On this day in history....
Nov, 6, 1860
Abraham Lincoln is elected president of the United States. The Southern states threaten to leave the Union.
Dec. 20, 1860
South Carolina becomes the first state to take action on their threat and secede from the Union.
Jan. 3, 1861
Delaware votes not to secede from the Union.
Jan. 5, 1861
The "Star of the West," a civilian Union merchant ship leaves for Fort Sumter, South Carolina with men and supplies. Everyone but Major Robert Anderson, commander of the fort, knows of the ships mission.
Jan. 9, 1861
Mississippi becomes the second state to secede from the Union.
The "Star of the West" is met in South Carolina by militia fire. Major Robert Anderson, commander of Fort Sumter, doesn't know what is happening and decides to not fire on the militia. This incident begins a stand off in Charleston Harbor.
Jan. 10, 1861
Florida secedes from the Union.
Jan. 11, 1861
Alabama secedes from the Union.
Jan. 12, 1861
Major Robert Anderson, stationed at Fort Sumter, sends a dispatch to Washington declaring allegiance to the Union.
Jan. 16, 1861
The Crittenden Compromise fails to pass in the Senate. It was a last chance effort to keep the Union together,
Jan. 19, 1861
Georgia secedes from the Union.
Jan. 21, 1861
Jefferson Davis gives his farewell Senate speech. During the speech, Davis stated that he agreed with Mississippi's vote to secede and they had put him out of a job. He expressed forgiveness and no ill will towards those he had disagreed with in the Senate. He also ask the same of his former colleagues. After the the speech, Davis and four other colleagues from seceded state leave the Senate and return to the South.Jan. 26, 1861
Louisiana secedes from the Union.
Jan. 29, 1861
Kansas enters the Union as a free state after much blood shed between Kansas and Missouri residents over the issue of slavery.
Feb. 1, 1861
Texas becomes the last pre-war state to secede from the Union. This decision went against the wishes of Governor Sam Houston.
Feb. 4, 1861
Delegates from the seceded states, with the exception of Texas, met in Montgomery, Alabama, where they formed a new government.
Feb. 8, 1861
A provisional constitution is adopted for the Confederate States of America.
Feb. 9, 1861
Jefferson Davis is elected Provisional President of the Confederate States of America.
Feb. 10, 1861
Jefferson Davis learns of his election. He said he was unfit for the job and the odds were great, but he would not shrink back. (Read more)
Feb. 11, 1861
President-elect Abraham Lincoln leaves Springfield, Illinois, headed to Washington D.C.
At a stop in Indianapolis, Indiana, Lincoln asked those gathered if it was coercion or invasion to invade South Carolina and make them submit. He also asked which one it would be if the Union was to just reclaim it's forts.
At a stop in Indianapolis, Indiana, Lincoln asked those gathered if it was coercion or invasion to invade South Carolina and make them submit. He also asked which one it would be if the Union was to just reclaim it's forts.
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For more information...
Jefferson Davis Farewell
1861 in the United States
This Day in History
Lincoln's Whistle Stop Tour to Washington
Lincoln's Whistle Tour Speech in Indianapolis, IN
