American Literature C 1861-1870

Abraham Lincoln became the President of the United States in 1861 at the beginning of the American Civil War. During his presidency, Lincoln was determined in his efforts to rejoin the Union, abolish slavery in the South, and free all slaves and give them equal rights. Lincoln was President of the United States until 1865 when he was assassinated at Ford's Theater by John Wilkes Booth.

Presidency

The American Civil War begins on April 12, 1861 when Confederate forces fired on Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina. The Civil War was fought over the secession of the Southern states because of disagreements on the issue of slavery. The American Civil War had, by percentage, the largest amount of casualties of every American war. The American Civil War ends with Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army surrendering to Union forces at the Appomattox Court House in Appomattox, Virginia on April 9, 1865

Civil War

South Carolina harbor is bombarded for 34 hours by Confederate forces after the U.S. Army commander failed to evacuate, thus starting the four years of conflict and the U.S. Civil War.

Fort Sumter

Abraham Lincoln release the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all blacks who were enslaved in the Confederacy, became law.

New York Draft Riots

The U.S. civil war has cut Russia off from its primary source of cotton. Cotton growing in Central Asia has become of greater importance to the Russians, and Russia sends its military into Central Asia, where people are sparse, largely tribal, economically undeveloped, and Muslim.

Russian Cotton Shortage

The Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania marks a turning point in the Civil War, as Confederate forces retreat to the South after losing this important battle.

The Battle of Gettysburg

General Sherman and 62,000 Union soldiers sweep a 60-mile wide path of destruction in Georgia, severely weakening the Confederacy.

Weakening the Confederacy

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is founded.

http://www.aspca.org/about-us/history.aspx

The United States purchases the Alaska territory from Russia.

Alaska

In the U.S., five all-black colleges are founded: Howard University in Washington D.C., Morgan State College in Maryland, Talladega College in Alabama, St. Augustine's College and Johnson C. Smith College in North Carolina.

All-Black Colleges

The United States Congress abolishes peonage in the territory of New Mexico.

In the United States, the Republican Party has gained more seats in Congress, and Congress overrides President Andrew Johnson's veto of the "Reconstruction Act." An army, including a black militia, is sent to the South to enforce the law.

Reconstruction Act

A skating congress is held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to set regulations for the increasingly popular sport of ice skating.

Reconstructed governments had been set up in Arkansas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Reconstructed Governments

The first collegiate American Football match was held in 1869 between Rutgers University and Princeton University.

The National Woman Suffrage Association is formed with Elizabeth Cady Stanton as its first president.

The National Woman Suffrage Association

The Territory of Wyoming allows women to vote.

Right of vote

In Pennsylvania a coal mine fire suffocates 179 men. The state responds by passing mine safety laws.

Mine Safety Act

The Territory of Utah allows women to vote.

Right of vote

Oliver Winchester invented his repeating rifle, which could eject the spent cartridge and load an unfired cartridge into the chamber with a simple mechanical action. This made firing a rifle much faster than firing the previously used muskets. Winchester repeating rifles were used heavily in the Civil War by both sides, which in turn caused death tolls in the war rise.

The Kinematoscope was a device that used stereoscopic methods to create the illusion of a motion picture.

On October 24, 1861, the Telegraph lines finally connected the East and West coasts of the United States. This made communication no longer rely on transportation.

Experimental double-barreled cannons were invented in 1863. They were intended to fire two cannon balls that were connected to one another by a chain simultaneously.

The Gatling Gun, a hand-cranked automatic machine gun designed by Richard Gatling in 1861, was put into use by both the Union and the Confederacy during the Civil War

Gatling Gun

The Rotary Printing Press was a device that could feed paper from a large roll and printing both sides of the paper at the same. This machine became the American standard for printing presses. It did, however, kill its inventor when he accidentally fell into one of the machine's presses.

Dynamite, a powerful explosive, was invented by Alfred Nobel. Dynamite was used extensively for many things. Some uses include: warfare, destroying items (buildings, wagons, etc.), mining, et cetera.

In 1868, the typewriter was invented. This invention was very prominent. This invention allowed individuals to create literary works without requiring ink pens. A skilled typist could type on a typewriter much faster than traditionally writing on a paper, while having more legible print. This invention could have possibly sparked literary interest in more people throughout the United States.

The modern military submarine boat was invented in 1869.

Invention of the Submarine