Civil War Timeline
1860
November 6, 1860
Abraham Lincoln, who had declared
"Government cannot
endure permanently
half slave, half free...“
is elected president,
the first Republican,
receiving 180 of 303
possible electoral votes
and 40 percent of the
popular vote.
December 20, 1860
South Carolina secedes from the Union.
1861
Western Theater 1861
Eastern Theater 1861
January 1861- The South Secedes
When Abraham Lincoln, a known opponent of slavery,
was elected president, the South Carolina legislature
perceived a threat. Calling a state convention, the
delegates voted to remove the state of South Carolina
from the union known as the United States of America.
The Secession of South Carolina was followed by the
secession of six more states -- Mississippi, Florida,
Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas -- and the
threat of Secession by four more -- Virginia, Arkansas,
Tennessee, and North Carolina. These eleven states
eventually formed the Confederate States of America.
January 9, 1861
Mississippi seceded from the Union
January 10, 1861
Florida seceded from the Union
January 11, 1861
Alabama seceded from the Union
January 19, 1861
Georgia seceded from the Union
January 26, 1861
Louisiana seceded from the Union
January 29, 1861
Kansas seceded from the Union
February 1, 1861
Texas seceded from the Union
February 1861
The South
creates a
Government
February 1861

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At a convention in Montgomery, Alabama, the
seven seceding states created the Confederate
Constitution, a document similar to the United
States Constitution, but with greater stress on
the autonomy of each state.
Jefferson Davis was named provisional
president of the Confederacy until elections
could be held.
February 1861
The South seizes Federal Forts

When President Buchanan (Lincoln's predecessor)
refused to surrender southern federal forts to the
seceding states, southern state troops seized them. At
Fort Sumter, South Carolina troops repulsed a supply
ship trying to reach federal forces based in the fort.
The ship was forced to return to New York, its
supplies undelivered.
March 4, 1861
Lincoln is inaugurated
At Lincoln's inauguration the
new president said he had no
plans to end slavery in those
states where it already existed,
but he also said he would not
accept secession. He hoped to
resolve the national crisis
without warfare.
March 11, 1861
Confederate Constitution
“We, the people of the Confederate States, each State acting in
its sovereign and independent character, in order to form a
permanent federal government, establish justice, insure
domestic tranquillity, and secure the blessings of liberty to
ourselves and our posterity~invoking the favor and guidance
of Almighty God~do ordain and establish this Constitution for
the Confederate States of America…”
April 12-14, 1861
Attack on Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter Attack
When President Lincoln planned to send supplies to Fort Sumter, he alerted the state in
advance, in an attempt to avoid hostilities. South Carolina, however, feared a trick. On April
10, 1861, Brig. Gen. Beauregard, in command of provisional Confederate forces at Charleston,
South Carolina, demanded the surrender of the Union garrison of Fort Sumter in Charleston
Harbour.
The Garrison commander Anderson refused. On April 12, Confederate batteries opened fire on
the fort, which was unable to reply effectively. At 2:30 p.m., April 13, Major Anderson
surrendered Fort Sumter, evacuating on the garrison the following day.
The bombardment of Fort Sumter was the opening engagement of the American Civil War.
Although there were no casualties during the bombardment, one Union artillerist was killed
and three wounded (one mortally) when a cannon exploded prematurely when firing a salute
during the evacuation. From 1863 to 1865, the Confederates at Fort Sumter withstood a 22
month siege by Union forces. During this time, most of the fort was reduced to brick rubble.
Fort Sumter became a national monument in 1948.
April 17, 1861
Virginia seceded from the Union
May 6, 1861
Arkansas seceded from the Union
May 20, 1861
North Carolina seceded from the Union
June 1861
West Virginia is born

Residents of the western counties of Virginia did not
wish to secede along with the rest of the state. This
section of Virginia was admitted into the Union as
the state of West Virginia on June 20, 1863.
July 18, 1861
First Battle of Bull Run
Public demand pushed General-in-Chief Winfield Scott to
advance on the South before adequately training his untried
troops. Scott ordered General Irvin McDowell to advance on
Confederate troops stationed at Manassas Junction, Virginia.
McDowell attacked on July 21, and was initially successful,
but the introduction of Confederate reinforcements resulted in
a Southern victory and a chaotic retreat toward Washington by
federal troops.
Battle of Bull Run

