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South Carolina Secedes
South Carolina secedes. -
Other Southern states follow
Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas follow, forming the Confederate States of America, with Jefferson Davis as president. -
War starts
War begins as Confederates fire on Fort Sumter -
Edwin M. Stanton made secretary of war
Edwin M. Stanton named secretary of war -
Nashville Falls
Grant wins first important Union victory in West, at Fort Donelson; Nashville falls. -
Ironclads fight
Ironclads, Union's Monitor and Confederate's Virginia fight at Hampton Roads.
