination of the strategically important North Caroline Sounds -
Battle of Ball's Bluff
This was an early battle in the Civil War fought in Loudoun County, Virginia. The Confederates won, and drove the Yankees over the bluff and into the Potomac where many drowned and hundreds surrendered. It was a small scale battle but major political implications took place that would haunt the Union army for the rest of the war. This battle produced the war's first martyr and led to the creation of a Congressional committee to monitor the conduct of the war. -
Election of Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis is the first and only, elected president of the Confederate States of America. He ran without opposition, and the election just confirmed the decision that had already been made by the Confederate Congress earlier on in the year. He was elected because he was a compromise candidate chosen to appease both the moderate and radical factions in the Congress. Davis defended the interests of the South and the battle over slavery. He was very dedicated to the Confederate cause. -
Battle of Belmont
General Polk ordered 1,000 men around Belmont to protect both sides of the river. Grant sailed 3,000 troops down the Mississippi River. While the battle ended inconclusively, both sides claimed a victory. Confederate forces thought they won because they forced Union troops to retreat. A result of the battle was the combat and large unit command experience Grant gained from it. It gave Lincoln a positive impression of Grant. Belmont Avenue in Chicago, Illinois was soon named after this battle. -
Battle of Fort Henry
This battle restored Western, middle Tennessee and most of Kentucky to the Union. It was the first significant Union victory of the American Civil War. General Ulysses S. Grant had success here, along with his victory at Fort Donelson. It helped pave the way for the Union to capture Nashville. This fort was important because it was fortified on the Tennessee River, which was important for regulating access to the Mississippi River from the East. It provided supply lines west of the Appalachians. -
Battle of Fort Donelson
This The loss of Fort Henry and now Fort Donelson were disasters for Confederates. This was a major win for Ulysses S. Grant. The Union victory here forced the Confederacy to give up Southern Kentucky and much of Middle and West Tennessee. This battle helped restore Western and middle Tennessee and most of Kentucky to the Union. Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, railroads nearby are now vital Federal supply lines. Nashville becomes a huge supply depot for the Union army in the West. -
Battle of Monitor and Merrimack
This battle, also called Battle of Hampton Roads, was a naval engagement at Hapton Roads, a harbor at the mouth of the James River. This is notable as history's first duel between ironclad warships and the beginning of a new era of naval warfare. The battle between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia was interpreted as a victory for the Monitor and produced feelings of relief and exultation in the North. The battle was indecisive and had a profound effect on morale that was made in both regions -
Shiloh
Grant gathers his troops near a church in Tennessee named Shiloh near the Mississippi border. Grant decides not to send out scouts. This will lead Confederates to take Grant by surprise early in the morning. Grant reorganizes and counter attacks by dawn the next day. He pushed back the Rebels. This battle showed the importance of using scouts, building fortifications and trench warfare. One fourth of the 100,000 men were killed there. This ended the Confederacy's hopes of blocking the Union. -
Battle of Seven Pines
Also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks, this was a two day battle in the Peninsular Campaign. Here, Confederate attacks were repulsed, fought six miles east of the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia. This was the largest battle in the Eastern Theater up to that time. The Battle of Seven Pines stalled the Union push to Richmond. General Johnston got injured and had profound influence on the war. It led to the appointment of Robert E. Lee as Confederate commander. -
The Seven Days Battle
In the spring of 1862 McClellan finally on the move, went to the Potomac River to the Chesapeake Bay. He ran into Robert E. Lee and Lee moved against him. The Union attacked in a minor Battle of Oak Grove, McClellan lost and Lee advanced further. A series of six different battles broke out, leaving Lee with less men. Even so, McClellan retreated. Northern troops attempted to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. The Seven Days Battles ended the Union Peninsula Campaign of 1862. -
New Commander of the Union
President Lincoln was frustrated by the failures of their military leaders and needed to find a new commander who could lead the Union to victory. The new commander over Union armies was now Ulysses S. Grant. Grant was appointed lieutenant general and was entrusted with command of all the U.S. armies. Grant gained Lincoln's confidence after winning crucial victories and Lincoln found a general who could gather the full strength of the Union army against the Confederacy. He won many battles. -