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On 16 July, 1861, the untried Union army under Brigadier General Irvin McDowell, 35,000
strong, marched out of the Washington defenses to give battle to the Confederate army,
which was concentrated around the vital railroad junction at Manassas
The Confederate army, about 22,000 men, under the command of Brigadier General P.G.T.
Beauregard, guarded the fords of Bull Run.
On July 18, McDowell reached Centreville and pushed southwest, attempting to cross at
Blackburn's Ford. He was repulsed.
This action was a reconnaissance-in-force prior to the main event at Manassas / Bull Run.
Because of this action, Union commander McDowell decided on the flanking maneuver he
employed at First Manassas.
Result (s): Confederate victory
Location: Prince William County and Fairfax County
Date (s): July 18, 1861
Principal Commanders: Brigadier General Irvin McDowell [US]; Brigadier General P.G.T.
Beauregard [CS]
Forces Engaged: Brigades
Estimated Casualties: 151 total (US 83; CS 68)
July 21, 1861

The Union Army under Gen. Irvin McDowell
suffers a defeat at Bull Run 25 miles southwest
of Washington. Confederate Gen. Thomas J.
Jackson earns the nickname "Stonewall," as his
brigade resists Union attacks. Union troops fall
back to Washington. President Lincoln realizes
the war will be long. "It's damned bad," he
comments.
July 27, 1861

President Lincoln appoints
George B. McClellan as
Commander of the
Department of the
Potomac, replacing
McDowell
July-November 1861
A Blockade of the South.

To blockade the coast of the Confederacy effectively, the federal
navy had to be improved. By July, the effort at improvement
had made a difference and an effective blockade had begun.
The South responded by building small, fast ships that could
outmaneuver Union vessels. On November 7, 1861, Captain
Samuel F. Dupont's warships silenced Confederate guns in Fort
Walker and Fort Beauregard. This victory enabled General
Thomas W. Sherman's troops to occupy first Port Royal and
then all the famous Sea Islands of South Carolina.
1862
January 31, 1862

President Lincoln
issues General War
Order No. 1 calling
for all United States
naval and land forces
to begin a general
advance by Feb 22,
George Washington's
birthday.
March 1862

The Peninsular Campaign begins as
McClellan's Army of the Potomac advances
from Washington down the Potomac River and
the Chesapeake Bay to the peninsular south of
the Confederate Capital of Richmond, Virginia
then begins an advance toward Richmond.
March 8, 1862
McClellan Loses Command.
 On March 8, President Lincoln -- impatient
with General McClellan's inactivity -- issued an
order reorganizing the Army of Virginia and
relieving McClellan of supreme command.
April 6-7, 1862

Confederate surprise attack on Gen. Ulysses
S. Grant's unprepared troops at Shiloh on the
Tennessee River results in a bitter struggle
with 13,000 Union killed and wounded and
10,000 Confederates, more men than in all
previous American wars combined. The
president is then pressured to relieve Grant but
resists. "I can't spare this man; he fights,"
Lincoln says.
April 24, 1862

17 Union ships under the command of Flag
Officer David Farragut move up the Mississippi
River then take New Orleans, the South's
greatest seaport. Later in the war, sailing
through a Rebel mine field Farragut utters the
famous phrase "Damn the torpedoes, full speed
ahead!"
May 31, 1862

The Battle of Seven Pines as Gen. Joseph E.
Johnston’s Army attacks McClellan's troops in
front of Richmond and nearly defeats them. But
Johnston is badly wounded.
July 11, 1862

After four months as his
own general-in-chief,
President Lincoln hands
over the task to Gen.
Henry W. (Old Brains)
Halleck
August 29-30, 1862

75,000 Federals under Gen. John Pope are
defeated by 55,000 Confederates under Gen.
Stonewall Jackson and Gen. James Longstreet
at the second battle of Bull Run in northern
Virginia. Once again the Union Army retreats to
Washington. The president then relieves Pope.
September 4-9, 1862

Lee invades the North with 50,000
Confederates and heads for Harpers Ferry,
located 50 miles northwest of Washington
September 17, 1862

The bloodiest day in U.S. military history as
Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Armies
are stopped at Antietam in Maryland by
McClellan and numerically superior Union
forces. By nightfall 26,000 men are dead,
wounded, or missing. Lee then withdraws to
Virginia.
Antietam
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On September 17, Confederate forces under General Lee were caught
by General McClellan near Sharpsburg, Maryland. This battle proved
to be the bloodiest day of the war
2,108 Union soldiers were killed and 9,549 wounded
2,700 Confederates were killed and 9,029 wounded.
The battle had no clear winner, but because General Lee withdrew to
Virginia, McClellan was considered the victor.
The battle convinced the British and French -- who were
contemplating official recognition of the Confederacy -- to reserve
action, and gave Lincoln the opportunity to announce his Preliminary
Emancipation Proclamation (September 22), which would free all
slaves in areas rebelling against the United States, effective January
1, 1863.
September 22, 1862

Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation freeing
slaves issued by President Lincoln
November 7, 1862

The president replaces McClellan with Gen.
Ambrose E. Burnside as the new Commander
of the Army of the Potomac. Lincoln had grown
impatient with McClellan's slowness to follow
up on the success at Antietam, even telling him,
"If you don't want to use the army, I should like
to borrow it for a while."
1863
January 1, 1863

President Lincoln issues the final
Emancipation Proclamation freeing
all slaves in territories held by
Confederates and emphasizes the
enlisting of black soldiers in the
Union Army. The war to preserve
the Union now becomes a
revolutionary struggle for the
abolition of slavery.
Emancipation Proclamation
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In an effort to placate the slave-holding border states, Lincoln resisted
the demands of radical Republicans for complete abolition. Yet some
Union generals, such as General B. F. Butler, declared slaves escaping
to their lines "contraband of war," not to be returned to their masters.
Other generals decreed that the slaves of men rebelling against the
Union were to be considered free. Congress, too, had been moving
toward abolition.
In 1861, Congress had passed an act stating that all slaves employed
against the Union were to be considered free.
In 1862, another act stated that all slaves of men who supported the
Confederacy were to be considered free.
Lincoln, aware of the public's growing support of abolition, issued
the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, declaring that all
slaves in areas still in rebellion were, in the eyes of the federal
government, free.
January 25, 1863

The president appoints Gen. Joseph (Fighting
Joe) Hooker as Commander of the Army of the
Potomac, replacing Burnside.
March 3, 1863

Because of recruiting difficulties, the U.S.
Congress enacts an act was passed making all
men between the ages of 20 and 45 liable to be
called for military service The U.S. Congress
enacts a draft, affecting male citizens aged 20 to
45, but also exempts those who pay $300 or
provide a substitute. "The blood of a poor man
is as precious as that of the wealthy," poor
Northerners complain.
May 1-4, 1863

The Union Army under Gen. Hooker is decisively
defeated by Lee's much smaller forces at the Battle of
Chancellorsville in Virginia as a result of Lee's brilliant
and daring tactics. Confederate Gen. Stonewall
Jackson is mortally wounded by his own soldiers.
Hooker retreats. Union losses are 17,000 killed,
wounded and missing out of 130,000. The
Confederates, 13, 000 out of 60,000.
May 10, 1863
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The South suffers a huge blow as Stonewall
Jackson dies from his wounds, his last words,
"Let us cross over the river and rest under the
shade of the trees."
"I have lost my right arm," Lee laments.
June 3, 1863

Gen. Lee with 75,000
Confederates launches
his second invasion of
the North, heading
into Pennsylvania in a
campaign that will
soon lead to
Gettysburg.
July 1-3, 1863
The Battle of Gettysburg

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A chance encounter between Union and Confederate forces
began the Battle of Gettysburg. In the fighting that followed,
Meade had greater numbers and better defensive positions. He
won the battle, but failed to follow Lee as he retreated back to
Virginia. Militarily, the Battle of Gettysburg was the high-water
mark of the Confederacy; it is also significant because it ended
Confederate hopes of formal recognition by foreign
governments.
On November 19, President Lincoln dedicated a portion of the
Gettysburg battlefield as a national cemetery, and delivered his
memorable “Gettysburg Address."
July 4, 1863

Union General Grant won several victories around
Vicksburg, Mississippi, the fortified city considered
essential to the Union's plans to regain control of the
Mississippi River. On May 22, Grant began a siege of
the city. Vicksburg, the last Confederate stronghold on
the Mississippi River, surrenders to Gen. Grant and the
Army of the West after a six week siege giving up the
city and 30,000 men. With the Union now in control of
the Mississippi, the Confederacy is effectively split in
two, cut off from its western allies.
July 10, 1863
Fort Wagner South Carolina

