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Civil War TImeline
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Lincoln vs. Douglass Debates for President of US
Lincoln and Douglass had many political debates when they were both running against each other for being the US President. -
Civil Rights Movement
More people started fighting for the rights of everyone no matter race or gender. -
Different economies between the North and South
Both the North and South had growing and high economies but not for the same reason. The North's economy came from factories and industrialization while the South came from agriculture, The south was also dependent on slaves where the north was not. -
Territory expansion
US acquired more land and territory and with these territories people did not know if they would be slave or free states. If they were not even than both the North and South would be nervous of the other side gaining more power. -
Slavery Unrest
Many events, such as riots and speeches, were happening to start freeing slaves. -
States' Rights Issues
People felt that states should have more say in issues than the federal government while others thought the complete opposite. -
Protracted and acrimonious debate over the House speakership
Could not decide who to nominate. In February, the Republicans elect William Pennington as Speaker of the House with 119 votes, the exact number needed to win. The debates in Congress during this period are heated and many members carry weapons. Southern congressmen talk openly of secession in the event of a Republican presidential victory in November. -
Abraham Lincoln Elected President
Abraham Lincoln was elected President and the South feared that Lincoln and his republican party would over turn slavery which would greatly affect their economy. -
Crittenden Compromise fails
The Crittenden Compromise was the creation of John J. Crittenden, a 74-year-old slaveholder and Democratic senator from Kentucky, who emerged with a compromise that he claimed would end the arguments over slavery and avert a Civil War between the North and South. Despite considerable popular support for Crittenden's compromise, Congress failed to enact it -
South Carolina Secedes
South Carolina Succeeds from fear that Lincoln will free the slaves and that the North would have much more power than the South. This causes more South states to start leaving the Union, in the end 11 states seceded. -
A Blockade of the South
To blockade the coast of the Confederacy effectively, the federal navy had to be improved. By July, the effort at improvement had made a difference and an effective blockade had begun. The South responded by building small, fast ships that could outmaneuver Union vessels. -
General McDowell Is Replaced
Suddenly aware of the threat of a protracted war and the army's need for organization and training, Lincoln replaced McDowell with General George B. McClellan. -
Anaconda Plan Made
The Anaconda Plan was the initial Civil War strategy devised by General Winfield Scott of the U.S. Army to put down the rebellion by the Confederacy in 1861. Scott came up with the plan in early 1861, intending it as a way to end the rebellion predominantly through economic measures. -
States Secede
Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas all leave the Union and join Confederacy. -
Jefferson Davis Becomes Provisional President of Confederacy
Davis is elected President of the Confederacy temporarily. -
Corwin Amendment
Corwin Amendment is passed by Congress but not ratified. -
Lincoln becomes President
Lincoln becomes President and the South is not happy about that because he is anti-slavery -
Fort Sumter
First shots of civil war fired at fort sumter from the South but the North does not fight back -
First Major Battle of Bull Run
First major battle of the American Civil War. The battle was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, just north of the city of Manassas and about 30 miles west-southwest of Washington, D.C. -
Davis unanimously elected to full term as Confederate president
Davis is elected to full term presidency of the Confederacy -
Abraham Lincoln Takes Action
On January 27, President Lincoln issued a war order authorizing the Union to launch a unified aggressive action against the Confederacy. General McClellan ignored the order. -
Battle of Shiloh
Confederate forces attacked Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant at Shiloh, Tennessee. By the end of the day, the federal troops were almost defeated. Yet, during the night, reinforcements arrived, and by the next morning the Union commanded the field. When Confederate forces retreated, the exhausted federal forces did not follow. Casualties were heavy—13,000 out of 63,000 Union soldiers died, and 11,000 of 40,000 Confederate troops were killed. -
Fort Pulaski, Georgia
General Quincy A. Gillmore battered Fort Pulaski, the imposing masonry structure near the mouth of the Savannah River, into submission in less than two days, (April 10-11, 1862). His work was promptly recorded by the indefatigable Timothy H. O'Sullivan. -
New Orleans
Flag Officer David Farragut led an assault up the Mississippi River. By April 25, he was in command of New Orleans. -
"Stonewall" Jackson Defeats Union Forces
Confederate General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, commanding forces in the Shenandoah Valley, attacked Union forces in late March, forcing them to retreat across the Potomac. As a result, Union troops were rushed to protect Washington, D.C. -
The Peninsular Campaign
In April, General McClellan's troops left northern Virginia to begin the Peninsular Campaign. By May 4, they occupied Yorktown, Virginia. At Williamsburg, Confederate forces prevented McClellan from meeting the main part of the Confederate army, and McClellan halted his troops, awaiting reinforcements. -
The Battle of Seven Pines (Fair Oaks)
On May 31, the Confederate army attacked federal forces at Seven Pines, almost defeating them; last-minute reinforcements saved the Union from a serious defeat. Confederate commander Joseph E. Johnston was severely wounded, and command of the Army of Northern Virginia fell to Robert E. Lee. -