Second Battle of Bull Run
Even though their were many Confederate casualties, about 9,000 deaths, the second Battle of Bull Run was a decisive victory for the rebels. Lee managed to get a strategic offensive position against McClellan's troops which was about twice the size of his own troops. The second battle was significant in the Civil War as this victory for the Confederacy boosted their confidence and it lead to them beginning Northern/Union territory campaigns. -
Antietam
Troops find plans that show Lee and Jackson's armies were temporarily separated wrapped around a cigar box. McClellan decides to go after Lee. Armies meet in Antietam and the Confederacy is forced to retreat. Approximately 26,000 soldiers died, making it the bloodiest single day battle to take place. McClellan did not chase Lee back into Virginia even though Lee and his men were under supplied and vulnerable. This could have ended the war and Lincoln wound up firing McClellan for his decisions. -
Harper's Ferry
Harper's Ferry was brought to light onto the national stage when radical abolitionist John Brown and a small group of followers raided the armory in an attempt to ignite a slave insurrection. Both Confederates and the Union armies wanted control of Harper's Ferry. It had arsenal and armory but also the town was located at the meeting point if important railroads and at the meeting of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers. After a battle, the confederates came out with the victory in the end. -
The Northern Draft
Men between the ages of 20 and 45, soldiers were obligated to three years of military service. Most of the soldiers who fought in the Civil War were volunteers or people who were drafted that were unable to pay a substitute to go in for them. The draft originally wasn't necessary because the North and South had a large amount of volunteers. The draft provided fresh manpower for the Union army. Also called the Enrollment Act, it was the first genuine national conscription law. -
Stonewall Jackson's Death
Jackson was a general in the Confederate army. He got his nickname at the First Battle of Bull Run, where he and his men "stood like a stone wall". He was shot by his own men when returning from an attack. As a result he had to amputate his arm. It was eight days later that Jackson died of complications from pneumonia. His last words were, "Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees". His death was a huge loss for the South and in the Confederate ranks. -
Siege of Vicksburg
Grant needs this important area along the Mississippi River. A raised area where guns could be placed to control river traffic. He tries many times to take the area, sending Calvary to destroy rail lines and distract the Confederacy from incoming troops. He has small victories but doesn't win the city so he decides to shell Vicksburg for several days. Townspeople and Southern troops get low on supplies and starve to death. Confederates surrender and the Union controls the river a week later. -
Battle of Gettysburg: 1st day
The Battle of Gettysburg lasted three days from July 1st to July 3rd. The 1st day of Battle, armies meet in Gettysburg by chance, converging on the small farm town in PA. The Union was already set up from the previous day. John Buford ordered his men to take high ground. The shooting attracted a lot of attention and reinforcements were requested by both sides. The North, with 90,000 men under Meade's command, secures Cemetery hill. The South, with 75,000 men under Lee's command secure the town. -
Battle of Gettysburg: 2nd day
Lee gives orders to advance from Seminary Ridge to Cemetery Hill. The Confederates push through the Union to attack "Little Round Top", a nearby hill that would have given them the advantage that was mistakenly left unguarded. Confederates have a chance to take the high ground but, the Union defends the hill, but suffers many casualties. The orders were to hold hilltop at all costs, as soldiers fixed up bayonets. Union troops charge Confederates down the hill to retreat -
Battle of Gettysburg: 3rd day
A two hour artillery barrage between the two armies breaks out. Lee thought the Union's artillery was damaged by the Confederates and felt confident he could break the Union lines. Longstreet orders troops to advance, but are stopped and severely hurt by Union Artillery. The Union fired down at troops with their weapons and slaughtered the soldiers trying to come up. Union troops never counter attack. Scared, they retreat. Meade feared a Calvary attack by James E.B. Stuart, but there wasn't one. -
Completion of Anaconda Plan
This was a Union, three part plan. First, the Navy would blockade the confederate ports to stop imports and exports. Second, Union military and Navy would move down the Mississippi to split the Confederacy. Finally, they would capture the capital, Richmond. The press laughed at this plan but Federal troops along the Mississippi river would be in a strong defensive position which would make it impossible for Confederate forces to defeat them.Capturing the river would cut the Confederacy in half. -
Battle of Chickamauga
