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Election of Lincoln
In 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected president of the United States of America. Because of Lincoln being elected it caused the south to feel a lost political voice. Also, South Carolina seceded from the United States. Lastly a meeting was held that included all of the seceded states and they formed The Confederate States of America. -
Houston Kicked Out of Office
After Texas became a part of the Confederate States of America, Sam Houston was thrown out of office. The reason this happened was because he refused to pledge allegiance to the Confederate States. Also he was against seceding from the U.S. and he said "I love Texas too well to bring civil strife and bloodshed upon her." He is now the only governor to be kicked out of office in two states. -
Texas secedes from the U.S.
On this day Texas became the seventh state to secede from the United States. The vote to leave the U.S. was 166 to 8 in favor of seceding. Also Sam Houston was one of the 8 who voted against seceding. Texas was also the last state to secede before the first shot of the Civil War at Fort Sumter. Texans thought the election of a republican would threaten slavery so they made the choice to secede. -
Battle at Fort Sumter
Maj. Robert Anderson and his 85 men were positioned at Fort Moultrie. Fearing for the safety of his men, he moved to Fort Sumter with his men which was a very bold move for Anderson. On the morning of April 12, 1861, The Confederate States opened fire on Fort Sumter but Anderson didn't return fire for 2 hours.This battle lasted 34 hours starting The Civil War but when it ended, Anderson surrendered and no soldiers were killed and the Confederacy took Fort Sumter. -
Battle of Galveston
Commander William B. Renshaw of The Union led his eight ships of men into Galveston harbor and demanded surrender of the port. The small number of Confederate forces there retreated but Gen. John B. Magruder of the Confederacy made plans to recapture it. His men converted two steamboats to gunboats and went to the port and attacked the ships at the harbor. The remaining Union ships fled and the Confederate land forces took down the Union troops in Galveston. The Confederacy took control again. -
Battle of Sabine Pass
At about 6 am, a fleet of Union ships including four gunboats went to Sabine Pass with the intention of landing troops to occupy Texas. But when the gunboats were about to take Fort Griffin, they were attacked by six cannons. The small number of 44 men at Fort Griffin forced the ships to retreat and captured one of the gunboats. They also took 200 prisoners and no one of the Union came close to that area for another month. -
Red River Campaign
The plan for the Red River Campaign said to take 20 gunboats up the Red River and 27,000 men on the western shore. Two days after the boats entered the river, the Union captured Fort Derussy and soon later, Alexandria. The 27,000 men though went nearly 20 miles away from the river and they soon encountered the Confederacy and they fought until the Union finally held them and retreated down to the river but there were no gunboats there to protect them. The campaign was a failure. -
End of The Civil War
After 4 years of fighting, Robert E. Lee had to finally surrender. Robert E. Lee met Ulysses S. Grant in a small home in Virginia and Lee surrendered his 28000 troops to Grant ending the American Civil War. Lee asked for the terms and Grant quickly wrote them. All soldiers would be sent home with their property and horses. -
Battle of Palmito Ranch
The Battle of Palmito Ranch took place after the war was over. Even though the Confederacy already surrendered, it was considered the final battle of the Civil War because it was the last time The Union and The Confederate forces engaged in battle that involved casualties. Though the Confederate's won the battle, it didnt matter because they already lost the war. -
Juneteenth
Juneteenth was when slavery was considered officially over. On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger landed at Galveston to tell everyone that the war was over and slaves were now to be set free. Slavery in the United States was officially over. -
Reconstruction Ends
The Compromise of 1876 marked the end of Reconstruction in the U.S. The struggle to deal with the rights of African Americans was not over though. The civil rights movement in the 1960s also involved African Americans fighting for their rights.
