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Class One - 1861 - Secession and Conflict
- The Confederacy is formed
and the war begins at Fort Sumter. Union forces are defeated at Bull
Run, Big Bethel and Wilson’s Creek. Lincoln appoints George McClellan
to lead Union forces.
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Class Two - 1862 – Lee Takes Command - Grant captures Fort Donelson
under terms of “Unconditional Surrender.” The CSS Virginia battles the
USS Monitor to a draw in the first ironclad naval engagement. Lee
assumes command of the Army of Northern Virginia. In the Seven Days
battles, Lee displays his brilliance as Confederate forces defeat
McClellan's Union troops and save Richmond. Casualties mount on both
sides in battles at Manassas, Antietam, and Fredericksburg.
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Class Three - 1863 – Union Victories Turn the Tide - Lincoln issues
the Emancipation Proclamation. Lee defeats Hooker’s forces at
Chancellorsville. Lee's army is repulsed in its second invasion of
the North at Gettysburg. Vicksburg surrenders to Grant. The 54th
Massachusetts Colored Troops lead the assault on Fort Wagner.
Lincoln gives the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the
National Cemetery.
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Class Four - 1864 -
Grant and Sherman Pound the Confederacy - Grant is appointed to lead the Union Army. The
Overland Campaign begins with bloody conflicts at The Wilderness and
Spotsylvania. Sherman captures Atlanta and begins his March to the
Sea. Sheridan rallies Union troops at Cedar Creek and gains control of
Shenandoah Valley.
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Class Five - 1865 - The Lost Cause - The Congress passes the 13th Amendment. The Union
victory at Five Forks, VA forces Lee to abandon Richmond and
Petersburg. Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox Court House.
Johnston surrenders to Sherman in North Carolina. Lincoln is
assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
