jan 1, 1863 - Emancipation Proclamation

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A Proclamation by Lincoln declaring that the slaves were to be set free. However, it was more of a Proclamation that it will eventually happen when the war is won, rather than something to get done while still in war because the Union needed the Border States' loyalty. This is the official declaration of the North that the Civil War is a war over slavery. The Proclamation was heard by slaves and one in seven slaves ran away to union camps.

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