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The Civil War Timeline

 

 

            December 18,1860 -- The Crittenden Compromise

 

            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.

            Ordinances of Secession

            January 7 - Speech of Tennessee Governor Isham G. Harris

            January 9 - Mississippi seceded from the Union.

            January 10 - Florida seceded from the Union.

            January 11 Alabama seceded from the Union. Speech of E.S. Dargan

            January 19 Georgia seceded from the Union.

            January 26 Louisiana seceded from the Union.

            January 29 Kansas admitted to the Union.

            February 1 Texas seceded from the Union.

 

            February 1861-- The South Creates a Government.

            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's Inauguration.

            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 9 - Address of George Williamson to the Texas Secession

            Convention

            March 11 1861-- Confederate Constitution.

            April 1861 -- Attack on Fort Sumter.

            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 the provisional Confederate forces at

            Charleston, South Carolina, demanded the surrender of the Union

            garrison of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor.

            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 the garrison on 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 Virginia seceded from the Union.

            April 25 Second Message of Isham Harris to the Tennessee Assembly

            April 1861-- Four More States Join the Confederacy.

            The attack on Fort Sumter prompted four more states to join the

            Confederacy. With Virginia's secession, Richmond was named the

            Confederate capitol.

            May 6 Arkansas seceded from the Union.

            May 18-19, 1861 Sewell's Point

            May 20 North Carolina seceded from the Union.

            May 29-June 1, 1861 Aquia Creek

            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.

            June 1861-- Four Slave States Stay in the Union.

            Despite their acceptance of slavery, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland,

            and Missouri did not join the Confederacy. Although divided in their

            loyalties, a combination of political maneuvering and Union military

            pressure kept these states from seceding.

            June 3, 1861 Philippi / Philippi Races

            June 10, 1861 Big Bethel / Bethel Church

            June 17, 1861 Boonville

            July 2, 1861 Hoke's Run / Falling Waters / Hainesville

            July 5, 1861 Carthage

            July 11, 1861 Rich Mountain

            July 18, 1861 Bull Run / Blackburn's Ford

            July 21, 1861 First Manassas / First Bull Run

 

            July -- 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.

            July 1861-- General McDowell Is Replaced.

            Suddenly aware of the threat of a protracted war and the army's need

            for organization and training, Lincoln replaced McDowell with

            General George B. McClellan.

            July - November -- 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.

            August 10, 1861 Wilson's Creek / Oak Hills

 

            August 21 -- Confederate Assignments

            Brig General Roswell S. Ripley CS Army Assigned to command of the

            Dept. South Carolina

            Brig General John B. Grayson CS Army assigned to command of Dept of

            Middle and East Florida

            August 26, 1861 Kessler's Cross Lanes

            August 28-29, 1861 Hatteras Inlet Batteries / Fort Clark / Fort

            Hatteras

            September 2, 1861 Dry Wood Creek / Battle of the Mules

            September 10, 1861 Carnifex Ferry

            September 12-15 1861 Cheat Mountain Summit

            September 13-20, 1861 Lexington / Battle of the Hemp Bales

            September 17, 1861 Liberty / Blue Mills Landing

            September 19, 1861 Barbourville

 

            October 3, 1861 Greenbrier River / Camp Bartow

            October 9, 1861 Santa Rosa Island

            October 21, 1861 Camp Wildcat / Wildcat Mountain

            October 21, 1861 Fredericktown

            October 21, 1861 Ball's Bluff / Leesburg

            October 25, 1861 Springfield / Zagonyi's Charge

 

            October 29 -- Sherman Moves

            The Sherman Expedition sails from Hampton Roads Virginia

            November 7, 1861 Belmont

            November 8-9, 1861 Ivy Mountain / Ivy Creek / Ivy Narrows

            November 19, 1861 Round Mountain

            December 9, 1861 Chusto-Talasah / Caving Banks

            December 13, 1861 Camp Allegheny / Allegheny Mountain

            December 20, 1861 Dranesville

            December 26, 1861 Chustenahlah

            December 17, 1861 Rowlett's Station / Woodsonville / Green River

            December 28, 1861 Mount Zion Church

 

            January 1863 -- Emancipation Proclamation.

            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 1

            Maj. Gen. John B. Magruder, who became the Confederate commander of

            military forces in Texas on November 29, 1862, gave the recapture of

            Galveston top priority. At 3:00 am on New Year's Day, 1863, four

            Confederate gunboats appeared, coming down the bay toward Galveston.

            Soon afterward, the Rebels commenced a land attack. The Union forces

            in Galveston were three companies of the 42nd Massachusetts

            Volunteer Infantry Regiment under the command of Col. Isaac S.

            Burrell. The Confederates captured or killed all of them except for

            the regiment's adjutant. They also took Harriet Lane, by boarding

            her, and two barks and a schooner. Cdr. W.B. Renshaw's flagship,

            U.S.S. Westfield, ran aground when trying to help Harriet Lane and,

            at 10:00 am, she was blown up to prevent her capture by the

            Confederates. Galveston was in Confederate hands again although the

            Union blockade would limit commerce in and out of the harbor.

