5. The Civil War

Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War

The American Civil War was between the North (Union) and South (Confederates) over states' rights vs. federal authority, expansion in the West and slavery. It lasted four years and was the bloodiest war in American history.


Click here for cool pictures from the Civil War
Facts about the president at this time-Abraham Lincoln:

• He was born on February 12th 1809, and died April 15th 1865 at the age of fifty six.
• His home state is Illinois.
• His party was Republican and he was president for four years from 1861-1865, when he was assassinated.
• His vice presidents where Hannibal Hamlin and Andrew Johnson.
• He was preceded by James Buchanan and succeeded by Andrew Johnson.
• His wife was called Mary Todd Lincoln, who was brought up into a very wealthy family.
• Mary’s parents disagreed with her marrying Abraham because he had a poor background.
• Abraham had four children, Robert Todd Lincoln, Edward Lincoln, Willie Lincoln, Tad Lincoln. Only Robert Todd Lincoln survived into adulthood.
• Abraham was an unaffiliated Christian as he never officially acquired church membership.
• He created a national banking system with the National Banking Act in 1863, resulting in a standardized currency.
• He was the first president to be assassinated.
• He had deep depression, even though he would frequently tell stories and jokes to friends and family.
• He was the tallest U.S president at 6'4".
• He patented a system to alter buoyancy of steamboats in 1849.
• His birth mother died from milk sickness.
• His father remarried a widow, and Abraham was very close to his step mother.
• He ran a store in New Salem.
• Even though he was strong, a talented wrestler, and proficient with an axe, Lincoln disliked killing and harming animals, even for food.
• Lincoln proposed to Mary just one year after meeting her in Springfield 1839.
• He was the first president to have a beard.
• Lincoln, one week before his death, had a dream of someone crying in the White House, when he found the room; he looked in and asked who had passed away. The man in the room said the President. When he looked in the coffin it was his own face he saw.
• Lincoln was fond of pets, and owned horses, cats, dogs and a turkey.

Robert E. Lee: