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Abraham Lincoln's Election
During this elections, Republican Abraham Lincoln defeated Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas and Constitutional Union candidate John Bell. Abraham Lincoln became the 16th president of the U.S. with 180 electoral votes and 1,866,452 popular votes. -
Abraham Lincoln Inaugurated
Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as the sixteenth President of the United States. In the inauguration speech, Lincoln insisted "I have no purpose to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists." Also he declared that he would not attack any part of the country unless it attacked the Union first. -
The Confederate Constitution was adopted
The Confederacy declared in their constitution that no law could deny, “the right of property in negro slaves". Congress and the territorial government now recognized and protected slavery. The Confederate Constitution prohibited the importation of slaves from any foreign countries that were not territories of the United States. -
Fort Sumter and the beginning of Civil War
Lincoln announced his intention to send three unarmed ships to relieve Fort Sumter. Having already declared that any attempt to resupply the fort would be seen as an act of aggression, South Carolina militia forces soon scrambled to respond. On April 11, militia commander Beauregard demanded that Anderson surrender the fort, but Anderson again refused. In response Beauregard opened fire on Fort Sumter shortly after 4:30 a.m. on April 12, 1861. The first shots of the Civil War had been fired. -
President Lincoln issued a proclamation to end the rebellion
Following the incident at Fort Sumter, Lincoln calls for 75,000 militiamen to put down the rebellion. In four and a half years, nearly 5 million American men will serve as soldiers with more than 600,000 of them falling as casualties, making the Civil War the bloodiest war in American history. -
Virginia Secedes
In response to Lincoln's decision to use force in South Carolina, Virginia secedes from the nation. -
Lincoln orders blockage
With only 42 ships and 3550 miles of Confederate coastline to patrol, Lincoln orders a blockade of Confederate ports that will eventually weaken the Confederacy by disrupting the importation of supplies. President Abraham Lincoln sided with Seward and proclaimed the blockade on April 19. Lincoln extended the blockade to include North Carolina and Virginia on April 27. By July of 1861, the Union Navy had established blockades of all the major southern ports. -
Arkansas Secedes
The primary reason for Arkansas' secession was "hostility to the institution of African slavery" from the free states. The free states' support for "equality with negroes" was another reason. -
Morrill Tariff
The Morrill Tariff was passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President James Buchanan on March 2, 1861, two days before Buchanan left office and Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated. The new law made some significant changes in how duties were assessed on goods entering the country and it also raised rates. This law, which taxed imports to the United States, was said to be so unfair to southern states that it caused them to secede from the Union. -
North Carolina secedes
North Carolina seceded from the Union and the state's involvement in the Civil War began. -
Confederate capital moves to Richmond
Once Virginia seceded, the Confederate government moved the capital to Richmond, the South's second largest city. The move served to solidify the state of Virginia's new Confederate identity and to sanctify the rebellion by associating it with the American Revolution, Virginia was the South's industrial center, with an industrial output nearly equal to that of all other Confederate states combined. -
Tennessee secedes
Tennessee seceded from the Union and it was the 11th and final state to join the Confederacy. -
Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Battle of Manassas, marked the first major land battle of the American Civil War. The engagement began when about 35,000 Union troops marched from the federal capital in Washington, D.C. to strike a Confederate force of 20,000 along a small river known as Bull Run. The Confederate victory gave the South a surge of confidence and shocked many in the North, who realized the war would not be won as easily as they had hoped. -
Naval engagement at Pensacola
The Civil War's first naval engagement occurs at Pensacola, Florida, between the USS Colorado and the steamer Judah. -
McClellan named commander
George McClellan was a U.S. Army engineer, railroad president and politician who served as a major general during the Civil War. McClellan opposed the outright abolition of slavery, though he was committed to the preservation of the Union. He accepted command of the volunteer army of the state of Ohio. His skill at training the Ohio Volunteers won him favor in Washington, and he was soon promoted to the rank of major general in the regular army. -
Ironclad warfare
The Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack is famous because it was the first clash between ironclad warships. This battle changed the future of naval warfare. The battle itself was inconclusive with neither side really winning. However, the ironclad warships had proven their value in battle. No longer would wooden ships be viable in war. The battle had changed the course of naval warfare. -
Slavery abolished in D.C.