The Seven Days' Battles
Between June 26 and July 2, Union and Confederate forces fought a series of battles: Mechanicsville (June 26-27), Gaines's Mill (June 27), Savage's Station (June 29), Frayser's Farm (June 30), and Malvern Hill (July 1). On July 2, the Confederates withdrew to Richmond, ending the Peninsular Campaign -
Second Battle of Bull Run
Despite heavy Confederate casualties (9,000), the Battle of Second Bull Run (known as Second Manassas in the South) was a decisive victory for the rebels, as Lee had managed a strategic offensive against an enemy force (Pope and McClellan's) twice the size of his own. -
McClellan replaced with Grant
One day after the congressional mid-term elections, U.S. president Abraham Lincoln relieved Union general George B. McClellan, a potential political rival, of command of the Army of the Potomac. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Lincoln, aware of the public's growing support of abolition, issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring that all slaves in areas still in rebellion were, in the eyes of the federal government, free. -
The First Conscription Act
Because of recruiting difficulties, an act was passed making all men between the ages of 20 and 45 liable to be called for military service. Service could be avoided by paying a fee or finding a substitute. The act was seen as unfair to the poor, and riots in working-class sections of New York City broke out in protest. A similar conscription act in the South provoked a similar reaction. -
The Battle of Chancellorsville
On April 27, Union General Hooker crossed the Rappahannock River to attack General Lee's forces. Lee split his army, attacking a surprised Union army in three places and almost completely defeating them. Hooker withdrew across the Rappahannock River, giving the South a victory, but it was the Confederates' most costly victory in terms of casualties. -
The Battle of Spotsylvania
General Grant continued to attack Lee. At Spotsylvania Court House, he fought for five days, vowing to fight all summer if necessary. -
The Vicksburg Campaign
Union General Grant won several victories around Vicksburg, Mississippi, the fortified city considered essential to the Union's plans to regain control of the Mississippi River. On May 22, Grant began a siege of the city. After six weeks, Confederate General John Pemberton surrendered, giving up the city and 30,000 men. The capture of Port Hudson, Louisiana, shortly thereafter placed the entire Mississippi River in Union hands. The Confederacy was split in two. -
The Gettysburg Campaign
Seen as turning point of war and the bloodiest battle of the civil war. It was a military invasion of Pennsylvania by the main Confederate army under General Robert E. Lee in summer 1863. The Union won a decisive victory at Gettysburg, July 1–3, with heavy casualties on both sides. Lee managed to escape back to Virginia with most of his army. -
Turing point in war
After Gettysburg the South never invaded the North again. South morale was down and many South soldiers left the Confederate army. -
The Battle of Chickamauga
On September 19, Union and Confederate forces met on the Tennessee-Georgia border, near Chickamauga Creek. After the battle, Union forces retreated to Chattanooga, and the Confederacy maintained control of the battlefield. -
Gettysburg Address
Lincoln gave speech at Gettysburg, PA where the Battle of Gettysburg happened. In it, he invoked the principles of human equality contained in the Declaration of Independence and connected the sacrifices of the Civil War with the desire for “a new birth of freedom,” as well as the all-important preservation of the Union created in 1776 and its ideal of self-government. -
The Battle of Chattanooga
On November 23-25, Union forces pushed Confederate troops away from Chattanooga. The victory set the stage for General Sherman's Atlanta Campaign. -
The Siege of Knoxville
Burnside sought refuge in Knoxville, which he successfully defended from Confederate assaults. These views, taken after Longstreet's withdrawal on December 3, include one of Strawberry Plains, on his line of retreat. Here we have part of an army record: Barnard was photographer of the Chief Engineer's Office, Military Division of the Mississippi, and his views were transmitted with the report of the chief engineer of Burnside's army, April 11, 1864. -
Photographs of Battle fields
Photographers started taking photos of the Civil War battlefields. This showed people the real battlefields and the dead bodies that came with war. This discouraged the war to continue. -
Grant's Wilderness Campaign
General Grant, promoted to commander of the Union armies, planned to engage Lee's forces in Virginia until they were destroyed. North and South met and fought in an inconclusive three-day battle in the Wilderness. Lee inflicted more casualties on the Union forces than his own army incurred, but unlike Grant, he had no replacements. -
The Battle of Spotsylvania
General Grant continued to attack Lee. At Spotsylvania Court House, he fought for five days, vowing to fight all summer if necessary -
The Battle of Cold Harbor
Grant again attacked Confederate forces at Cold Harbor, losing over 7,000 men in twenty minutes. Although Lee suffered fewer casualties, his army never recovered from Grant's continual attacks. This was Lee's last clear victory of the war. -
The Siege of Petersburg
The Petersburg Campaign gave the photographers full opportunity to build a superb corpus of documentation, completed when they were able to enter the town and its defenses in the first days of April. Grant won by steadily extending his lines westward, but the photographers do not seem to have ventured very far from City Point. The last three photographs place Timothy H. O'Sullivan with the army at Appomattox Court House, where Lee surrendered the remnants of his valiant force. -
Confederate Troops Approach Washington, D.C.
