Chapter 19 Keyterms & People to Know

Fort Sumter

South Carolina location where Confederate forces fired the first shots of the Civil War in April of 1861, after Union forces attempted to provision the fort.

Border States

Five slave states—Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia—that did not secede during the Civil War.

West Virginia

Mountainous region that broke away from Virginia in 1861 to form its own state after Virginia seceded from the Union.

Trent affair

Diplomatic row that threatened to bring the British into the Civil War on the side of the Confederacy, after a Union warship stopped a British steamer and arrested two Confederate diplomats on board.

Alabama

British-built and manned Confederate warship that raided Union shipping during the Civil War.

Laird rams

Two well-armed ironclad warships constructed for the Confederacy by a British firm.

Dominion of Canada

Unified Canadian government created by Britain to bolster Canadians against potential attacks or overtures from the United States.

writ of habeas corpus

Petition requiring law enforcement officers to present detained individuals before the court to examine the legality of the arrest.

New York draft riots

Uprising, mostly of working-class Irish Americans, in protest of the draft.

Morrill Tariff Act

Increased duties back up to 1846 levels to raise revenue for the Civil War.

greenbacks

Paper currency issued by the Union Treasury during the Civil War.

National Banking System

Network of member banks that could issue currency against purchased government bonds.

Homestead Act

A federal law that sold settlers 160 acres of land for about $30 if they lived on it for five years and improved it.

Pacific Railroad Act

Helped fund the construction of the Union Pacific transcontinental railroad with the use of land grants and government bonds.

U.S. Sanitary Commission

Government agency founded with the help of Elizabeth Blackwell that trained nurses, collected medical supplies, and equipped hospitals.

Charles Francis Adams

Was a prominent American diplomat, historian, and politician known for his role in the US minister to the UK during the Civil War. He successfully prevented British recognition of the Confederacy, helping to ensure that Britain remained neutral leading to the Unions victory.

Napoleon III

Emperor of the French ruling during the second French empire. Known for modernizing Paris through public works which improved infrastructure, sanitation, and urban planning. Helped expand French influence abroad engaging in the Crimean War. His foreign policy ultimately led to his downfall in the Franco-Prussian War.

Maximillian

A Holy Roman Emperor who expanded the influence of the Habsburg dynasty in Europe through strategic marriages, diplomacy, and military campaigns. Made reforms in the Holy Roman Empire’s administrative and military structures, promoting a centralized government and establishing the Imperial Army.

Jefferson Davis

President of the Confederate State of America during the America Civil War. Before leading the Confederacy, he was a US senator and served as a Secretary War under President Franklin Pierce, where he advocated for military reforms and western expansion.

Elizabeth Blackwell

She was the first woman in the US to earn a medical degree in 1849, breaking significant barriers for women in the field of medicine. She co-founded the New York Infirmary for Women and Children, and later established the Women’s Medical College of the New York Infirmary.

Clara Barton

Pioneering American nurse, teacher, and humanitarian known for founding the American Red Criss. Earned the nickname “Angel of the Battlefield” during the Civil War for providing medical supplies and care to soldiers of the front lines.

Sally Tompkins

Pioneering nurse and the only woman commissioned as an officer in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, Established a private hospital in Richmond, Virginia, where her medical care led to an unusually low mortality rate for her patients, She earned the rank of Captain in the Civil War medical.