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The election of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln.
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South Carolina December 20th, 1860
Mississippi January 9th, 1861
Florida January 10th, 1861
Alabama January 11th, 1861
Georgia January 19th, 1861
Louisiana January 26th, 1861
Texas february 1st, 1861
Virginia April 17th, 1861
Arkansas May 6th, 1861
Tennessee May 6th, 1861
North Carolina May 20th, 1861 -
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Confederate States of America is formed and Jefferson Davis is named president.
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At 4:30 AM Confederates under General Pierre Beauregard open fire with 50 cannons upon Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The Civil War begins.
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The surrender of Fort Sumter to the Confederacy.
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The Confederate capitol of Richmond, Virginia falls or is captures by the Union army.
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The Union Army under Gen. Irvin McDowell suffers a defeat at Bull Run 25 miles southwest of Washington.
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General Ulysses S. Grant gets Union victories at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in Tennessee.
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The Confederate Ironclad 'Merrimac' sinks two wooden Union ships then battles the Union Ironclad 'Monitor' to a draw.
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Confederate surprise attack on Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's unprepared troops at Shiloh on the Tennessee River results in a bitter struggle with 13,000 Union killed and wounded and 10,000 Confederates, more men than in all previous American wars combined.
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David Farragut and the Union Navy captures the seaport of New Orleans.
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General Robert E. Lee is given command of the Army of Narthern Virginia.
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The Seven Days Battles as Lee attacks McClellan near Richmond, resulting in very heavy losses for both armies.
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Once again the Union Army retreats to Washington. The president then relieves Pope.
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The bloodiest day in U.S. military history as Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Armies are stopped at Antietam in Maryland by McClellan and numerically superior Union forces.
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Army of the Potomac under Gen. Burnside suffers a costly defeat at Fredericksburg in Virginia with a loss of 12,653 men after 14 frontal assaults on well entrenched Rebels on Marye's Heights.
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President Lincoln issues teh Emancipation Proclamation freeing all slaves in territories held by Confederates and emphasizes the enlisting of black soldiers in the Union Army.
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The Union enacts or passes a law creating the first military draft of men into the army. The U.S. Congress enacts a draft, affecting male citizens aged 20 to 45, but also exempts those who pay $300 or provide a substitute.
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The Union Army under Gen. Hooker is decisively defeated by Lee's much smaller forces at the Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia as a result of Lee's brilliant and daring tactics.
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Confederate General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson dies.
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Vicksburg, the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, surrenders to Gen.
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The tide of war turns against the South as the Confederates are defeated at the Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania.
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The opening of the confederate prisoner of war camp Andersonville.
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In Virginia, Grant with an Army of 120,000 begins advancing toward Richmond to engage Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, now numbering 64,000, beginning a war of attrition that will include major battles at the Wilderness.
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The Battle at Spotsylvania was one of the major battles at the Wilderness.
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A costly mistake by Grant results in 7,000 Union casualties in twenty minutes during an offensive against fortified Rebels at Cold Harbor in Virginia.
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Union forces miss an opportunity to capture Petersburg and cut off the Confederate rail lines. As a result, a nine month siege of Petersburg begins with Grant's forces surrounding Lee.
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Union General William T. Sherman burns Atlanta, Georgia to the ground and begins his March to the Sea.
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President Lincoln is re-elected for a 2nd term.
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Union General William T. Sherman finishes his March to the Sea and captures Savannah, Georgia.
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The Confederacy and General Robert E. Lee surrender to Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia.
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President Lincoln dies and Vice President Andrew Johnson takes over as President of the U.S.