Confederate General Jubal Early led his forces into Maryland to relieve the pressure on Lee's army. Early got within five miles of Washington, D.C., but on July 13, he was driven back to Virginia. -
General William T. Sherman's Atlanta Campaign
Union General Sherman departed Chattanooga, and was soon met by Confederate General Joseph Johnston. Skillful strategy enabled Johnston to hold off Sherman's force—almost twice the size of Johnston's. However, Johnston's tactics caused his superiors to replace him with General John Bell Hood, who was soon defeated. Hood surrendered Atlanta, Georgia, on September 1; Sherman occupied the city the next day. The fall of Atlanta greatly boosted Northern morale. -
Abraham Lincoln Is Re-Elected
The Republican party nominated President Abraham Lincoln as its presidential candidate, and Andrew Johnson for vice-president. The Democratic party chose General George B. McClellan for president, and George Pendleton for vice-president. At one point, widespread war-weariness in the North made a victory for Lincoln seem doubtful. But with a Union win he was re-elected. -
General William T. Sherman's March to the Sea
General Sherman continued his march through Georgia to the sea. In the course of the march, he cut himself off from his source of supplies, planning for his troops to live off the land. His men cut a path 300 miles in length and 60 miles wide as they passed through Georgia, destroying factories, bridges, railroads, and public buildings. -
Sherman at the Sea
After marching through Georgia for a month, Sherman stormed Fort McAllister on December 13, 1864, and captured Savannah itself eight days later. These seven views show the former stronghold and its dismantling preparatory to Sherman's further movement northward. This operation was ordered on December 24, and General William B. Hazen [2d Division, 15th Corps] and Major Thomas W. Osborn, chief of artillery, completed the task by December 29, storing the guns at Fort Pulaski. -
Start of the Fall of the Confederacy
Transportation problems and successful blockades caused severe shortages of food and supplies in the South. Starving soldiers began to desert Lee's forces, and although President Jefferson Davis approved the arming of slaves as a means of augmenting the shrinking army, the measure was never put into effect. -
The Defenses of Washington
The Lincoln administration was determined to make the capital safe from attack by ringing the city with a chain of forts manned by substantial garrisons of artillerists and other troops. The sequence of photographs starts with the forts on the Virginia shore, follows with defenses north of the Potomac, and ends with a number of garrisons or local military units. -
Fort Fisher, North Carolina
After Admiral David D. Porter's squadron of warships had subjected Fort Fisher to a terrific bombardment, General Alfred H. Terry's troops took it by storm on January 15, and Wilmington, North Carolina, the last resort of the blockade-runners, was sealed off. Timothy H. O'Sullivan promptly recorded the strength of the works and the effects of the bombardment. -
Sherman Marches through North and South Carolina
Union General Sherman moved from Georgia through South Carolina, destroying almost everything in his path. -
A Chance for Reconciliation Is Lost
Confederate President Jefferson Davis agreed to send delegates to a peace conference with President Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward, but insisted on Lincoln's recognition of the South's independence as a prerequisite. Lincoln refused, and the conference never occurred. -
Fallen Richmond
Alexander Gardner and probably other photographers made a splendid record of the Confederate capital, desolate after the evacuation of April 2 and the fire which raged along the waterfront but fortunately had stopped short of Thomas Jefferson's capitol. The photographs are arranged in a kind of guided tour of the city, first along the James from Rocketts westward to the Tredegar Iron Works, inland to the capitol and its environs, and on to the residence of President Jefferson Davis. -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
General Lee's troops were soon surrounded, and on April 7, Grant called upon Lee to surrender. On April 9, the two commanders met at Appomattox Courthouse, and agreed on the terms of surrender. Lee's men were sent home on parole—soldiers with their horses, and officers with their side arms. All other equipment was surrendered. -