Union artillery on Folly Island together with Rear Adm. John Dahlgren's fleet of
ironclads opened fire on Confederate defenses of Morris Island. The
bombardment provided cover for Brig. Gen. George C. Strong's brigade, which
crossed Light House Inlet and landed by boats on the southern tip of the island.
Strong's troops advanced, capturing several batteries, to within range of
Confederate Fort Wagner. At dawn, July 11, Strong attacked the fort. Soldiers of
the 7th Connecticut reached the parapet but, unsupported, were thrown back.
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July 18: -- After the July 11 assault on Fort Wagner failed, Gillmore reinforced his
beachhead on Morris Island. At dusk July 18, Gillmore launched an attack
spearheaded by the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, a black regiment. The unit's
colonel, Robert Gould Shaw, was killed. Members of the brigade scaled the
parapet but after brutal hand-to-hand combat were driven out with heavy
casualties. The Federals resorted to siege operations to reduce the fort. This was
the fourth time in the war that black troops played a crucial combat role, proving
to skeptics that they would fight bravely if only given the chance.
August- December 1863
Bombardment of Fort Sumter

Federal batteries erected on Morris Island opened
fire on August 17 and continued their
bombardment of Fort Sumter and the Charleston
defenses until August 23. Despite a severe
pounding, Fort Sumter's garrison held out. Siege
operations continued against Fort Wagner on
Morris Island.
September 6, 1863
Charleston Harbor

The night of September 6-7, Confederate forces
evacuated Fort Wagner and Battery Gregg
pressured by advancing Federal siegeworks.
Federal troops then occupied all of Morris Island.
On September 8, a storming party of about 400
marines and sailors attempted to surprise Fort
Sumter. The attack was repulsed.
September 19, 1863
The Battle of Chickamauga

On September 19, Union and Confederate forces
met at Chickamauga Creek in Tennessee. After a
brief period of fighting, Union forces retreated to
Chattanooga, and the Confederacy maintained
control of the battlefield. After Rosecrans's debacle
at Chickamauga, Confederate General Braxton
Bragg's army occupied the mountains that ring the
vital railroad center of Chattanooga.
November 1863
The Battle of Chattanooga
 Grant, brought in to save the situation,
steadily built up offensive strength, and on
November 23- 25 burst the blockade in a
series of brilliantly executed attacks. Union
forces pushed Confederate troops away from
Chattanooga. The victory set the stage for
General Sherman's Atlanta Campaign.
1864
February 20, 1864

In February, the commander of the Department of the South, Major
General Quincy A. Gillmore, launched an expedition into Florida to
secure Union enclaves, sever Rebel supply routes, and recruit black
soldiers. Brig. General Truman Seymour moved deep into the state,
occupying, destroying, and liberating, meeting little resistance on
February 20, he approached Brig. General Joseph Finegan's 5,000
Confederates entrenched near Olustee. One infantry brigade pushed
out to meet Seymour's advance units. The Union forces attacked but
were repulsed. The battle raged, and as Finegan committed the last
of his reserves, the Union line broke and began to retreat. Finegan
did not exploit the retreat, allowing most of the fleeing Union
forces to reach Jacksonville.
May 20, 1863
Ware Bottom Church

Confederate forces under General P.G.T. Beauregard
attacked Butler's Bermuda Hundred line near Ware
Bottom Church. About 10,000 troops were involved in
this action. After driving back Butler's advanced
pickets, the Confederates constructed the Howlett
Line, effectively bottling up the Federals at Bermuda
Hundred. Confederate victories at Proctor's Creek and
Ware Bottom Church enabled Beauregard to detach
strong reinforcements for Lee's army in time for the
fighting at Cold Harbor.
June 1864
The Battle of Cold Harbor
 Grant again attacked Confederate forces at Cold
Harbor, losing over 7,000 men in twenty
minutes. Although Lee suffered fewer
casualties, his army never recovered from
Grant's continual attacks. This was Lee's last
clear victory of the war.
July 1864
Confederate Troops Approach Washington, D.C.

Confederate General Jubal Early led his forces
into Maryland to relieve the pressure on Lee's
army. Early got within five miles of Washington,
D.C., but on July 13, he was driven back to
Virginia.
August 1864
General Sherman's Atlanta Campaign

Union General William T. Sherman departed Chattanooga,
and was soon met by Confederate General Joseph Johnston.
Skillful strategy enabled Johnston to hold off Sherman's force
-- almost twice the size of Johnston's. However, Johnston's
tactics caused his superiors to replace him with General John
Bell Hood, who was soon defeated. Hood surrendered Atlanta,
Georgia, on September 1; Sherman occupied the city the next
day. The fall of Atlanta greatly boosted Northern morale.
September- November 1864
Sherman in Atlanta