With the Union having around 16,170 casualties and the Confederates with around 18,454, this battle was the second costliest battle of the Civil War, right behind Gettysburg. It was by far the deadliest battle fought in the West. It marked the end of a Union offensive and was the largest Confederate victory in the Western theater. It proved to be the kind of victory the Confederates needed and at the right time. It pushed the Union army back to Chattanooga rather than letting it go into Georgia. -
Gettysburg Address
A famous speech by Lincoln to consecrate the battlefield in an attempt to unify the nation. Lincoln spoke for about two minutes. Lincoln presented the Gettysburg Address in front of Soldiers National Cemetery. It's purpose was to commemorate a new national cemetery at Gettysburg during the Civil War. It meant to give meaning to the sacrifices of soldiers who died during the war. It left the south economically devastated, and resulted in criminalization of slavery in the U.S. -
The Battle of Chattanooga
This battle was three separate battles that occurred over the course of three days. They were the Battle of Orchard Knob, The Battle of Lookout Mountain, and the Battle of Missionary Ridge. Union forces drove Confederate troops away from Chattanooga, and into Georgia. This allowed for Union General William T. Sherman's triumphant march to the sea. This was an important Union victory in the Civil War. The city was a vital rail hub that became the gateway for later campaigns in the Deep South. -
Grant's Wilderness Campaign
The primary goal of the Wilderness Campaign was to engage Robert E. Lee's army of Northern Virginia and keep it under pressure to defend the capital. This would make it impossible for Lee to send more soldiers to defend against the Union advance into Georgia. Grant intended to push the army through the rough terrain into open ground as quickly as possible but will attack Lee if the chance it shown. Grant lost many troops but it was a strategic Union victory. Lee's army had higher losses. -
Atlanta Campaign
The Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater of the American Civil War throughout Northwest Georgia and around Atlanta during the summer. Sherman's goal was to destroy the Army of the Tennessee, capture Atlanta and cut off vital Confederate supply lines. He failed to destroy his enemy, but was able to force the surrender of Atlanta in September. The campaign managed to cut off a main Confederate supply center and influenced the Federal presidential election -
Battle of Spotsylvania
This was the second major engagement in Lt. General Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign. The battle is tactically inconclusive but, both sides declare victory. The Confederacy is victorious because they are able to hold their defenses. The Union is victorious because they inflicted sever losses on Lee's army. There was a total of around 30,000 casualties. Spotsylvania is the costliest battle of the Overland Campaign. During battle, General John Sedgwick died. The battle ended on May 21st. -
Battle of Cold Harbor
It was a disastrous defeat for the Union Army during the American Civil War and it caused around 18,000 casualties. Lee had prevented Grant from breaking through the Confederate lines to capture Richmond, less than 10 miles away. Lee caused Grant many casualties and anti-war sentiment in the North grew as a more serious issue for the Lincoln administration. The Union lost in this battle because of a postponed attack, fatigue, lax reconnaissance, and lack of coordination between commanders. -
Siege of Petersburg
Ulysses S. Grant attempted to Robert E. Lee's armies at Petersburg but failed to capture the Confederacy's vital supply center. This resulted in the longest siege in American Warfare. It was a result of Grant's inability to break through properly manned and constructed Confederate defenses. He used a tactic that had worked before to move around Lee's flank. This was one of many operations to culminate the defeat of the South and was a strategic point for the defense of the Confederate capital. -
Battle of Atlanta
The Battle of Atlanta was part of the Union's summer Atlanta Capaign. Union Mahoe Generals, William Tecumseh Sherman and James B. McPherson successfully defended against a Confederate offensive. In this battle, Sherman wanted to neutralize the important rail and supply hub. They defeated Confederate forces defending the city under John B. Hood. It was a Union victory. The capture of the critical Confederate city had opened the door for Sherman's most famous operation. -
Abraham Lincoln is Re-Elected
Abraham Lincolns re-election ensured that he would preside over the successful conclusion of the Civil War. His victory made him the first president to win re-election since Andrew Jackson, as well as becoming the first Northern president to ever win re-election. President Lincoln continued to lead the nation through the Civil War and succeeded in preserving the Union, abolishing slavery, bolstering the federal government, and modernizing the United States economy. -
March to the Sea