            Galveston. Soon afterward, the Rebels commenced a land attack.

            January 1, 1863 Galveston

            January 8, 1863 Springfield

            January 9-11, 1863 Hartville

            January 9-11, 1863 Arkansas Post / Fort Hindman

            January 29, 1863 Bear River / Massacre at Boa Ogoi

 

            February 3, 1863 Dover / Fort Donelson

 

            March 1863 -- The First Conscription Act.

            Because of recruiting difficulties, an act was passed making all men

            between the ages of 20 and 45 liable to be called for military

            service. Service could be avoided by paying a fee or finding a

            substitute. The act was seen as unfair to the poor, and riots in

            working-class sections of New York City broke out in protest. A

            similar conscription act in the South provoked a similar reaction.

            March 3, 1863 Fort McAllister I

            March 5, 1863 Thompson's Station

            March 13-15, 1863 Fort Anderson / Deep Gully

            March 17, 1863 Kelly's Ford / Kellysville

            March 20, 1863 Vaught's Hill / Milton

            March 25, 1863 Brentwood

            March 30-April 20, 1863 Washington

 

            April -- Charleston Harbor

            Maj. Gen. David Hunter prepared his land forces on Folly, Cole's,

            and North Edisto Islands to cooperate with a naval bombardment of

            Fort Sumter. On April 7, the South Atlantic Squadron under Rear

            Admiral S.F. Du Pont bombarded Fort Sumter, having little impact on

            the Confederate defenses of Charleston Harbor. Although several of

            Hunter's units had embarked on transports, the infantry were not

            landed, and the joint operation was abandoned.

            The ironclad warships Keokuk, Weehawken, Passaic, Montauk, Patapsco,

            New Ironsides, Catskill, Nantucket, and Nahant participated in the

            bombardment. Keokuk, struck more than 90 times by the accurate

            Confederate fire, sunk the next day.

            April 7, 1863 Charleston Harbor / Fort Sumter

            April 11-May 4, 1863 Suffolk / Fort Huger / Hill's Point

            April 10, 1863 Franklin

            April 12-13, 1863 Fort Bisland / Bethel Place

            April 13-15, 1863 Suffolk / Norfleet House Battery

            April 14, 1863 Irish Bend / Nerson's Woods / Franklin

            April 17, 1863 Vermillion Bayou

            April 26, 1863 Cape Girardeau

            April 29, 1863 Grand Gulf

            April 29-May 1, 1863 Snyder's Bluff / Snyder's Mill

            April 30-May 6, 1863 Chancellorsville

 

            May 1, 1863 Port Gibson / Thompson's Hill

            May 1-2, 1863 Chalk Bluff

 

            May 1863 -- The Battle of Chancellorsville.

            On April 27, Union General Hooker crossed the Rappahannock River to

            attack General Lee's forces. Lee split his army, attacking a

            surprised Union army in three places and almost completely defeating

            them. Hooker withdrew across the Rappahannock River, giving the

            South a victory, but it was the Confederates' most costly victory in

            terms of casualties.

            May 10 Stonewall Jackson dies

            Stonewall Jackson dies of pneumonia following amputation of his arm

            at Chancellorsville

            May 1863 -- The Vicksburg Campaign.

            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. After six weeks, Confederate General John

            Pemberton surrendered, giving up the city and 30,000 men. The

            capture of Port Hudson, Louisiana, shortly thereafter placed the

            entire Mississippi River in Union hands. The Confederacy was split

            in two.

            May 3, 1863 Fredericksburg II / Marye's Heights

            May 3-4, 1863 Salem Church / Banks' Ford

            May 12, 1863 Raymond

            May 13, Big Black River (Map) skirmishes at Baldwin's Ferry and

            Hall's Ferry

            May 14, 1863 Jackson

            May 16 Champion Hill / Bakers Creek

            May 17 Big Black River Bridge

            May 18-July 4, 1863 Vicksburg

            May 21, 1863 Plains Store / Springfield Road

            May 21-July 9, 1863 Port Hudson

 

            June 7, 1863 Milliken's Bend

 

            June 9 -- Battle of Brandy Station, 1863.

            The victorious Confederate Army of Northern Virginia streamed into

            Culpeper County after its victory at Fredericksburg. Under the

            leadership of Gen. Robert E. Lee, the troops seemed invincible and

            massed around Culpeper preparing to carry the war north into

            Pennsylvania.

            By June 5, two infantry corps under Longstreet and Ewell were camped

            in and around Culpeper. Six miles north of town, holding the line of

            the Rappahannock River, Gen. J.E.B. Stuart bivouacked his cavalry

            troopers, screening the Confederate Army against surprise by the

            enemy.

