April 28, 1861

The 5th Regiment (Jefferson Guard) NYS Militia left NYC under the command of Co,onel Christian Schwarzwaelder for Washington for three months United States service in Washington.

April 27, 1861

"Army and Navy officers (Virginians mostly) who are resigning their commissions just now, most indignantly censured .... (Their) resignations should not be accepted. They should be kept under arrest and tried for their lives by court-martial as spied and traitors."

- George Templeton Strong

April 26, 1861

Governor Joseph Brown of Georgia issues an order to all Georgians repudiating all debts owed to any Northern person or company.

April 25, 2011

Abraham Lincoln writes to Winfield Scott regarding the meeting of the Maryland Legislature taking possible action to secede from the United States. He urges Scott to counteract should this come of fruition.

April 24, 1861

Troops from the First Rhode Island Regiment of Detached Militia parade in downtown Providence before marching south to Washington to defend against an expected Confederate attack. They will fight in the First Battle of Manassas later in  July.

April 23, 1861

Robert E. Lee assumes command of Virginia's militia.

April 22, 1861

 Governor John Letcher, wartime governor of Virginia

- from Governor Letcher, of Virginia, in proclamation to Secretary of State Cameron, regarding state of affairs at Norfolk:

"....and whereas, the General Assembly of Virginia, by a majority approaching to entire unanimity, declared at its last session that the State of Virginia would consider such an exertion of force as a virtual declaration of war, to be resisted by all the power at the command of Virginia; and subsequently the Convention now in session, representing the sovereignty of this State, has reaffirmed in substance the same policy, with almost equal unanimity; and whereas, the State of Virginia deeply sympathizes with the Southern States in the wrongs they have suffered, and in the position they have assumed; and having made earnest efforts peaceably to compose the differences which have severed the Union, and having failed in that attempt, through this unwarranted act on the part of the President; and it is believed that the influences which operate to produce this proclamation against the seceded States will be brought to bear upon this commonwealth, if she should exercise her undoubted right to resume the powers granted by her people, and it is due to the honor of Virginia that an improper exercise of force against her people should be repelled. Therefore I, JOHN LETCHER, Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, have thought proper to order all armed volunteer regiments or companies within this State forthwith to hold themselves in readiness for immediate orders, and upon the reception of this proclamation to report to the Adjutant-General of the State their organization and numbers, and prepare themselves for efficient service. Such companies as are not armed and equipped will report that fact, that they may be properly supplied.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the Commonwealth to be affixed, this 17th day of April, 1861, and in the eighty-fifth year of the Commonwealth.
JOHN LETCHER.

April 21, 1861

Thomas J. Jackson, a professor at the Virginia Military Institute, attends chapel with cadets. That afternoon, they are off to enlist for the defense of Virginia and the Confederacy.

April 20, 1861

Robert E. Lee resigns from the United States army.

April 19, 1861

Lincoln issues Proclamation of Blockade Against Southern Ports, authorizing the blockade of ports in South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.

April 18, 1861

Robert E. Lee is offered command of the United States Army by a former commanding officer, Winfield Scott.

Young U.S. military officer Robert E. Lee.

Robert E. Lee before joining his beloved Virginia and the Confederacy.

April 17, 1861

Virginia secedes from the Union.

Two special photographers from Charleston, SC, James M. Osborn and F.E. Durbec, spend the beginning of several days visiting Fort Sumter and all of the Confederate installations that fired against it. They capture over forty scenes, the most complete record ever made of the site of a Civil War engagement.

April 16, 1861

The Confederate Congress passes a Conscription Act, drafting white men between the ages of eighteen and thirty-five for three years service.

 

A young Confederate recruit.

April 15, 1861

University of Michigan President addresses citizens in Ann Arbor, Michigan about the Confe3derate army attack on Fort Sumter in South Carolina. Civilian and military support for the Union will grow exponentially.

Citizens from town, country, and University gather on Courthouse Square for news of importance on April 15, 1861.

April 14, 1861

Lincoln violates the U.S. constitution by illegally calling for states to raise 75,000 troops to invade the South.