Slavery remained legal in the District until April 16, 1862, when President Abraham Lincoln signed into law an act abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia. -
Organizing black troops
Major General David Hunter of the Union organizes the first black troops, among whom number many former slaves. By war's end, nearly 200,000 African Americans will have served in the Union forces, comprising roughly ten percent of the Union's total manpower. -
Lincoln's intentions/ Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln announces to his cabinet his intention to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. By this point, he believes the border states will remain in the Union. Lincoln decides to wait to address the nation publicly, however, hoping to introduce his proclamation after a more favorable military battle. -
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run proved to be the deciding battle in the Civil War campaign waged between Union and Confederate armies in northern Virginia. Led by Stonewall Jackson, hero of the First Battle of Bull Run 13 months earlier, the rebels seized supplies and burned the depot, then established hidden positions in the woods. The battle leads to huge Union losses. -
Battle of Antietam Creek
The battle’s outcome would be vital to shaping America’s future, and it remains the deadliest one-day battle in all of American military history. General Lee invades the North in an attempt to isolate Washington, D.C., but finds himself thwarted by General McClellan and the Union forces. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, to go into effect on January 1, 1863. In the document, Lincoln freed all slaves in Confederate or contested areas of the South. Slaves in non-Confederate border states and in parts of the Confederacy under Union control are not included. -
Midterm congressional elections
Midterm congressional elections take place. The Republicans maintain control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, with a 39-12 majority in Senate and a 103-80 majority in the House. -
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg on December 13, 1862, involved nearly 200,000 combatants, the largest concentration of troops in any Civil War battle. The Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, marks a grave defeat for the Union. General Lee and his Confederate troops defeat General Burnside. Union losses number more than 12,600, while Confederate casualties rise to 5,300. -
Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. With it, he freed all slaves in Confederate or contested areas of the South. However, the Proclamation did not include slaves in non-Confederate border states and in parts of the Confederacy under Union control. -
Battle of Murfreesboro
In late December 1862, Union and Confederate forces clashed at the Battle of Stones River, near Murfreesboro, Tennessee, during the American Civil War. On January 2, 1863, another Confederate assault was repelled by overwhelming Union artillery fire, forcing Bragg to order a Southern retreat. With approximately 23,000 total casualties, Stones River was one of the deadliest battles of the war. -
Battle of Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville, in the American Civil War, bloody assault by the Union army in Virginia that failed to encircle and destroy the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. This battle was a huge victory for the Confederacy and General Robert E. Lee during the Civil War, though it is also famous for being the battle in which Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was mortally wounded. -
West Virginia becomes a state
During the Civil War, West Virginia is admitted into the Union as the 35th U.S. state, or the 24th state if the secession of the 11 Southern states were taken into account. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg, is considered the most important engagement of the American Civil War. After a great victory over Union forces at Chancellorsville, General Robert E. Lee marched his Army of Northern Virginia into Pennsylvania in late June 1863. -
Gettysburg Address
On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered remarks, which later became known as the Gettysburg Address, at the official dedication ceremony for the National Cemetery of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania, on the site of one of the bloodiest and most decisive battles of the Civil War. Though he was not the featured orator that day, Lincoln’s brief address would be remembered as one of the most important speeches in American history. -
Lincoln offers full pardons
Lincoln offers a full pardon to Southerners who take the prescribed oath. He offers his conciliatory plan for reunification of the United States with his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction. By this point in the Civil War, it was clear that Lincoln needed to make some preliminary plans for postwar reconstruction. -
The Republican National Convention nominates President Lincoln again
The Republican National Convention nominates President Lincoln for second term. Andrew Johnson is nominated as his new vice president. -
Horace Greeley negotiations
Horace Greeley, a radical Republican, is eager for peace. Lincoln opens peace negotiations and tells Greeley that emissaries from Jefferson Davis are in Canada. -
The Democratic National Convention nominates General George B. McClellan
The Democratic National Convention nominates General George B. McClellan, the former Union commander, for the presidency and George Pendleton for the vice-presidency. Claiming the war effort a failure, the Democrats support a ceasefire and peace conference. -
Lincoln reelected
On November 8, 1864, Northern voters overwhelmingly endorse the leadership and policies of President Abraham Lincoln when they elect him to a second term. -
Thirteenth Amendment
The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865 in the aftermath of the Civil War, abolished slavery in the United States. The 13th Amendment states: “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.” -
Abraham Lincoln inaugurated (second term)
Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated as president for his second term while Andrew Johnson succeeds Hannibal Hamlin as vice-president. -
Surrender at Appomattox and the end of the Civil War
n Appomattox Court House, Virginia, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders his 28,000 troops to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, effectively ending the American Civil War. Forced to abandon the Confederate capital of Richmond, blocked from joining the surviving Confederate force in North Carolina, and harassed constantly by Union cavalry, Lee had no other option. -
Lincoln shot
On the evening of April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth, a famous actor and Confederate sympathizer, assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. The attack came only five days after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his massive army at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War. -
Abraham Lincoln dies
Abraham Lincoln dies at 7:22 a.m. in the home of William Petersen. Vice President Andrew Johnson is sworn in as the seventeenth President of the United States.
