American Civil War timeline
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Utah Territory Preserves Balance
The territory was organized by an organic act of Congress in 1850, on the same day that the State of California was admitted to the Union. The... Read more
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Douglas and Clay Draft the Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a series of bills aimed at resolving the territorial and slavery controversies arising from the Mexican-American War... Read more
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Compromise Sets Texas Boundaries
The Compromise of 1850 set Texas's boundaries at their present form. Texas ceded land which later became half of present day New Mexico, a third of... Read more
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California is Admitted to the Union as a Free State
In 1848, the non-native population of California has been estimated to be no more than 15,000. But after gold was discovered, the population... Read more
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United States Congress Passes Fugitive Slave Act
The Fugitive Slave Law or Fugitive Slave Act was passed by the United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850... Read more
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Final Compromise Bans Slave Trade in District of Columbia
The fifth law, enacted on September 20, 1850 prohibited the slave trade (but not slavery itself) in the District of Columbia. Significantly, before... Read more
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Merger Creates "Frederick Douglass' Paper"
Merges North Star with Gerrit Smith's Liberty Party Paper to form Frederick Douglass' Paper (printed until 1860). Agrees with Smith that the... Read more
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Thomas J. Jackson Accepts Teaching Position at the Virginia Military Institute
The class of 1842 graduated 16 cadets. Living conditions were poor until 1850 when the cornerstone of the new barracks was laid. In 1851 Thomas... Read more
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Lincoln Represents the Alton & Sangamon Railroad
In 1851, he represented the Alton & Sangamon Railroad in a dispute with one of its shareholders, James A. Barret. Barret had refused to pay the... Read more
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Douglas Attempts to Run for Presidency
By 1852, Douglas felt politically strong enough to attempt a run for the presidency. He was backed by "Young America," a movement that supported a... Read more
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Lee Becomes Superintendent of West Point
In September 1852, Lee became the superintendent of West Point. During his three years at West Point, Brevet Colonel Robert E. Lee improved the... Read more
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Martha Douglas Dies
The failure of the 1852 Douglas presidential campaign was quickly followed by a more deeply wrenching personal tragedy. When Martha Douglas gave... Read more
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Franklin Pierce Appoints Jefferson Davis as Secretary of War
Pierce won the election and, in 1853, made Davis his Secretary of War. In this capacity, Davis gave to Congress four annual reports (in December of... Read more
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Stonewall Jackson Marries Elinor Junkin
Jackson married twice. On August 4, 1853, Jackson married Elinor Junkin (1825–54), daughter of George Junkin and Julia Miller Junkin. Elinor died... Read more
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USS Pampero Is Launched
USS Pampero (1853) was a large (1,375-ton) and capacious ship-rigged vessel purchased by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used... Read more
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Nebraska Bill Introduced to Senate
The bill was reported to the main body of the Senate on January 4, 1854. The bill had been significantly modified by Douglas, who had also authored... Read more
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Kansas-Nebraska Act Debated in Senate
On January 23, a revised bill was introduced in the Senate. In addition to the changes regarding repeal of the Missouri Compromise, Nebraska was... Read more
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Kansas-Nebraska Act Debated in the House of Representatives
The bill next moved to the House of Representatives. On March 21, 1854, as a delaying tactic, the legislation was referred by a vote of 110 to 95... Read more
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Presidential Cabinet Meets with President Pierce
The greatest challenge to the country's equilibrium during the Pierce administration, though, was the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854.... Read more
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Lincoln Delivers Peoria Speech
Speech on the Repeal of the Missouri Compromise Abraham Lincoln Speech at Peoria, Illinois October 16, 1854 The repeal of the Missouri... Read more
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Douglass Publishes Second Autobiography - My Bondage and My Freedom
As a fugitive in exile, Frederick Douglass attacked slavery. In speeches he spoke of the hypocrisy of freedom-loving slaveholders. To combat... Read more
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Douglas Attempts Democractic Party Nomination for a Second Time
The 1856 Democratic National Convention, held at Smith & Nixon's Hall in Cincinnati was the first national party nominating convention to be held... Read more
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Douglas Marries Adele Cutts
Stephen Douglas and Adele Cutts were married in Washington in November 1856. Adele immediately took over the management of the Senator's household,... Read more
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Douglas Founds Baptist Seminary - The University of Chicago
A deeply religious man, but one also dedicated to the enterprise of higher education, Stephen Douglas founded a Baptist Seminary in Chicago which... Read more
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Dred Scott v. Sandford, aka "Dred Scott Decision"
Dred Scott v. Sandford, commonly referred to as the Dred Scott decision, was a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that people of African descent... Read more