Robert E. Lee resigns from Union army.

A bombed Fort Sumter on April 14, 1861 after its surrender by Major Robert Anderson.

April 13, 1861

After a thirty-three hour bombardment by Confederate cannon, Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor surrenders.

April 12, 1861

Confederate artillery batteries surrounding Fort Sumter open fire.

April 11, 1861

Beauregard demands the surrender of Fort Sumter.

Correspondence between Beauregard and Anderson:



HEADQUARTERS PROVISIONAL ARMY, C. S. A.,
Charleston, S. C., April 11, 1861.
SIR: The Government of the Confederate States has hitherto forborne from any hostile demonstration against Fort Sumter, in the hope that the Government of the United States, with a view to the amicable adjustment of all questions between the two Government, and to avert the calamities of war, would voluntarily evacuate it.
There was reason at one time to believe that such would be the course pursued by the Government of the United States, and under that impression my Government has refrained from making any demand for the surrender of the fort. But the Confederate States can no longer delay assuming actual possession of a fortification commanding the entrance of one of their harbors, and necessary to its defense and security.
I am ordered by the Government of the Confederate States to demand the evacuation of Fort Sumter. My aides, Colonel Chesnut and Captain Lee, are authorized to make such demand of you. All proper facilities will be afforded for the removal of yourself and command, together with company arms and property and all private property, to any post in the United States which you may select. The flag which you have upheld so long as with so much fortitude, under the most trying circumstances, may be saluted by you on taking it down.
Colonel Chesnut and Captain Lee will, for a reasonable time, await your answer.
I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
G. T. BEAUREGARD,
Brigadier-General, Commanding.


Major ROBERT ANDERSON,

Commanding at Fort Sumter, Charleston Harbor, S. C.
FORT SUMTER, S. C., April 11, 1861.
GENERAL: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your communication demanding the evacuation of this fort, and to say, in reply thereto, that it is a demand with which I regret that my sense of honor, and of my obligations to my Government, prevent my compliance. Thanking you for the fair, manly, and courteous terms proposed, and for the high compliment paid me,
I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
ROBERT ANDERSON,
Major, First Artillery, Commanding.

April 10, 1861

Civil War Deeply Rooted in Virginia - from Los Angeles Times, April 10, 2011
- Three key places in Virginia tell the tale of rebellion and answer some big questions.

April 9,1861

1st Confederate States of America flag

Union flag flown at time of Fort Sumter bombing

April 8, 1861

Maps of Union and Confederate states

April 7, 1861

Lincoln Cabinet - 1861

First Confederate Cabinet - 1861

April 6, 1861

Coats of Arms of the Several States of the Union - from Harper's Weekly (April 1861)

Scenes in Virginia - from Harper's Weekly (April 1861)

April 5, 1861

A soldier from Georgia signed this enlistment oath to serve in the Army of the State of Georgia for three years.

Five Myths About Why The South Seceded  - The Washington Post, April 5, 2011

Faces of the Civil War - the Washington Post, April 5, 2011: "The last full Measure: Civil War Photographs from the Liljenquist Family Collection," an exhibit opening at the Library of Congress on April 12, offers a haunting view of the Civil War generation through 400 period photographs.

April 4, 1861

The Virginia Convention rejects a motion to secede by a vote of 90 to 45.

April 3, 1861

Abraham Lincoln, President - USA, 1861

 Jefferson Davis, President - CSA, 1861

Robert E. Lee, before his command of The Army of Northern Virginia

April 2, 1861

From The Daily Virginian:

"One of the great arguments - indeed the chief cause assigned by those of our Southern fellow-citizens who favor Disunion - is, that we are two distinct people, having different systems of labor, and cannot, therefore, live under one government."

 South Carolina Governor Francis Pickens

(Left) Brigadier  General P.G.T. Beauregard - Commander, CSA, Charleston, SC
(Right) Major Robert Anderson, Commander, Federal forces at Fort Sumter

April 1, 1861

Fort Sumter, Charleston Harbor

New York times article: How Slavery Really Ended in America

Fort Monroe, Virginia, 19th century