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Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States after edging out Stephen A. Douglas on November 6th 1860. Lincoln, a Republican, was not on the ballot in ten southern states, carrying a heavy majority of the northern ones. With his election, the beginnings of succession began in the southern United States.
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On December 20th, 1860 South Carolina succeeded from the Union becoming the first state to show their unsatisfaction with the election of Abraham Lincoln. This started a trend that eventually led to the succession of several other southern states.
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On this day, Abraham Lincoln was officially sworn in as the sixteenth President of the United States of America. In his inauguration speech, Lincoln refused to acknowledge the Confederate States of America as a sovereign nation. He stressed the importance of a united union in his speech.
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In April of 1861, Lincoln announced the blockading of all southern ports. This was a blow to the south as they would no longer be able to export cotton, their number one product. Only being able to ship out ten percent of their cotton supply hindered the income of the Confederacy.
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On April 12th, 1861 the Confederate States of America attacked Union soldiers at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. The Confederate troops forced the surrender of the Union one's holding the fort causing the outbreak of the American Civil as is known today.
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These two irconclad ships did battle in the Atlantic Ocean in March of 1862. The battle ended up in a draw as the Confederate's Merrimack sank to the bottom of the ocean, and the Union could not salvage the Monitor. These ships did not have the technology or capacity to be effective in warfare at this time.
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On January 1st, 1863 Abraham Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation. This proclamation freed slaves in the Confederate states, a step in the right direction for the freedom for African-Americans. This proclamation would only be successful, however, if the Union was able to defeat the Confederacy and reunite the northern and southern states.
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The Battle of Gettysburg took place in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania from July 1st to July 3rd in 1863. This battle had the most casualties of any battle during the war. It was also a turning point, as General George Meade and his troops pushed back General Robert E. Lee, successfully ending the Confederacy's invasion of the north.
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On November 19th, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address during the dedication of the Soldier's National Cemetary on the battlefield at Gettysburg. This one of the more popular speeches Lincoln gave during his presidency.
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General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union forces on April 9th, 1865. He surrendered at the McLean House in Appomattox Court House, Virginia. This would be the beginning of the end to the American Civil War.
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Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on April 14th, 1865 by John Wilkes Booth. The assassination took place only five days after the surrendering of General Robert E. Lee. Booth assasinated Lincoln as he watched a play, Our American Cousin, at Ford's Theater in Washington D.C.
