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The Invention of The Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney was the inventor of the cotton gin. Along with his partners, he manufactured cotton gins throughout Georgia and Southern states. Before this invention, it took men many hours to seperate the cotton seed from raw cotton fibers. This machine could make up to fifty pounds of clean cotton a day. Cotton production was very profitable in southern states. Others tried to copy this invention. In 1794 Whitney went to court to patent his invention. This invention improved the cotton industry. -
Period: to
Civil War
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Underground Railroad
This helped fugitive slaves escape to the North and Canada. It was not run by a single person or organization. Although it was led by Harriet Tubman. She helped free about 300 slaves. She made 19 trips into the South.Fugitives would travel by train and boat to get to freedom. The south lost 100,000 slaves from 1810 to 1850. In 1831 it became known as the "Underground Railroad" -
Missouri Compromise
This compromise ended the first thoughts concerning the extension of slavery. In January of this year, Maine was admitted as a state by the House. Slave states and free states had equal representation in the Senate. Missouri had a large population by 1818, so it was able to admit itself to the Union. Missouri was a slave state.Henry Clay is regarded as the author for this compromise. The 36' 30 was kept until 1854. This compromise was eventually repealed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. -
Wilmot Proviso
David Wilmot was against the extension of slavery to lands by Mexico. He believed that slavery shouldn't have existed. Many northerners, including Wilmost were angry at President Polk. People considered him racist. Many questioned if he was racist, why would he have said statmements he did. Wilmot felt that Polk's entire cabinet had southern values. He envisioned California where free White's could work. The Wilmot Proviso passed multiple time in the House of Representatives. -
Compromise of 1850
This compromise was between the North and the South. California became the 16th free state. Slave trade was prohibited in Washington, D.C. Slaveholding was also illegal in Washington.Texas lost the boundary argument with New Mexico. Texas got ten million dollars. The Fugitive Slave law was passed. There were no slave restrictions in Utah or New Mexico. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
This book was published in 1852. It was written to change how Americans viewed slavery. It is Harriet Beecher Stowe's best known novel. It sold 10,000 copies in its first week in the U.S. This book helped the promise of freedom and equality. Stowe's grandmother kept slaves of her own. This book is considered a protest novel. Stowe ended up meeting fugitive enslaved people. -
Caning of Charles Sumner
A member of the House of Representatives beat a Senator . Charles Sumner was an antislavery Republican. Preston Brooks beat Sumner with his metal topped cane. He continued to beat him for a long minute then it ended. Brooks was a member on the House of Representatives. He resigned and was immediately reelected. He ended up dying soon at the age of 37. It took Sumner two years to recover. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was a slave who was said to be free because he lived in the free state of Illinois. Roger B. Taney delievered the decision from the Supreme Court, he was chief justice at the time. The first case happened 10 years before. Dred Scott was about 50 years old. He was born in Virginia and had been a slave. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 gave him freedom. The compromise was declared unconstitutional because slaves were property. The court ruled he remain a slave. -
Lincoln-Douglas Debates
The debates were held at 7 sites in Illinois. One was in each Congressional district. Stephen Douglas was a Democrat. Abraham Lincoln was a Republican. Lincoln lost to Douglas in the Senate race in 1858. Lincoln ended up beating him in 1860 for Presidency. The debates drew the atttention of the entire nation.These debates were for a U.S. Senate seat in Illinois. On Aug 27 1858, Stephen Douglas proposed the Freeport Doctrine which was a mixture of popular sovereignty and Kansas-Nebraska Act. -
Raid on Harper's Ferry
John Brown was the master behind this plan. They wanted to assist runaway slaves. One of his men blackmailed him so he was forced to wait to execute.The wait affected the outcome of his plan. Men who were with him changed their minds or moved away.On the date shown he set out with 21 men, including 5 blacks. Brown got wonded in the event. This event caused the Civil war to come quickly. -
Election of 1860
The Democrats met in Charleston, SC to nominate their candidate. They ended up nominating Stephen Douglas. The Republican Party met in Chicago and their nominee was Abraham Lincoln. Both parties wanted a candidate that would win the majority of the electoral college. Stephen Douglas supported slavery. Lincoln won the election. He got 40% of the popular vote. The south would have to accept the outcome. -
Formation of The Confederate States of America
Southern states began to secede and their leaders began to resign. The states lacked in size and population. Altogether, the states had a population of 9 million people. The south had only 20,000 factories. The constitution of the CSA was approved on March 11. The individual states also had the choice to create their own armies. It was steal illegal to import slaves from other nations. They could also make seperate agreements. -
Fort Sumter
This battle lasted three days. General Beauregard was in charge of the Confederate troops. It was located in Charleston, SC. He demanded that the Union troops surrender. The conferderates won the battle. -
First Battle of Bull Run
On this date Union and Confederate armies started a battle near Manassas. This was the first land battle of the Civil War. There were 35,000 Union troops. They were figting against 20,000 Confederates. The Confederates ended up winning the battle and this boosted their confidence. This battle is also know as "Manassas". The South ended up winning after defending themselves for most of the battle. -
Battle of Shiloh
