American Civil War

The division of the country

Deep South

Seven states seceded shortly after the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 – even before he was inaugurated:

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• South Carolina (December 20, 1860),
• Mississippi (January 9, 1861),
• Florida (January 10, 1861),
• Alabama (January 11, 1861),
• Georgia (January 19, 1861),
• Louisiana (January 26, 1861), and
• Texas (February 1, 1861).

These States of the Deep South, where slavery and cotton plantation agriculture were most dominant, formed the Confederate States of America (February 4, 1861), with Jefferson Davis as President, and a governmental structure closely modeled on the U.S. Constitution (see also: Confederate States Constitution). After the Battle of Fort Sumter, South Carolina, Lincoln called for troops from all remaining states to recover the forts, resulting in the secession of four more states: Virginia (April 17, 1861), Arkansas (May 6, 1861), North Carolina (May 20, 1861), and Tennessee (June 8, 1861).

Related Topics:
Deep South - Cotton plantation - February 4 - 1861 - Jefferson Davis - U.S. Constitution - Confederate States Constitution - Battle of Fort Sumter - Virginia - April 17 - Arkansas - May 6 - North Carolina - May 20 - Tennessee - June 8

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Border States

Along with the northwestern counties of Virginia (whose residents did not wish to secede and eventually entered the Union in 1863 as West Virginia), four of the five northernmost "slave states," (Maryland, Delaware, Missouri, and Kentucky) did not secede, and became known as the Border States.

Related Topics:
1863 - West Virginia - Slave state - Border States

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Delaware, which in the 1860 election had voted for Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, had few slaves and never considered secession. Maryland also voted for Breckinridge, and after rioting in Baltimore and other events had prompted a Federal declaration of martial law, its legislature rejected secession (April 27, 1861). Both Missouri and Kentucky remained in the Union, but factions within each state organized "secessions" that were recognized by the CSA.

Related Topics:
Delaware - John C. Breckinridge - Maryland - Rioting in Baltimore - Martial law - April 27 - 1861 - Missouri - Kentucky

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In Missouri, the State government under Governor Claiborne F. Jackson, a southern sympathizer, evacuated the state capital of Jefferson City and met in-exile at the town of Neosho, Missouri, adopting a secession ordinance that was recognized by the Confederacy on October 30, 1861, while the Union organized a competing State government by calling a constitutional convention that had originally been convened to vote on secession.

Related Topics:
Claiborne F. Jackson - Jefferson City - In-exile - Neosho, Missouri - October 30 - 1861 - Constitutional convention

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Although Kentucky did not secede, for a time it declared itself neutral. During a brief occupation by the Confederate Army, Southern sympathizers organized a secession convention, inaugurated a Confederate Governor, and gained recognition from the Confederacy.

Related Topics:
Neutral - Confederate Army

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Residents of the northwestern counties of Virginia organized a secession from Virginia, with a plan for gradual emancipation, and entered the Union in 1863 as West Virginia. Similar secessions were supported in some other areas of the Confederacy (such as eastern Tennessee), but were suppressed by declarations of martial law by the Confederacy. Conversely, the southern half of the Federal Territory of New Mexico voted to secede, and was accepted into the Confederacy as the Territory of Arizona (not shown on the map), with its capital in Mesilla (now part of New Mexico).

Related Topics:
1863 - West Virginia - Federal Territory - New Mexico - Arizona

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California was a free state and a part of the Union. Lincoln had won a plurality there, but there were a number of Southern sympathizers. 28% of its votes went to the Southern Democrat candidate, John C. Breckinridge. California's soldiers were kept under state control and were used to keep the land routes between the Mississippi and the state open. California gold helped finance the Union war effort.http://www.militarymuseum.org/HistoryCW.html

Related Topics:
California - Free state - John C. Breckinridge

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