The March to the Sea was the most destructive campaign against a civilian population during the Civil War. It began in Atlanta on November 15 and ended in Savannah on December 21st. The purpose of Sherman's march was to frighten Georgia's civilian's into abandoning the Confederate cause. Sherman's soldiers didn't destroy any of the towns in their path but they did steal food and livestock. They even burned houses and barns of people who tried to fight back. -
Battle of Franklin
The battle took place in Williamson County, Tennessee in and near the town of Franklin. The Confederate Army of Tennessee suffers a loss after General Hood ordered a frontal assault on the strong Union position around Franklin. The Federal victory deprived Confederate General Hoof of his last opportunity to prevent Union generals John Schofield and George H. Thomas from uniting their armies during the Franklin-Nashville Campaign. This battle almost ruined the Army of Tennessee. -
Battle of Nashville
Early in the morning, Thomas sent a force under General James Steedman against the Confederates right flank. Thomas saw his chance to deal a decisive blow to Hood. Union troops overran the Confederate trenches and drove the rebels back over a mile. The Union victory at Nashville shattered Hood's Army of Tennessee and effectively ended the war here. The fall of the confederacy started. Around 13,000 Union soldiers fought and it had the largest number of black soldiers on any battlefield so far. -
Battle of Fort Fisher
Fort Fisher was the largest of the earthen seacoast fortifications defending the last major open port to the Confederacy. The firepower of Fort Fisher was temporarily silenced because some of its gun positions exploded. This allowed the Navy to land Union infantry. The landing force was intercepted by the arrival of Hoke's troops. Fort Fisher had tremendous strategic value during the was, providing a port for blockade runners supplying the Army of Northern Virginia. -
Battle of Waynesboro
The Union victory at the Battle of Waynesboro in Augusta County Virginia, ended any meaningful Confederate presence in the Shenandoah Valley for the remainder of the Civil War. This was the last significant military action in the Shenandoah valley during the Civil War. When Custer arrived at Waynesboro he realized that a head on assault on Early's main line would be foolhardy. Custer decided to send out reconnaissance patrol and discovered Early's unprotected flank. -
Battle of Averasboro
The Battle of Averasborough or the Battle of Averasboro, in Harnett and Cumberland counties, North Caroline, as part of the Carolina's Campaign, was a prelude to the climactic Battle of Bentonville which happened only three days later. It was the first major Confederate attempt to stop William T. Sherman's march through the Carolina's. It was not a decisive battle, Averasboro was actually a Confederate strategic victory. The south outnumbered 3 to 1, accomplishing their primary goal. -
Battle of Bentoville
The Battle of Bentoville was the last full scale action of the Civil War in which a Confederate army was able to mount a tactical offensive. This was the the largest major battle ever fought in North Carolina and was the only significant attempt to defeat the large Union army. Confederate counterattack, combined with Sherman's order for Mower to withdraw, ended the advance. This allowed Johnston's army to retain control of their only means of supply and retreat across the bridge. Battle ended. -
Battle of Five Forks
One of the final major engagements of the American Civil War and last major battle of the Petersburg Campaign. By defeating Confederate infantry under George E. Pickett and cavalry under William H.F., the Union secured a victory. Robert E. Lee was forced to evacuate Petersburg, handing it over to the Union the next day. The Union lost 830 of 17,000 soldiers and Confederates lost 2,950 of 9,200 soldiers. -
Battle of Appomattox Court House
This was the final battle between the forces of General Ulysses Grant and General Robert E. Lee. Lee spent the previous year defending Richmond but decided at this point to try and move South to link up with other Confederate forces. He was soon trapped by Federals and surrendered his army to Union general Grant, to spare further suffering to his men. This battle marks the beginning of the country's transition to peace and reunification following four years of Civil War. -
Abraham Lincoln's Assassination
Just five days after Lee's surrender, Lincoln and his wife went to Ford's Theater. John Wilkes Booth, a 26 year old actor and Confederate sympathizer, shot Lincoln in the back of his head. He believed Confederacy could be restored. This belief was his motive behind his plot to murder Lincoln. After being shot, Lincoln died the next day. Booth thought that the South is now avenged. Union Calvary trapped him in a shed and set the building on fire. He refused to surrender and was shot to death. -
General Joseph Johnston signs the surrender document for the Confederate Army
Johnston's effectiveness in the American Civil War was undercut by tensions with Confederate president Jefferson Davis. He preotracted defesive war against general Sherman because he knew it forced him to be further from his supply lines. Johnston knew support for the war in the North was fading away. But in the end, 8,000 men deserted his army. Realizing his men were tired of fighting and on the brink of total desertion, Johnston signed the surrender of his army to Sherman -
