stomper
10-11-2009, 07:17 PM
The American Civil War (1861–1865), eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America (the Confederacy). Led by Jefferson Davis, they fought against the United States (the Union), which was supported by all the free states and the five border slave states. Union states were referred to as "the North".
In the presidential election of 1860, the Republican Party, led by Abraham Lincoln, had campaigned against the expansion of slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. The Republican victory in that election resulted in seven Southern states declaring their secession from the Union even before Lincoln took office on March 4, 1861. Both the outgoing and incoming US administrations rejected the legality of secession, considering it rebellion.
Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked a US military installation at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Lincoln responded by calling for a volunteer army from each state, leading to declarations of secession by four more Southern slave states. Both sides raised armies as the Union assumed control of the border states early in the war and established a naval blockade. In September 1862, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation made ending slavery in the South a war goal, and dissuaded the British from intervening.
Confederate commander Robert E. Lee won battles in the east, but in 1863 his northward advance was turned back after the Battle of Gettysburg and, in the west, the Union gained control of the Mississippi River at the Battle of Vicksburg, thereby splitting the Confederacy. Long-term Union advantages in men and material were realized in 1864 when Ulysses S. Grant fought battles of attrition against Lee, while Union general William Sherman captured Atlanta, Georgia, and marched to the sea. Confederate resistance collapsed after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.
The American Civil War was the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of 650,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties which could easily bring the total to near 3/4 million deaths.
Thousands of Civil War wet plate photos were made during the war on glass plate. These were popular during the war, they lost their appeal afterward. Many were sold for the glass, many were used as glass in green houses. Over the years the sun caused the images to disappear. Being around 150 years old, these photos to follow survive.
Charleston Fort, 1st explosion ever photographed
Tredegar Iron Works, Richmond VA
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/images/CharlestonFortSumter4.jpg (http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/index.html)
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/images/TredegarRuins.jpg (http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/index.html)
In the presidential election of 1860, the Republican Party, led by Abraham Lincoln, had campaigned against the expansion of slavery beyond the states in which it already existed. The Republican victory in that election resulted in seven Southern states declaring their secession from the Union even before Lincoln took office on March 4, 1861. Both the outgoing and incoming US administrations rejected the legality of secession, considering it rebellion.
Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked a US military installation at Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Lincoln responded by calling for a volunteer army from each state, leading to declarations of secession by four more Southern slave states. Both sides raised armies as the Union assumed control of the border states early in the war and established a naval blockade. In September 1862, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation made ending slavery in the South a war goal, and dissuaded the British from intervening.
Confederate commander Robert E. Lee won battles in the east, but in 1863 his northward advance was turned back after the Battle of Gettysburg and, in the west, the Union gained control of the Mississippi River at the Battle of Vicksburg, thereby splitting the Confederacy. Long-term Union advantages in men and material were realized in 1864 when Ulysses S. Grant fought battles of attrition against Lee, while Union general William Sherman captured Atlanta, Georgia, and marched to the sea. Confederate resistance collapsed after Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.
The American Civil War was the deadliest war in American history, resulting in the deaths of 650,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties which could easily bring the total to near 3/4 million deaths.
Thousands of Civil War wet plate photos were made during the war on glass plate. These were popular during the war, they lost their appeal afterward. Many were sold for the glass, many were used as glass in green houses. Over the years the sun caused the images to disappear. Being around 150 years old, these photos to follow survive.
Charleston Fort, 1st explosion ever photographed
Tredegar Iron Works, Richmond VA
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/images/CharlestonFortSumter4.jpg (http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/index.html)
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/images/TredegarRuins.jpg (http://www.mikelynaugh.com/VirtualCivilWar/New/Originals2/index.html)