The Assassination of President Lincoln
On April 14, as President Lincoln was watching a performance of "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C., he was shot by John Wilkes Booth, an actor from Maryland obsessed with avenging the Confederate defeat. Lincoln died the next morning. Booth escaped to Virginia. Eleven days later, cornered in a burning barn, Booth was fatally shot by a Union soldier. Nine other people were involved in the assassination; four were hanged, four imprisoned, and one acquitted. -
Final Surrenders among Remaining Confederate Troops
Remaining Confederate troops were defeated between the end of April and the end of May. Jefferson Davis was captured in Georgia on May 10. -
The Execution of Captain Henry Wirz
The notorious superintendent of the Confederate prison at Andersonville, Georgia, was tried by a military commission presided over by General Lew Wallace from August 23 to October 24, 1865, and was hanged in the yard of the Old Capitol Prison on November 10. -
Lats issue of The Liberator
The last issue of the abolitionist magazine The Liberator is published in Boston. -
Fisk University Established
Fisk University, a historically black university, is established in Nashville, Tennessee. -
Reconstruction Begins
The Reconstruction era was the period after the American Civil War from 1866 to 1877, 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. -
Congress passes Civil Rights Act of 1866
The United States Congress overwhelmingly passes the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the first federal legislation to protect the rights of African-Americans; U.S. President Andrew Johnson vetoes the bill on March 27, and Congress overrides the veto on April 9. -
Memphis Riots
A series of violent events that occurred from May 1 to 3, 1866 in Memphis, Tennessee. The racial violence was ignited by political and social racism following the American Civil War, in the early stages of Reconstruction. -
Tennessee joins Union
Tennessee becomes the first U.S. state to be readmitted to the Union following the American Civil War. -
Civil war is Over
President Johnson formally declares Civil War over. -
Swing Around the Circle
A disastrous speaking campaign undertaken by United States President Andrew Johnson between August 27 and September 15, 1866, in which he tried to gain support for his mild Reconstruction policies and for his preferred candidates (mostly Democrats) in the forthcoming midterm Congressional elections. -
Western Union Telegraph Expedition
Western Union Telegraph Expedition to Alaska begins its second season, the first after the death of Robert Kennicott -
Republicans win in House of Reps Election
Despite President Andrew Johnson's Swing Around the Circle tour, the Republican Party wins in a landslide. -
African-American votes in District of Columbia
African-American men are granted the right to vote in the District of Columbia. -
37th State
Nebraska is admitted as the 37th U.S. state -
The Reconstruction Act of 1867
Outlined the terms for readmission to representation of rebel states. The bill divided the former Confederate states, except for Tennessee, into five military districts. -
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. -
Congress Overrides Presidential Veto
Congress overrides Presidential vetoes to pass the first, second, and third Reconstruction Acts, ushering in the period known as "Radical Reconstruction," during which the governments of all Southern States, except Tennessee, are declared invalid and the states are broken up into military districts overseen by federal troops. -
Alaska is Purchased
Alaska is purchased for $7.2 million from Alexander II of Russia, about 2 cent/acre ($4.19/km²), by United States Secretary of State William H. Seward. The news media call this "Seward's Folly." -
Midway Island
The United States takes control of Midway Island. -
US possess Alaska
U.S. takes formal possession of Alaska from Russia, paying $7.2 million. -
Medicine Lodge Treaty
The Medicine Lodge Treaty is the overall name for three treaties signed near Medicine Lodge, Kansas, between the Federal government of the United States and southern Plains Indian tribes in October 1867, intended to bring peace to the area by relocating the Native Americans to reservations in Indian Territory and away from European-American settlement. -
Native Americans Relocated
Due to treaties, Native Americans are forced to leave their land and move to reservations.