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The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was passed on March 2, 1820. With growing anti-slavery factions in the North and pro-slavery factions in the South, there was a compromise to be made. The compromise was that Missouri becomes a slave state, then Maine becomes a free state. Furthermore, there couldn’t be any more slave states above the 36° 30’ in any lands in the Louisiana Purchase. This event is significant because this is one of the many compromises that led up to the Civil War.
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The Compromise of 1850 was a series of bills passed on September 1850. This all started because the United States gained a vast amount of land westward after the Mexican-American War. In these series of bills: California became a free state, the territories of New Mexico and Utah were allowed to freely vote for slavery, and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 passed through Congress. This event is significant because it was one of the compromises that led up to the Civil War.
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Uncle Tom’s Cabin was a book written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. The book was published on March 20, 1852, and became a national bestseller. The book is about a slave named Tom that gets beaten to death by his master, Simon because he didn’t tell him where two slave women escaped. This book is significant to the Civil War because it helped “power” the abolitionist movement in the North.
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Bleeding Kansas happened from 1854-1861. This all started with the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854. This act allowed the territories of Nebraska and Kansas to vote on whether to be a free or slave state. This caused thousands of pro and anti-slavery settlers from nearby states to travel to Kansas to sway the vote in their favor. This led to years of violence between the two groups of settlers. This event is significant because it was one of the catalysts that started the Civil War.
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Harpers Ferry Raid happened from October 16 to October 18, 1859. An abolitionist named John Brown led a slave uprising that captured the Harpers Ferry Arsenal in Virginia (21 men in total). On October 18, a group of U.S Marines led by Colonel Robert E. Lee surrounded Brown and captured him. In the end, Brown was executed on December 2, 1859. This event is significant because it showed the major divide between the pro and anti-slavery states.
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On April 13, 1861, U.S Major Robert Anderson and his troops surrendered to Confederate General P.G.T Beauregard. This was caused after a 34 hour bombardment of the fort. Fort Sumter was a fort that was located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. This event is significant because this is where the first shots of the Civil War took place.
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The Union blockade was a blockade around the Southern coastline to collapse the Confederate economy. The Union blockade was apart of the Anaconda Plan. This plan was masterminded by Union General Winfield Scott. The Union would send Union ships to the Southern coastline to cut off the South’s supply lines by sea. This blockade lasted from April 19, 1861, to the end of the Civil War. This event was significant because it damaged the Southern economy heavily.
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The First Battle of Bull Run, also known as the First Battle of Manassas took place on July 21, 1861. The Union troops were led by Irvin McDowell. The Confederate troops were led by P. G. T. Beauregard. In the end, the battle resulted in a Confederate victory with 4,878 total casualties on both sides. This battle is significant because it was the first major battle of the Civil War.
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The Battle of the Ironclads commenced on March 8, 1862, and March 9, 1862. The Union Ironclad called The Monitor was commanded by Captain John Worden. The Confederate Ironclad called The Merrick was commanded by Flag Officer Franklin Buchanan. On March 8, Merrick attacked USS Cumberland and USS Minnesota. On March 9, the two ironclads faced each other and the battle ended indecisively. This battle is significant because it changed the future of naval warfare as we know it.
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The Battle of Shiloh, also known as The Battle of Pittsburg Landing commenced from April 6-7 1862. In this battle, the Union were led by Ulysses S. Grant. The Confederates were led by Albert Sidney Johnston. At the end of the battle, the Union were the victors with 24,000 casualties on both sides. This battle is significant because it propelled Grant to start a massive campaign in the Mississippi Valley.
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The Battle of Antietam is known as "the bloodiest single day in American military history". The Battle of Antietam lasted from September 16–18, 1862. The Battle of Antietam happened in Sharpsburg, Maryland. The Confederates launched multiple charges against the Union. In the end, the battle resulted in a Union victory, but with 23,000 total casualties on both sides. This battle is significant because this Union victory gave Lincoln enough courage to declare the Emancipation Proclamation.
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The Battle of Fredericksburg commenced on December 11 – 15, 1862. Fredericksburg is located in Virginia. The Union troops were led by Ambrose E. Burnside. The Confederate troops were led by Robert E. Lee. In the end, the battle ended in a Confederate victory with a total of 18,500 casualties on both sides. This battle is significant because the loss for the Union worsened Lincoln’s popularity and the Union’s morale.
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The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order given by Abraham Lincoln on New Years Day of 1863. The Emancipation Proclamation allowed African Americans to fight for the Union in the Civil War. Furthermore, the Emancipation Proclamation eventually set millions of slaves free. This event is significant because it changed the meaning of the Civil War from preservation to the creation of a new union without slavery.
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The Battle of Chancellorsville commenced in Chancellorsville, Virginia on April 30 – May 6, 1863. The Union were led by General Joseph Hooker. The Confederates were led by General Robert E. Lee. In the end, the battle resulted in a Confederate victory where there were a total of 30,764 casualties on both sides. This battle is significant because it showed Lee’s strategic might.
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The Battle of Vicksburg, also known as The Siege of Vicksburg commenced from May 18 through July 4, 1863. The Union were led by Ulysses S. Grant. The Confederates were led by John C. Pemberton. Grant sent units to storm the city, but were repelled. Grant then laid siege onto the city and waited for the Confederates to surrender. On Independence Day of 1863, Pemberton and his army surrendered to Grant. This battle is significant because it gave the Union access to the huge Mississippi River.
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Gettysburg is a town that’s located in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. There was a battle called The Battle of Gettysburg that lasted from July 1 to July 3, 1863. The battle resulted in a resounding Union victory. This battle is significant because it’s known as “the turning point of the war” for the Union. Four months after the battle, Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address at the Gettysburg Soldiers National Cemetery.
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The 1864 Presidential Election was an election between Democrat George B. McClellan and Republican Abraham Lincoln. This election was crucial for both sides because they both wanted the war to end. If McClellan was elected, he would have made peace with the Confederates. On November 8, 1864, Lincoln won the election in an electoral college landslide. This event was significant because it solidified that the end of the Civil War would be presided by Lincoln.
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Appomattox is located in Appomattox, Virginia. Appomattox is significant because this is where General Lee surrendered his army to General Grant. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865. Fun fact, Wilmer McLean, a man who tried to run away from the chaos of the Civil War (First Battle of Bull Run), had the war come right back to him because he was the resident at the time at Appomattox Courthouse.
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President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination occurred on April 14, 1865. Lincoln was enjoying a theatrical play at the Ford Theatre when he was shot. Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth, a Confederate sympathizer. This event was significant because Lincoln was the first American president to be assassinated. Lincoln died the next day.
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The 13th amendment was ratified on December 6, 1865. This amendment abolished slavery. This amendment was ratified with help from the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation paved the way for the 13th amendment to pass through Congress. This event is significant because it legally abolished slavery forever.
