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Civil War Timeline
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West Point graduate, veteran, ex-Cabinet member Jefferson Davis ran and was elected for the Senate. While in his position, he came out in favor of the secession of Southern states.
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40,000 shoe-workers marched through city streets to get a living wage. Abraham Lincoln announced his support for the strike.
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Abraham Lincoln visits New York City's worst slum, the Five Points. He told the children that he had once been where they had been, and could not finish his speech.
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A speech given by Abraham Lincoln at Cooper Union, New York City. Lincoln was not yet the nominee for the Republican Party.
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A service that delivered mail, messages, and newspaper via pony. A predecessor to USPS.
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Abraham Lincoln is elected president of the United States. He would be the 16th president.
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Georgia calls for a Convention of Southern states to discuss secession. Only Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, and Mississippi are invited.
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An unsuccessful compromise introduced by John J. Crittenden. The compromise attempted to prevent the secession of Southern states.
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South Carolina secedes from the Union. This was done in retaliation to Lincoln's presidency.
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The Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union was issued to explain its reasoning for leaving the union.
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Mississippi secedes from the Union. This is following South Carolina's secession.
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Florida secedes from the Union. They are the third state to do so.
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Alabama secedes from the Union. They secede one day after Florida.
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Georgia secedes from the Union. They secede about a week after Alabama.
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Louisiana secedes from the Union. They are the sixth state to secede.
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Texas secedes from the Union. They are the seventh state to secede.
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Lincoln becomes the 16th President of the United States. He represented the Republican Party.
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Virginia secedes from the Union. They secede two and a half months after Texas.
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Arkansas secedes from the Union. It secedes one month after Virginia.
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North Carolina secedes from the Union. It is the second to last state to do so, Tennessee is the last state to secede.
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A battle fought in Mill Springs, Kentucky. The Union won, weakening the Confederate hold on the state.
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The Confederates surrendered Fort Henry. This opened the Union to the Tennessee River.
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Confederate loss. This led to the Union controlling the Pamlico Sound in eastern North Carolina.
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The first major battle in Tennessee. It ended with a Union victory.
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Gen. Jackson leads his forces to Winchester, Virginia. They successfully drive out Union forces from the city.
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The Battle of Seven Pines near Richmond, Virginia. The Commander of the Confederate Army is wounded and replaced by Robert E. Lee.
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Union victory over the Confederates in Memphis, Tennessee. The Union now controls the Mississippi River.
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Fought in the same place where the First Battle of Bull Run occurred. Coincidentally, both battles ended in a Union defeat.
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The bloodiest single day battle. After this battle, Lincoln proposes the Emancipation Proclamation.
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Union forces attempted to cross the Potomac River and sack Fredericksburg, Virginia. The Confederates defeated them.
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The Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect. Some applaud it, others feel like it doesn't go far enough to end slavery.
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The first battle of 1863. It ends with a Union victory, and Union control over central Tennessee.
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The Union begins drafting for soldiers. The Confederates began this practice a year before.
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Gen. Lee famously wounded "Stonewall" Jackson, who dies soon after. The Confederates now start to try to move the war North.
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The Union attacks Brandy Station and discovers the Confederates are moving West. This marks the beginning of the Gettysburg Campaign.
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The bloodiest battle of the civil war, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It destroys all of Robert E. Lee's hopes for invading the North.
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The Draft Riots begin in New York City. Rioters say that the draft system favors the rich, and attack the draft office in Manhattan.
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Union forces occupy Chattanooga, Tennessee. They plan to invade Georgia after.
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Confederate forces surround Chattanooga to drive out the Union forces. The battles lasted for two months.
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Abraham Lincoln gives his famous speech at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was an official dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery.
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109 Union Officers break out of Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia. Only 59 make it to Union lines.
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Abraham Lincoln requests that Grant be appointed Lieutenant General. The next day, Grant assumes control of all Union armies.
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Gen. Banks begins the Red River Campaign on the Red River in Louisiana. It is a plan to strike deep into the Confederacy.
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The first battle of the Red River Campaign. Took place in Mansfield, Louisiana.
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A battle in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Robert E. Lee was successful in stalling Union forces, but ultimately the Union pushed through.
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The Union attempted to break the Confederates hold on Richmond, Virginia. The Union was defeated.
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Confederate forces arrive at Washington, D.C. and exchange cannon fire with Union forces. Lincoln observes the battle in Fort Stevens, and the Confederates withdraw the next day.
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The last counterattack from the Confederates before the fall of Atlanta. The next day, Union forces occupy Atlanta.
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A surprise attack by the Union on Fort Harrison in Richmond, Virginia. All attempts by the Confederates to recapture the fort fail.
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On the end of it's "March to the Sea", Union troops are met by little resistance. They capture Fort McAllister and force Confederate defenders out of Savannah, Georgia.
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Union forces capture Fort Fisher, North Carolina. This was the last Southern port open to trade on the east coast.
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Abraham Lincoln is inaugurated for his second term as president. Many Northerners supported him.
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Gen. Lee abandons both Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia. He does this in hopes of joining other Confederate forces in North Carolina.
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The day after the Confederates abandon the cities, the Union occupy them. They were met with no resistance.
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Lincoln is assassinated in Fords Theater in Washington, D.C. He is assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
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The Confederate Army of Tennessee surrenders. Joseph Johnston is the general who signs the documents.
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The Confederate Armies of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana surrender. Richard Taylor is the one to sign the documents.
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Confederate president Jefferson Davis is captured. He is caught near Irwinville, Georgia.
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The final battle of the Civil War, the Battle of Palmito Ranch, takes place in Palmito Ranch, Texas. It is a Confederate victory.
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Gen. Buckner surrenders for the Trans-Mississippi Army of the Confederacy. The Civil War is officially over.
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The first formal observation of Lincoln's Birthday is held in Washington, D.C. Andrew Johnson attends.
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President Johnson vetoed the Civil Rights Act, declaring it unconstitutional. The Act declared all citizens equally protected under the law.
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The 14th Amendment is approved. It states that all people born in the United States are United States citizens.
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The bill states that military trial will be given to those who denied an African-american rights. Johnson vetoed it months earlier.
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Congress establishes a "general of the armies" position. Ulysses S. Grant is immediately promoted to this position.
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After the end of the civil war, some people were still vocal about their want for slaves. The Secret Service began to look into this organization, the Ku Klux Klan.
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President Johnson declares peace with Texas. This is almost a year after the Civil War.
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North Carolina does not want to agree with the North. They reject the 14th amendment.
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A fire is started in the Philadelphia Shipyard. It destroys most of the ships used in the Civil War.
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South Carolina follows in the footsteps of North Carolina. This is six years after they seceded from the Union.
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Kentucky is yet another state to reject this amendment. It is the third to do so.
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The same day Kentucky rejected the 14th amendment, blacks in Washington, D.C gained the right to vote. This is the first place in the US that allowed it.
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Nebraska is admitted to the Union. It is admitted before former Confederate states are.
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The Federal Army restores military rule to Mississippi. This is done as part of the Reconstruction.
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Virginia rejected over 1,000 votes cast by African-americans. This took place in response to the Reconstruction Act.
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Congress passed their second Reconstruction Act. They overrode Johnson's veto in order to pass it.
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The United States purchases Alaska for 2 cents an acre. This is called Seward's Folly.
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These states are; Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and North and South Carolina. Virginia, Mississippi, and Texas are not admitted.
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A committee for Reconstruction is appointed by Congress. It included nine house members and six senate members.
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South Carolina allows blacks to serve on a jury after General Edward Canby demands it. This is only two years after the Civil War.
