Civil War map 1 demo

Title

John Wilkes Booth, a well-known actor, shot Abraham Lincoln on April 14th, 1865. Even though Booth wasn't the only one who was behind the assassination, his crime still lead to one of the biggest manhunts in U.S. history. With around 1,000 Union soldiers, after 2 weeks, he was captured. Even though Booth was a well-respected, well-known actor during that time, he had Confederate beliefs. When the South was losing, he reprimanded himself for not fighting for what he believed in. His shooting Lincoln was his contribution to the Southern cause.

In Spring, 1864, the Battle of the Wilderness occured. General Ulysses S. Grant was leading Union soldiers towards the Confederate capital, Richmond. General Robert E. Lee led his soldiers to meet them in the Virginian forest the Union was going through. The forest was known as the wilderness. While the Union had an advantage in numbers, the Confederacy still held an advantage. The density of the forest made it hard to advance a large army, and the Confederate side knew the forest well. After two days of fighting, Grant still refused to retreat. The battle itself ended without a clear winner, but with 17,500 lost on the Union side, and 7,000 lost in the Confederacy.

General William T. Sherman on November 15th, 1864, captured and burned the city of Atlanta. In this city, around 3,000 buildings, such as hospitals, homes, etc., were burned down and obliterated. This Burning of Atlanta is what started off Sherman's "March to the Sea". This ended on December 21st, in Savanah, Georgia. The destruction of Atlanta was called the Atlanta Campaign. Its goal was to cut Atlanta off of resources and supplies, to further limit the Confederacy.

On April 2nd, 1863, the Richmond Bread Riot took place. Taking place in the Confederate capital, Richmond, it is reported to have been “the largest and most destructive in a series of civil disturbances throughout the South during the third spring of the American Civil War”, (Encyclopedia Virginia) Women from Richmond went to the Virginian governor about the lessening amount of food and money. This was because the economy was crumbling, which lead to inflation and new tax laws. A group of women went to go speak to the governor, John L. Letcher but were not allowed to meet with him. The next day, the group went back to the city's business district, gathering hundreds of people with them. According to Encyclopedia Virginia, “Several eyewitnesses reported seeing a gaunt woman raise a skeleton of an arm and scream, “We celebrate our right to live! We are starving!” Others heard a chant of “Bread or blood!” “ People began to steal everything, from clothes to food. The riot was over in around 2 hours, although it is not confirmed how exactly it came to a close. Around 60 people ended up in custody, and labeled people who did not participate in the rioting as “worthy poor”. Those who did participate were labeled as the “unworthy poor” This riot shows that the Confederate was slowly corroding, both in mental and physical health.

Fort Sumter was built after the War of 1812 and was named after war general Thomas Sumter. The first shots of the Civil War were fired here, the Confederacy first attacking the Union. President Lincoln planned to resupply the fort, which caused a 34-hour-long Confederate attack on April 4th. On April 13th, the fort was surrendered to the Confederacy. Although the Union tried to get back Fort Sumter, the Confederate kept control of it for four years.

Battle of the Wilderness (history.com) Fort Sumter: Civil War, Battle & Location - HISTORY The Final Days of John Wilkes Booth (history.com) https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/burning-atlanta

Citations

The U.S. Civil War Interactive MapMade by Michaela Bushor

Battle of Shiloh, 1862, April 6-7

Battle of Shiloh

Battle of Bull Run, 1862, July 21

Battle of Bull Run

Battle of the Wilderness

Fort Sumter

Battle of Stones River, Dec. 31st, 1862 - Jan. 2nd, 1863

Battle of Stones River

Manhunt for John Wilkes Booth

Richmond Bread Riot

Burning of Atlanta

Vicksburg, 1863, May 18th - July 4

Seige of Vicksburg