Beginning

Following the 1860 election, South Carolina and six other Southern states decided to secede or leave the country.

Why did the election lead to secession?

Many Southerners worried that slavery was at risk. Abraham Lincoln had won the election, and he opposed the expansion of slavery.

In early 1861, representatives of the seceded states met together to form a new constitution. They called their new government the Confederate States of America.

Here is a list showing the first seven Confederate states and the dates they voted to secede:

• South Carolina seceded on December 20, 1860.

• Mississippi seceded on January 9, 1861.

• Florida seceded on January 10, 1861.

• Alabama seceded on January 11, 1861.

• Georgia seceded on January 19, 1861.

• Louisiana seceded on January 26, 1861.

• Texas seceded on February 1, 1861.

Representatives from the seceded states chose Jefferson Davis to be president of the Confederacy.

Jefferson Davis was a politician from the state of Mississippi. He had fought in the Mexican-American War and had also served as the Secretary of War.

This painting shows Confederates using cannons against Fort Sumter. The cannon fire wore down the walls of the fort.

The Union commander of the fort knew that there was no chance of stopping the Confederate army with his small amount of men. He surrendered.

What caused the first deaths of the Civil War?

No one was killed during the actual siege of Fort Sumter.

The first loss of life in the war happened during the surrender ceremony. A pile of gunpowder accidentally exploded. Two Union soldiers died from the explosion.

After Ft. Sumter, the Confederacy moved their capital to Richmond, Virginia.

Why move the capital to Virginia?

Virginia was the most populous state in the Confederacy. Richmond was a much larger city than Montgomery. It was a more convenient place for Southern politicians to live and work.

Virginia also had an important history. It had been the home of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. It had also played an important part in the American Revolution. The Confederates saw themselves as fighting a second American revolution.

However, moving the capital to Richmond was also risky. Richmond was quite close to Union territory. If the Confederates lost a battle, there was a good chance they would lose their capital.

Whom did people in the border states fight for?

In 1861, the border states included Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, and Missouri. West Virginia was considered a border state after it entered the Union in 1863. West Virginia began passing laws to end slavery soon after it joined the Union.

The governments of the border states decided to stay in the Union although most were slave states. However, people living in those states were divided about which side to support. Men from these states joined both armies.

In states such as Missouri, family and friends often found themselves fighting on opposite sides.

In 1861, women and African Americans were not allowed to join the Union army.

Were there any female soldiers?

Both the Union and the Confederacy banned women from the army. Still, a few women disguised themselves as men to join the army.

These disguised women were often caught when they were wounded in battle.

This is a picture of Frances Clalin. Clalin was a Minnesotan woman who disguised herself to join the Union army. She fought in several battles and was wounded at least once. Eventually, she was caught and kicked out of the army.

A nickname for a Union soldier was Billy Yank.

A nickname for a Confederate soldier was Johnny Reb.

Yankee was a nickname for someone from the Northeast. Sometimes, Southerners called all Northerners Yankees.

The Reb in Johnny Reb is short for rebel.

Confederates were often called rebels because they were rebelling against the Union.

Who were these volunteers?

Hundreds of thousands of people volunteered to fight in either the Union and Confederate armies. Most of these soldiers were young men from farms or small towns. Many had never been far from home before, but they often had to travel hundreds of miles away. These soldiers often got homesick.

While soldiers got homesick, they usually served in the same unit as people they knew. Both the Union and Confederate armies were divided into regiments. People from the same county or town usually served in the same regiment. So, soldiers often served with their friends and neighbors.

What were these regiments called?

Usually these regiments had names made up of a number and the state from which they came. For example, the second regiment organized in Minnesota was called the 2nd Minnesota.

There were many reasons why people volunteered for the Union army in the Civil War. What were some of the most popular reasons? Select all that apply.

• to satisfy friends and family who pressured them to volunteer

• to fight against slavery

• to have an adventure

• to bring the Southern states back into the Union

There were many reasons why people volunteered for the Confederate army in the Civil War. What was some of the most popular reasons? Select all that apply.

• to have an adventure

• to defend slavery

• to defend their home states

• to satisfy friends and family who pressured them to volunteer

How old were Civil War soldiers?

Most Civil War soldiers were young men from the ages of 18 to 30. Still, many older men volunteered to fight in the Union and Confederate armies. Teenagers would sometimes lie about their age in order to volunteer.

Younger boys would often sign up to serve as drummers or buglers in regiments. They played instruments in camp and during battles. Sometimes these boys would be as young as 12 years old!

What were weapons like in the Civil War?

This is a picture of a Civil War rifle. Most Civil War soldiers had guns similar to this one.

These guns were more accurate than the guns used in the American Revolution. However, they still needed to be reloaded after each shot. Usually, a soldier could fire twice in a minute.

Weapons became more and more powerful during the Civil War. Better technology meant more soldiers were killed in battles than in earlier wars.

In the Civil War, both the Union and the Confederacy started drafting citizens (forcing to join the military).

Has the United States drafted soldiers since the Civil War?

The United States first drafted soldiers in the Civil War. However, it has drafted soldiers in other wars. Here is a list of them:

• World War I

• World War II

• the Korean War

• the Vietnam War

Today, all male Americans citizens need to sign up for something called the Selective Service when they turn 18. Their names go in a list that the government can use if it ever needs to draft soldiers again.

In the North, someone could pay $300 to avoid being drafted. In the South, a man could avoid being drafted if he owned 20 or more enslaved people. Poor white Northerners and Southerners opposed this.

Were there other ways to avoid being drafted?

Instead of paying the $300, Northerners could also pay someone to take their place in the army. Not everyone was drafted, so there were many young men who could be hired as replacements. Buying a replacement usually cost less than $300. These replacements were called substitutes.

Many substitutes would get paid and then quickly desert, or run away from, the army. They would then hire themselves out as a substitute for someone else. In those times, it was easier for substitutes to change their names and not get caught. Some substitutes managed to pull this trick seven or more times during the war!

Armies transported soldiers and supplies during the Civil War by horse, trains, and boat.

• on horses. In a time before cars, horses were the convenient way for soldiers to move from place to place.

• on boats. Both armies used rivers and the ocean to carry men and supplies on boats.

• on trains. The Civil War was the first American war to use trains to move troops around.