After three and a half months of incessant
maneuvering and much hard fighting,
Sherman forced Hood to abandon Atlanta, the
munitions center of the Confederacy. Sherman
remained there, resting his war-worn men and
accumulating supplies, for nearly two-and-ahalf months.
October 26-29 1864
Franklin-Nashville Campaign
 General John B. Hood's Army of Tennessee, in
an attempt to cross the Tennessee River at
Decatur, Alabama encountered Union forces
under the command of Brig. General Robert S.
Granger for most of the battle, numbered only
about 5,000 men, but successfully prevented the
much larger Confederate force from crossing
the river.
October 27-28, 1864
Boydton Plank Road
(aka Hatcher's Run, Burgess' Mill)

Directed by Major General Winfield Scott Hancock, divisions from
three Union corps (II, V, and IX) and Gregg's cavalry division,
numbering more than 30,000 men, withdrew from the Petersburg
lines and marched west to operate against the Boydton Plank Road
and Southside Railroad. The initial Union advance on October 27
gained the Boydton Plank Road, a major campaign objective. But
that afternoon, a counterattack near Burgess' Mill spearheaded by
Major General Henry Heth's division and Wade Hampton's cavalry
isolated the II Corps and forced a retreat. The Confederates retained
control of the Boydton Plank Road for the rest of the winter.
November 1864
Sherman's March to the Sea

General Sherman continued his
march through Georgia to the sea. In
the course of the march, he cut
himself off from his source of
supplies, planning for his troops to
live off the land. His men cut a path
300 miles in length and 60 miles wide
as they passed through Georgia,
destroying factories, bridges,
railroads, and public buildings.
November 1864
Abraham Lincoln Is Re-Elected

The Republican party nominated President Abraham Lincoln as its
presidential candidate, and Andrew Johnson for vice-president. The
Democratic party chose General George B. McClellan for
president, and George Pendleton for vice-president. At one point,
widespread war-weariness in the North made a victory for Lincoln
seem doubtful. In addition, Lincoln's veto of the Wade-Davis Bill -requiring the majority of the electorate in each Confederate state to
swear past and future loyalty to the Union before the state could
officially be restored -- lost him the support of Radical Republicans
who thought Lincoln too lenient. However, Sherman's victory in
Atlanta boosted Lincoln's popularity and helped him win re-election
by a wide margin.
December 1864
Sherman at the Sea

After marching through Georgia for a month,
Sherman stormed Fort McAllister on December
13, 1864, and captured Savannah itself eight
days later.
1865
January 1865
The Fall of the Confederacy
 Transportation problems and successful
blockades caused severe shortages of food and
supplies in the South. Starving soldiers began to
desert Lee's forces, and although
President Jefferson Davis approved the arming
of slaves as a means of augmenting the
shrinking army, the measure was never put into
effect.
February 1865
Sherman Marches through North
and South Carolina

Union General Sherman moved from Georgia
through South Carolina, destroying almost
everything in his path.
March 6,1864
Natural Bridge

Maj. Gen. John Newton had undertaken a joint force expedition
(including 2nd U.S. Colored Infantry and 99th U.S. Colored Infantry)
to engage and destroy Confederate troops that had attacked at Cedar
Keys and Fort Myers and were allegedly encamped somewhere
around St. Marks. The Navy had trouble getting its ships up the St.
Marks River. The Army force, however, had advanced and, after
finding one bridge destroyed, started before dawn on March 6 to
attempt to cross the river at Natural Bridge. The troops initially
pushed Rebel forces back but not away from the bridge. Confederate
forces, protected by breastworks, guarded all of the approaches and
the bridge itself. The action at Natural Bridge lasted most of the day,
but, unable to take the bridge, the Union troops retreated to the
protection of the fleet.
April 1865
Fallen Richmond
 On March 25, General Lee attacked General
Grant's forces near Petersburg, but was
defeated -- attacking and losing again on
April 1. On April 2, Lee evacuated
Richmond, the Confederate capital, and
headed west to join with other forces.
April 14, 1865
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
The Stars and Stripes is
ceremoniously raised over Fort
Sumter.
That night, Lincoln and his wife
Mary see the play "Our American
Cousin" at Ford's Theatre. At
10:13 p.m., during the third act of
the play, John Wilkes Booth
shoots the president in the head.
Doctors attend to the president in
the theatre then move him to a
house across the street. He never
regains consciousness.
April 15, 1865

President Abraham
Lincoln dies at 7:22 in the
morning. Vice President
Andrew Johnson assumes
the presidency.
April 26, 1865

John Wilkes Booth is
shot and killed in a
tobacco barn in
Virginia.
May 4, 1865

Abraham Lincoln is laid to rest in Oak Ridge
Cemetery, outside Springfield, Illinois.
December 6, 1865

The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States
Constitution, passed by Congress on January
31, 1865, is finally ratified. Slavery is
abolished.