-
Pony Express Begins
On April 3rd 1860, the very first Pony Express ride took place from St. Joseph, Missouri to San Francisco on April 14th. As a result of the speed which with the service delivered mail from East to West, it would become the first quick mailing service, which would later help the Union during the Civil War. -
Civil War Began
On April 12, 1861 at 4:30 AM, the Confederates launched an attack on Fort Sumter, which marked the beginning of the war. This war would decide the fate of the US as a whole. -
Abraham Lincoln Inauguration
Abraham Lincoln was Inaugurated as the 16th president of the United States. He was voted into office in 1860. If he had not been admitted to office, history would have been drastically different for Americans on both sides of the Civil War. Certain policies may not have occurred or may have happened much later had Lincoln not been in office. -
The Homestead Act
The Homestead Act of 1862 was a settlement in which land was given to household heads in exchange for improving said land by cultivating it. After living on the land for five years, the property would be theirs free of charge. The property title could also be obtained after six months of residency and minimal improvements for a fee of $1.25 per acre. -
Battle of Antietam
Also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, this was a battle between the Union and Confederate armies. General Robert E. Lee led the Confederate army and General George B. McClellan led the Union army. This battle lasted only one day and the lives of 22,727 people died in the process and or went missing entirely. The Battle of Antietam remains one of the bloodiest days in all of American history. This battle allowed Lincoln the confidence to issue the emancipation proclamation -
Emancipation Proclamation
Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on January first as the US entered the third year of the Civil War. The document declared that slaves are free people but this obviously only applied to union states. -
Gettysburg Address
On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered a speech at the Gettysburg Cemetery after The Battle of Gettysburg (which took place July 1-3, 1863). His speech took only two minutes and compared the Civil War struggles to that of the days of the American Revolution. Lincoln expressed that the abolition of slavery would be the birth of freedom and that all men are created equal. -
The Long Walk of the Navajo
Christopher "Kit" Carson was sent by the United States government to remove Navajo/Dine people from their home at Fort Sumter, New Mexico. He destroyed their homes, enslaved some of them, and when they finally surrendered in winter, they were forced to walk over 400 miles to Fort Defiance in Arizona. The Navajo/Dine people were forced to leave their spiritual homelands and the 4 sacred mountains. Over 200 Navajo/Dine people perished on this journey. -
End of the Civil War
Due to Robert E. Lee's surrender at the Appomattox courthouse, the confederates had lost the war. Lee would then be taken prisoner until 1869. The south would then slowly be rebuilt and the United States became whole once again. -
Battle of Appomattox
The Battle of Appomattox Court House was fought between the union and confederate armies and was the last major battle fought in the Civil War. The union army led by Ulysses S. Grant was victorious and the confederate army led by Robert E. Lee was made to surrender. The end of the war would make for some improvements to black rights but not nearly enough. -
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated via gun-wound to the head on April 14, 1865 by John Wilkes Booth who was a confederacy sympathizer. Booth believed that by killing Abraham Lincoln, the Confederacy could be restored. While this did not bring back the Confederacy's power, it did lead to even more racial tensions and the rise of the KKK. -
Black Codes Enacted
After the end of the Civil War, black codes were enacted in the states which made it difficult for African Americans to obtain jobs and also to quit jobs that they managed to get. In some cases there were even laws that determined what they could own as personal property. These laws would -
Amendments Ratified
Three amendments were ratified at this time, those being the 13th, 14th, and 15th. The 13th abolished slavery on December 6, 1865, the 14th granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States on June 9, 1868, and the 15th granted African American men the right to vote on February 3, 1870. -
Klu Klux Klan Established
The Klu Klux Klan was founded in Pulaski, Tennesee on Christmas Eve of 1865 by veteran confederates after the Civil War. This group targeted and attacked (primarily at night) both black people and members of government who did not share their racism towards POC. The KKK had a branch in nearly every southern state by 1870, and though they were subdued for a long time, they sadly continue to exist today. -
Formation of National Woman Suffrage Association
NAWSA was formed when two different women's organizations, NWSA and AWSA, joined together. The founders of these organizations were: Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Santon, Carrie Chapman Catt. and Lucy Stone. These two groups combined sought women's enfranchisement through both state and federal campaigns. These aided in the eventual 19th amendment which granted women voting rights in 1919. -
Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad
The completion of the Transcontinental railroad was a major advancement for America, as the connection between the east and west coast railways made for a much safer traveling system across the country. The connected railway made it possible to transfer goods and people significantly quicker and safer than they would be on a wagon. -
Enforcement Acts
The Enforcement Act, sometimes called the first Klu Klux Klan Act, was a law put into place which stated that prohibited discrimination of voters based on race, color, or previous servitude. -
The Panic of 1873
The Panic of 1873 was a significant financial predicament where there was major overleveraging by the railroad stock market. This caused a collapse of the stock market and resulted in financial devastation throughout the country as people and businesses fell into debt, lost their jobs, or declared bankruptcy. -
Battle of Little Bighorn
When gold was discovered on the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1875, the US army ignored treaties with the tribes in the area and invaded their territory regardless. Over 10,000 Sioux and Cheyanne members joined Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull in protest by occupying Little Bighorn river (which they called Greasy Grass to show rebellion). George Custer and 600 of his men would come to attack them but were overwhelmed as 3,000 tribesmen overtook them. All of Custer's men were dead in an hour. -
The Great Railroad Strike
The Great Railroad strike was a strike that occurred after the Baltimore and Ohio (BO) railroad cut employee wages for the third time in a single year. This repeated salary cutting enraged railroad employees, causing them to strike for 52 days after The National Guard forced them to stop. By this time, however, other states had also gone into striking which resulted in at least 100 deaths. In 1880 BO would start an Employee Relief Association to pay out for deaths caused and minor health care.