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The Civil War
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First Issue of The Liberator
The Liberator was the first newspaper on antislavery. Written by William Lloyd Garrison. -
The Compromise of 1850
Senator Henry Clay introduced a series of resolutions in an attempt to seek a compromise and avert a crisis between North and South. As a part of it the Fugitive Slave Act was amended and the slave trade in Washington D.C. was abolished. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin is a book telling what cruel and brutal system it was like for a slave. This book was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe. The book was banned in the South. -
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
Allowed people within Kansas and Nebraska to choose for themselves if they wanted slavery in their boarders. The Act served to repeal the Missouri Compromise. -
James Buchanan
Sworn into office as the 15th President. Is a member of the Democrat Party. Serving as President for years 1857-1861. -
The Dred Scott Decision
the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a slave (Dred Scott) who had settled in a free state and territory (where slavery was not allowed) was not entitled to his freedom. The court said, "African Americans were not and could never be citizens of the United States. They are property. Therefor, the Constitution protects them. -
John Brown's Raid at Harper Ferry
John Brown was a white abolitionist. Brown led a group to Harper's Ferry. He hoped to arm enslaved African Americans by taking over the arsenal. Brown didn't succeed in this attack and was eventually hung for his actions. -
Abe Lincoln elected President
Abraham Lincoln is elected the 16th president of the United States over a divided Democratic Party, becoming the first Republican to win the election. The other candidates are Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, Constitutional Union candidate John Bell, and Northern Democrat Stephen Douglas, a U.S. senator for Illinois. Lincoln only received 40% of the votes. He wanted to leave slavery alone. -
South Carolina secedes from the Union
South Carolina was the first state to succeed. After many South states followed including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. The delegates elected Jefferson Davis as the President of the Confederate States of America. Each state that joined later volunteered to join, so no states were forced. -
Battle at Fort Sumter begins
The battle lasted a total of two days. The fort was located on Confederate soil, but it was an Union fort. The Confederate forces around Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, opened fire on the Union. No one was killed, but there was many injuries. This was the start of the Civil War. -
The First Battle of Bull Run
The Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Manassas, named by the Confederate, was the first major battle of the Civil War. The South had the victory for this battle by making the North retreat. The North blamed the lost on their General, General Irvin McDowell, so they replaced him with General George McClellan. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." It applied only to states that had seceded from the Union, leaving slavery untouched in the loyal border states. The Proclamation announced the acceptance of black men into the Union Army and Navy. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1–3, 1863. This battle had the largest number of casualties, deaths, of the entire war. The battle was a victory for the North, led by General George Meade. -
Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman's March started November 15 until December 21, 1864. Union General William Sherman led 60,000 soldiers on a march from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia. The purpose of this was to frighten Georgia’s population into abandoning the Confederates. The soldiers didn't destroy any of the towns in their path, but they stole food and livestock and burned the houses and barns of people who tried to fight back. -
The Surrender at Appomattox Court House
The Battle of Appomattox Court House, fought on the morning of April 9, 1865, was one of the last battles of the Civil War. The signing of the surrender documents occurred in the afternoon of April 9. On April 12, a formal ceremony marked the disbandment of the Army of Northern Virginia and the parole of its officers and men, effectively ending the war in Virginia. This event triggered a series of surrenders across the South, signaling the end of the war. -
Lincoln's assassination
On April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth fatally shot President Abraham Lincoln at a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. The attack came only five days after Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his massive army at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the American Civil War.
