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First issue of the Liberator
An anti-slavery newspaper called the Liberator, was first published on January 1st, 1831 by William Lloyd Garrison. -
Compromise of 1850
In 1850, a new compromise was passed by Congress. It was called the Compromise of 1850. It said that California would be a free state, new territories like Utah and New Mexico would have no limits on slavery, and the slave trade would be banned from Washington D.C.. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin published
Uncle Tom's Cabin was an novel written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1852. The novel made a big impact on people. It talked about how slavery was very cruel, and so the South banned it from being sold there. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act passed
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed in 1854. It was supported by Northern Democrats and President Pierce. It was introduced to settle the slavery issue. The Kansas-Nebraska Act stated that the people in the Kansas and Nebraska territories could decide whether to allow slavery or not. -
James Buchanan sworn into office as the 15th President
James Buchanan was made the 15th President of the United States in 1857, and was nominated by the Democratic Party. He had 174 electoral votes, while John Fremont had 114 and Millard Fillmore had 8. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was an African American slave. His owner took him to different states/territories that were both free and non free. He said that he should be free because he had lived on free land. The Supreme Court said that Dred was still enslaved, and that just because he was living on free land, it didn't make him free. Congress couldn't ban slavery, and they also said that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional. -
John Brown's Raid at Harper's Ferry
John Brown wanted to attack a storage site for weapons. He wanted to give the weapons to the African Americans to use against slaveholders. He was defeated and got tried and convicted of murder and treason. Later, he was hung. The execution shook the Northerners, and it frightened the Southerners because their ideas that the North were going to attack against them were confirmed. -
Abraham Lincoln elected President
Abraham Lincoln was elected President in the Election of 1860. He was the first Republican President. There were three other presidential candidates. Lincoln won the majority of electoral votes, and won every Northern state. -
South Carolina Secedes from the Union
South Carolina seceded from the Union in 1860. It seceded because it could. They had the right to because they were asked to join the Union, and so they didn't have to stay with it. -
Battle at Fort Sumter begins
The Battle at Fort Sumter began on the 12th of April. Abraham had received news that Fort Sumter was running low on supplies, and that the Confederates wanted the Union to surrender the fort. Lincoln sent a group of people to bring supplies, and that they wouldn't hurt anybody unless they were fired upon. The Union surrendered Fort Sumter on April 14th, and luckily nobody was hurt. -
1st Battle of Bull Run
The first Battle of Bull Run was the first major battle in the Civil War. The battle was in Virginia near the river Bull Run. A bunch of people from Washington D.C. came because they were confident that the Union would win. A confederate general earned the nickname "Stonewall" Jackson because he stood "like a stone wall". Eventually, the North retreated leaving the Confederates with a win. They realized that the battle would be very long, and not short like they expected to be. -
Emancipation Proclamation goes into effect
The Emancipation Proclamation went into effect on January 1st, 1863. It didn't have the power to end slavery, but it could take property away from an enemy. It was an official order that freed all enslaved people. The Emancipation Proclamation had a big impact on people. The Government said that slavery was wrong, and that it would end slavery in the United States. -
Battle of Gettysburg begins
Began on July 1st in a town called Gettysburg. General Lee was in Gettysburg looking for supplies, and he didn't want to fight. They crossed paths with the Union, and they lost many people in the battle. The Union ended up winning the battle against the Confederates. -
Sherman's March to the Sea begins
The Union wanted to break the Confederate's will to fight, so Sherman burned down a lot of Atlanta. Sherman and his troops also went across Georgia burning crops as they went to the Atlantic. The trail the left is known as Sherman's March to the Sea. -
The Surrender at Appomattox Court House
There was a meeting held at the Appomattox Court House in Virginia on April 9th, 1865. Grant and Lee talked and came to agreements with each other. Lee's officers could keep their firearms and horses. Grant gave a lot of rations to feed Lee's soldiers. The Civil War had just ended. -
Lincoln's Assassination
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 14th, 1865. Lincoln was watching a play in the theater when John Booth creeped up and shot Abraham in the back of the head. Abraham Lincoln died later that night.
