dec 31, 1860 - Civil war starts

Description:

At 4:30 am on April 12, 1861, Confederate artillery in Charleston, South Carolina, opened fire on Fort Sumter, which was held by the United States Army. The bombardment set off a savage four-year war between two great geographic sections of the United States. One section was the North—23 Northern and Western states that supported the federal government. The other section was the South—11 Southern states that had seceded (withdrawn) from the Union and formed an independent government called the Confederate States of America.

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