Battle of Palmito Ranch
The cause of this battle is unknown but from May 12th to May 13th, the Battle of Palmito Ranch was fought and won by the confederates in South Texas. This is considered the last major in the Civil War between Union and Confederate forces, even though this happened when the war was technically over. A large Confederate cavalry force, commanded by Col. John Ford, grew closer as the Federals formed a battle line. The Rebels hammered the Union line with artillery and Barrett ordered a retreat. -
Fall of the Confederacy
The most convincing internal factor behind southern defeat was te very institution that prompted secession, which was slavery. Enslaved people fled to join the Union army, depriving the South of labor and strengthening the North by North more than 100,000 soldiers. Lee surrendered his Confederate troops to Grant at Appomattox Court House, marking the beginning of the end of the grinding four year long American Civil War. -
Creation of Black Codes
The laws were designed to replace the social controls of slavery that had been removed by the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution. The black codes had their roots in the slave codes that had formerly been in effect. Black Codes granted a set of rights to own property, make contracts, and some other innovations. They also included new vagrancy and apprentice laws, which did not mention Blacks explicitly but were obviously directed towards them -
The first daylight bank robbery in United States history during peacetime
America's first daytime bank robbery during peacetime happened in the small town of Liberty, Missouri. Historians believe the first back robbery occured when associates of Jesse and Frank James robbed the Clay County Savings Association. Bandits pistol whipped a cashier and made off with almost $60,000 in bonds, paper currency and gold and silver coins. -
Ex Parte Milligan
A case where the United States Supreme Court ruled that the federal government could not establish military courts to try civilians where civil courts where no longer functioning in an actual theater of war. It became well known as the leading U.S. Supreme Court case that founded the president went beyond his legal powers to suppress dissenters during the American Civil War. The decision also helped establish the tradition that presidential and military action "based on war" had limits -
President Andrew Johnson Vetos Bill
The Senate overrode President Andrew Johnson's veto. This was the first time that the United States Congress overruled a presidential veto for a major piece of legislation. During his time, Johnson vetoed 29 pieces of legislation during his long struggle with congressional Radical Republicans over the shape of Reconstruction policy in the South. Congress overruled 16 of the ones he vetoed. Johnson refused to sign the bill because he believed Congress had no right to guarantee citizenship -
Civil Rights Act of 1866
This was the first United States federal law to define citizenship and affirm that all citizens are equally protected by the law. The Act also made it illegal to deny any person the rights of citizenship on the basis of their race or color. It was mainly intended to protect the civil rights of African-Americans in the wake of the American Civil War. Southerners responded with the Black Codes and different organizations like the Ku Klux Klan with an attempt to "redeem" the Southern governments. -
Congress approves 5 cent coin
A nickel is a five cent coin struck by the United States Mint. Composed of cupronickel the piece has been issued since 1866. The five cent coin was created to meet the growing need for circulating coinage in the aftermath of widespread hoarding of silver and gold coins during the Civil War. It was not known at the time as a nickel because coins of that metal, three cent pieces, already existed. -
Fenians Attack
The Fenians launched several small, armed attacks. Each raid was put down by government forces. Dozens were killed and wounded om both sides. The raids revealed shortfalls in the leadership, structure and training of the Canadian militia and led to improvements in these areas we found. The Fenians attacked New Brunswick and proposed the annexation bill to the United States of America. It stated that the USA would attack the west, but it was never passed -
The Metric Act
The Metric Act legally recognized the metric system of measurements in the United States. It's sometimes refereed to as the Kasson Act, after Congressman John A. Kasson of Iowa, who chaired the House Committee on Coinage, weights and measures. The use of metric weights and measures became legal though not standard in the United States. As time went on, the debate over the metric system and some non-metric measurements are actually officially defined by the metric system. -
First Roller rink in US opens
James Plimpton, inventor of the modern quad roller skate and the New York Roller Skating Association leased The Atlantic House Hotel in Newport and converted the dining room into a skating area. This was the first roller skating rink open to the public in the United States. Roller skating was invented by Merlin as a way to get more attention for his other inventions. -