This Battle lasted two days (Apr 6-7). Another name for this battle would be "Pittsburgh Landing". This battle was the effect of the fall of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson. A confederate general named Albert Johnston was forced to give up Kentucky and Middle Tennessee. He was fight against U.S. Gran'ts troops. Grant had about 40,000 men with him. The Confederate troops ended up being victorious. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The war was fought by the North and South so the Confederate states wouldn't take control of the Union. Sectionalism was one of the major causes of war. Ceasing slavery was not a goal of the war. This document stated that all slaves would become free. This bold statement came days after the Union victory. This statement was given by Abraham Lincoln, This statement affected all states but the border states. The freedom of the Union was dependent on a military victory. -
Siege at Vicksburg
Ulysses Grant's army arrived in front of Vicskburg.Grant chose to attack the city immediately. The attack was repulsed, even thought it was said to be a good decision. Pemberton had 30,000 men of Confederate forces present. His men had suffered two huge defeats in the past 3 days. Pemberton's defenses were constructed by engineers for seven months. He was more prepared for this than the other defeats. The victory help promote U.S. Grant to the front rank of Union generals. This ended on May 22nd -
Battle of Gettysburg
This was said to be the most important battle in the Civil War. It lasted for three days. It was located in Gettyburg, PA. 160,000 American citizens were involved. Cities were under the attack of Robert E. Lee's troops. Many Confederate soldiers were headed to Gettysburg on June 30. 75,000 Confederates died. 88,000 Union soldiers died in the battle. -
Battle of Antietam
This happened after the surrender at Harper's Ferry. The losses were bad for both sides. This battle was between Lee and McClellan's troops. McClellan over 12,000 men. This was Lee's first invasion of the North. The North was able to stop him. Robert Lee was outnumbered. This was the bloodiest day in American history. -
Gettysburg's Address
This is the most famous speech by Abraham Lincoln. He tates that all men are created equal. He talks about the Civil War coming to an end. With this he wanted a birth of freedom for the country. He believed that people would forget what he said, but he didn't want them to forget why he said it. He wanted to honor the dead by working on the greater cause which was slavery. There was unfinished work that the Civil War left and he planned to fix it. He didn't want the people who died to die in vain -
Election of 1864
Abraham Lincoln was the Republican nominee. He was trying to win a second term. The democratic nominee was George B. McClellan. The Republican party met in Baltimore, MD. No president had a second term since Andrew Jackson which was 30 years before. McClellan managed to win 45% of the popular vote. Lincoln beat his opponent by 191 electoral votes. Even though many doubted him, he still ended up winning. -
Sherman's "March to the Sea"
This was said to be the most destructive campaign against a civilian population. It began in Atlanta, GA. it ended on Dec 21, 1824 in Savannah, GA. William T. Sherman was a Union general. He wanted to prove that the confederate population could not protect their people from invasion. He practiced and believed in "phsycological warfare". He marched across Georgia to the Atlantic Ocean. He didn't want war, but he wanted to make a statement. -
13th Amendment
This was passed by Congress on Jan 31, 1865. It abolished slavery in the United States. This first passed the Senate on April 8, 1864. This was passed before the end of the Civil War. With this amendment, the U.S. found a long term solution to slavery. This is one of the three Civil War amendments. President Lincolnd approved the amendment before it was submitted. He took a key role to make sure the amendment would be passed through Congress. -
Freedman's Bureau
This bank provided thousands of former slaves with assitance. It also helped whites that were in poverty in southern states. This bank lasted for 7 years. It was created years after the Civil War. It was established in the War Department. -
Siege of Richmond
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Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia
General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant. Lee's troops were more loyal to him. His troops were one step ahead of the federal army. Lee wanted to reach the south side of the station.Lee's opponent became aware that he wasn't prepared for the battle.The attacks occured in the morning.Lee's troops set up a camp near the courthouse. The attacks occured within this area. -
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
On this date a famous actor shot Abrham Lincoln. His name was John Wilkes Booth. President Lincoln attended a play in Washington, D.C. This attack was just 5 days after the Civil War was over. At 10:15 Booth slipped into Lincoln's box and shot him in the head. He was pronounced dead at 7:22 A.M. The first lady laid in the next room in grief. Booth was eventually shot in the neck and he died. -
14th Amendment
This amendment was raitfied on July 9 1868. It granted citizenship to all people who were born on United States soil. It prohibited states from denying life, liberty, or property. This law helped protect the civil rights of all Americans. With this you cannot deny a person equal protection of the laws. Citizenship even included former enslaved people. This is also in the trio orf Civil Rights Amendents. This amendment is stated most in lawsuits today. -
15th Amendment
This amendment gave African American men the right to vote. It wasn't recognized until a century late after it was ratified.It would take the Voting Rights Act before the majority of African American men could vote. Southern states didn't abide by the law. They would manipulate the rights of African Americans. They used poll taxes and literacy tests to determine who could vote. Many African American men couldn't afford to pay poll taxes. Also they weren't educated so literacy tests prevented it. -
Election of 1876
This presidential election was one of the most heatedly discussed in U.S. history. The Republican candidate was Rutherford B. Hayes. The Democratic candidate was Samuel J Tilden. Lousiana, South Carolina, and Florida were key to this election. Twenty electoral votes would determine the winner. Haytes won the popular vote by about 36,000. He ended up winning the electoral college by 1 vote. The final electoral vote was 185 to 184 in favor of Hayes.
