STEP 2: ESSENTIAL TOPICS YOU NEED TO KNOW FROM THE 1854-1876 TIME PERIOD
EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION
The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by Abraham Lincoln, who was the president during that time period. It freed the slaves in the Confederate territories and the states that rebelled against the Union. It was notoriously overlooked, seeming as the Confederacy didn't appropriate to the Emancipation and disregarded it. However, 3 to 4 million slaves were "let go" under this statute.
13th, 14th, and 15th AMENDMENTS
In other words, the "slave-related" amendments to the Constitution.
The 13th amendment prohibits/abolishes slavery and involuntary servitude.
The 14th amendment addresses the previously enslaved as citizens and protected under law.
The 15th amendment restricts the government from denying a citizen the right to vote based on their color.
IMPORTANT/CRITICAL BATTLES DURING THE CIVIL WAR
Battle of Fort Sumter (April 12th, 1861) CONFEDERATE VICTORY
First Battle of Bull Run (July 21,1861) CONFEDERATE VICTORY
Battle of Shiloh (April 6-7, 1862) UNION VICTORY
Battle of Antietam (September 17th, 1862) UNION VICTORY (BLOODIEST SINGLE DAY BATTLE)
Siege of Vicksburg (May 18th-July 4th, 1863) UNION VICTORY (SPLITS CONFEDERATE FORCES IN THE WEST; CAPTURES CONTROL OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER; TURNING POINT IN THE WEST)
Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3rd, 1863) UNION VICTORY (BLOODIEST BATTLE OF THE WAR)
Sherman's March to the Sea (November-December 1864) UNION VICTORY
Surrender at Appomattox Court House on April 9th, 1865
UNION V. CONFEDERATE
THE RECONSTRUCTION ERA (PRESIDENTIAL VS. RADICAL)
Lincoln's 10% plan: proposed that a state be readmitted to the Union once 10% of its voters pledge loyal to the union and promise to honor the Emancipation.
Wade-Davis Bill: Passed by Congressional Republicans in response to Lincoln's plan. Required 50% of a state's votes to pledge allegiance to the Union. It set stronger safeguards for emancipation.
These different bills represented the divisions between Congress and the President and between moderate and radical republicans.
NEW AND IMPROVED INVENTIONS AND THEIR LEGACIES
Eli Whitney, the cotton gin and interchangeable parts The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney. It increased cotton development in the South and, ironically (as it hadn't intended to) expanded slavery because there was a greater demand for cotton to be produced.
The concept of interchangeable parts was also pioneered by Whitney. Interchangeable parts are identical components that can be used in place of one another in manufacturing. It made it easier to manufacture.
Elias Howe, Isaac Singer, and the sewing machine The sewing machine became the foundation of ready-made clothing.
Samuel Morse and the telegraph Samuel Morse developed an electric telegraph which allowed information to be transferred from one place to another by means of a strung wire using dot-slash code (Morse Code). It aided in faster communication and tied people together regardless of distance.
The Cotton Gin
The Sewing Machine aided in the mass production of linens
The telegraph helped send messages over long distances in a short period of time. Major advance in technology.