            June 9, 1863 Brandy Station / Fleetwood Hill

            June 17, 1863 Aldie

            June 17-19, 1863 Middleburg

            June 13-15, 1863 Winchester Second

 

            June 13 -- The Gettysburg Campaign.

            Confederate General Lee decided to take the war to the enemy. On

            June 13, he defeated Union forces at Winchester, Virginia, and

            continued north to Pennsylvania. General Hooker, who had been

            planning to attack Richmond, was instead forced to follow Lee.

            Hooker, never comfortable with his commander, General Halleck,

            resigned on June 28, and General George Meade replaced him as

            commander of the Army of the Potomac.

            June 20 -- West Virginia admitted to the Union

            June 20-21, 1863 LaFourche Crossing

            June 21, 1863 Upperville

            June 24-26, 1863 Hoover's Gap

            June 28, 1863 Donaldsonville

            June 29–30, 1863 Goodrich's Landing / The Mounds / Lake Providence

            June 30, 1863 Hanover

 

            July 1 -- Battle of Gettysburg

            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 1-2, 1863 Cabin Creek

            July 4, 1863 Helena

            July 6-16, 1863 Williamsport / Hagerstown / Falling Waters

            July 8, 1863 Boonsboro

            July 9, 1863 Corydon

            July 10-11, 1863 Fort Wagner / Morris Island

            July 16, 1863 Grimball's Landing / Secessionville / James Island

            July 18-September 7, 1863 Fort Wagner / Morris Island

            July 12-13, 1863 Kock's Plantation / Cox's Plantation

 

            July 10 -- 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.

            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.

            July 16 -- Secessionville

            To divert Confederate reinforcements from a renewed attack on Fort

            Wagner, Gen. Gillmore designed two feints. An amphibious force

            ascended Stone River to threaten the Charleston & Savannah Railroad

            bridge. A second force, consisting of Terry's division, landed on

            James Island on July 8. Terry demonstrated against the Confederate

            defenses. On July 16, the Confederates attacked Terry's camp at

            Grimball's Landing. Because of incomplete reconnaissance of the

            difficult, marshy ground, the disorganized Confederate attack was

            soon aborted. Their mission accomplished, Federal troops withdrew

            from the island on July 17.

            July 17, 1863 Honey Springs / Elk Creek / Shaw's Inn

            July 19, 1863 Buffington Island / St. Georges Creek

            July 23, 1863 Manassas Gap / Wapping Heights

            July 24-25, 1863 Big Mound

            July 26, 1863 Salineville / New Lisbon Road / Wellsville

            July 26, 1863 Dead Buffalo Lake

            July 28, 1863 Stony Lake

 

            August - December -- 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.

            Aug 17-Aug 23, 1863 Fort Sumter / Charleston Harbor / Morris Island

            August 21, 1863 Chattanooga

            August 21, 1863 Lawrence / Lawrence Massacre

 

            September 3-5, 1863 Whitestone Hill

 

            September 6 -- 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 1, 1863 Devil's Backbone / Backbone Mountain

 

            September 7-8, 1863 Charleston Harbor / Battery Gregg

 

            September 8, 1863 Sabine Pass II

 

            September 8 -- Fort Griffin Texas

            About 6:00 am on the morning of September 8, 1863, a Union flotilla

            of four gunboats and seven troop transports steamed into Sabine Pass

            and up the Sabine River with the intention of reducing Fort Griffin

            and landing troops to begin occupying Texas. As the gunboats

            approached Fort Griffin, they came under accurate fire from six

            cannons. The Confederate gunners at Fort Griffin had been sent there

            as a punishment. To break the day-to-day monotony, the gunners

            practiced firing artillery at range markers placed in the river.

            Their practice paid off. Fort Griffin's small force of 44 men, under

            command of Lt. Richard W. Dowling, forced the Union flotilla to

            retire and captured the gunboat Clifton and about 200 prisoners.

            Further Union operations in the area ceased for about a month. The

            heroics at Fort Griffin--44 men stopping a Union

            expedition--inspired other Confederate soldiers.

            September 10, 1863 Bayou Fourche / Little Rock

            September 18-20, 1863 Chickamauga

 

            September 19 -- 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.

            September 22, 1863 Blountsville

            September 29, 1863 Stirling's Plantation / Fordoche Bridge

 

            October 6, 1863 Baxter Springs

            October 10, 1863 Blue Springs

            October 13, 1863 Auburn / Catlett's Station / St. Stephen's Church

            October 14, 1863 Bristoe Station

            October 14, 1863 Auburn / Coffee Hill

            October 16-18, 1863 Fort Brooke

            October 19, 1863 Buckland Mills / Buckland Races / Chestnut Hill

            October 25, 1863 Pine Bluff

            October 28-29, 1863 Wauhatchie / Brown's Ferry

 

            November 3, 1863 Collierville

            November 6, 1863 Droop Mountain

            November 7, 1863 Rappahannock Station

            November 16, 1863 Campbell's Station

            November 23-25, 1863 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