National Union Convention
The National Union Convention, also known as the Loyalist Convention, the Southern loyalist convention, the national loyalists's loyal Union Convention, or the arm in arm convention. They met in Philadelphia in August to create a political party that would be back President Andrew Johnson's Reconstruction program and to elect a new Congress. -
Peabody Education Fund
An American financier and philanthropist George Peabody established the Peabody Education Fund to provide improvements to existing schools in poor areas of the Southern USA. It provided unique programs and advanced technology to thousands of students who might otherwise not enjoy such experiences due to budget constraints. The programs are intended to benefit and guide children as they develop into successful citizens and leaders -
Nebraska becomes a state
Nebraska which was admitted to the union as the 37th state two years after the end of the American Civil War. It contains some of the nation's best ranch land and farmland. President Andrew Johnson signed the proclamation declaring Nebraska's statehood. The signing ended the life of a territory which thirteen years earlier had been organized amid controversy. People began moving here when the Homestead Acts allowed people to get free land in the area. New railroads also made travel easier. -
Reconstruction Acts
The Reconstruction era was the period after the American Civil War during which the United States grappled with the challenges of reintegrating into the Union the states that had seceded and determining the legal status of African Americans. It outlined the conditions under which the Southern states would be readmitted. The act became a law after Congress overrode a presidential veto. Admission to representation of the former Confederate states began the next year, with Arkansas leading the way. -
Tenure of Office Act
The Tenure of Office Act was a United States federal law in force from 1867 to 1887 that was intended to restrict the power of the president to remove certain office holders without the approval of the Senate. The law was enacted over the veto of President Andrew Johnson. It stated that a President could not dismiss appointed officials without the consent of Congress. The author was Secretary of the Treasury William Crawford, and it was introduced into the Senate bu Mahlon Dickerson. -
British North America Act is passed in the House of Commons
British North America Act is passed in the House of Commons, serves as Canada's constitution for more than 100 years. This act gave parliament the authority to allow the Territories of Canada to have representation in the Canadian Senate and Canadian House of Commons. The act was renamed in 1982 to the Constitution Act. The law was created and governed by the Dominion of Canada -
Purchase of Alaska
The United States reached an agreement to purchase Alaska from Russia for a price of $7.1 million. The Treaty with Russia was negotiated and signed by Secretary of State William Seward and Russian Minister to the United States. Americans saw a potential for gold, fur and fisheries and well as being able to trade with China and Japan. Americans worried that England might try to establish a presence in the territory and the purchase of Alaska was believed to help U.S. become a Pacific power. -
The Grange Founded
The Grange, founded after the Civil War is the oldest American agriculture advocacy group with a national scope. The Grange actively lobbied state legislatures and Congress for political goals, such as the Granger Laws to lower rates charged by railroads, and rural free mail delivery by post office. It's original intent was to bring frames together to discuss agriculture styles, in an attempt to correct widespread costly and inefficient methods -
Canadian Confederation
Confederation refers to the process of federal union in which the British North American colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and the Province of Canada joined together to form the Dominion of Canada. The term Confederation also stands for 1st of July in 1867, the date of the creation of the Dominion -
U.S. Midway Islands
Reported and claimed for the United States by Captain N.C. Brooks, the atoll was first called Middlebrooks and then Brooks. The name Midway dates from the islands' formal annexation by the United States in 1867. President Theodore Roosevelt placed the islands under the control of the U.S. Navy. Captain WIlliam Reynolds of USS Lackawanna formally took possession of the atoll for the United States, the name changed to 'Midway' sometime after this. -
Medicine Lodge Treaty
Among its provisions, the Medicine Lodge Treaty relegated the Cheyenne to lands south Fort Larned. The treated also allowed the tribes to collect annuities or gifts from the government. To the United States government, gifts were less expensive than war. This treaty removed Indians from the path of American expansion, avoiding costly wars. Articles of the treaties defined reservation boundaries, the Indian agent's role, and the government's obligations to the tribes