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Compromise of 1850
This compromise consisted of 5 laws that included settling the border between America and Mexico, changing the fugitive slave act, abolishing slavery in Washington DC, and allowed California to enter the US as a state. This raised tensions between north and south but also better defined some boundaries and key laws in the west. -
The Kansas Nebraska Act
This act undid part of the Missouri act as it split new territory into Kansas and Nebraska, seemingly to allow one to have slavery and one to be free. The result was more tension in America, especially with the Northerners as they were enraged that more slave states would be in the west. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas refers to an event where the town of Lawrence was attacked by pro slavery ruffians. Lawrence was a town of anti slavery settlers. In the end, much property was destroyed and 200 people were dead. It was one of the first sparks of violence that led to the civil war. -
The Dred Scott Decision
This decision began as James Buchanan proposed that the supreme court should decide whether slavery would be allowed in territories of the United States. Meanwhile, a man named Dred Scott sued for his freedom because his master brought him onto free soil. The supreme court ruled against Scott and then decided that they could not prohibit slavery in territories. Northerners found this answer to be unconstitutional. -
Lincoln - Douglas Debates
The main difference between Lincoln and Douglas was that while Lincoln opposed the spread of slavery (without being an abolitionist), Douglas supported National Sovereignty. Lincoln proposed that they partake in a series of debates. In these debates Lincoln took the side of the north and gained popularity, although Douglas won the senate election. -
Lincoln's Election
The Democratic party split prior to the election, and Douglas and Breckinridge could not gain enough Northern approval to win. Southerners were angered by the threat to slavery that was the election of Abraham Lincoln. This led to the secession of the southern states, the confederacy. -
Fort Sumter
Lincoln promised to restock Fort Sumter for potential battle. Before a ship could arrive, the Confederate president Jefferson Davis ordered an attack, and the fort surrendered was was captured by the South. It marked the beginning of the Civil war. -
Bull Run
The Confederates called this battle the Battle of First Manassas. This fight was one of the first of the Civil War, and, in short, showed the effectiveness and inexperience of many of the soldiers and generals. After the battle was over, people realized in full how long the war was likely to be. -
Harper's Ferry
The battle of Harper's Ferry was one of the first Confederate victories. General Stonewall Jackson and General Lee outnumbered and surrounded the Union base. Colonel Dixon S Miles surrendered the troops after three days of fighting. The confederates gained a vital transportation hub. -
Antietam
This was a savage battle in which 23,000 soldiers were killed between the Union and the Confederacy. Despite this fact, the battle marked the stop of the first invasion the confederate army of North Virginia into the North. The gruesomeness also inspired Lincoln to write the emancipation proclamation. -
Emancipation Proclaimation
Abraham Lincoln issued a decree that said that all the slaves in the rebellious states, under the rule of the Union, would be free. This shifted the goal of the civil war into a fight for human rights and inspired many to persevere or to join the fight. -
Gettysburg Address
This is perhaps the most famous of all the speeches of Abraham Lincoln. The well known quote beginning with "four score and seven years ago" originated from this speech where he inspired the people of the Union to persist against the Confederacy and honored the soldiers, dead and alive, who fought in the war. -
Andersonville Prison
The Anderson Prison was a confederate prison-of-war camp that was used during the final year of the civil war. This camp showed all the horrors of the civil war as it was an overcrowded center of disease and death. About 13,000 union soldiers and prisoners died there. -
Reconstruction after the Civil War
The civil war led to a period of reconstruction, 1865-1877, in which southern states restricted the rights of newly freed slaves and, in contrary, other black citizens gained more rights and a voice in government. More radical forms of both democrats and republicans began to form as views of how the US should function were very diverse. -
Surrender at Appomattox Court House
General Robert E Lee surrendered his army to General Ulysses S Grant. The southern forces were cut off from supplies after the short battle of Appomattox court house, and Lee decided to end the war by surrendering. This event brought the 4 year battle to an end. -
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Five days after the south surrendered and the Civil war was ended, Lincoln was assassinated. Booth, the assassin, shot him in the head while he viewed a comedy performance on April 18th, 1865.
