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About 5,000 slaves lived in Arkansas in 1836, the year of statehood. On the eve of the Civil War, Arkansas had more than 111,000 slaves, a fourth of the state’s population. 1997 SPRING CIVIL WAR ARKANSAS PAGE 2 « Back to 1997 Spring Issue Articles About This Issue: Civil War Was a War of Brothers All of this issue of The Arkansas News is about Arkansas in the Civil War, from 1861 to 1865. It was a terrible time for Arkansans and for all Americans. Few probably knew exactly why the war had started, and no one had expected how long and difficult the war would be. There was remarkable bravery, and there was almost unbelievable horror. In Arkansas, it was truly a "war of brothers." Although most Arkansans supported the Confederacy, a sizable number of both black and white Arkansans supported the Union side. For much of the war, part of the state was held by the Confederacy and part was held by the Union. Neither governed much beyond their own army camps, so some lawless people ran wild. Innocent and law-abiding people suffered from "bushwhackers" or jayhawkers," claiming to be supporters of one side or the other but mostly just thieves. But the war finally ended, and it settled two important things. The United States was one country, indivisible. And in the United States, one person could not hold another person in slavery. The wounds of war, in people’s bodies and their minds, healed up soon enough, and the country was left with stories it never tires of hearing. Here in this issue are a few, for you. Chronological List of Arkansas Civil War Events To help our readers organize the events of the Civil War, here is a list of major events by year. The events in italics, like this, occurred in Arkansas or are about Arkansans, and most of them are covered in stories in this edition of the newspaper. The other events happened at other places at the same time. 1860 November 6: Lincoln elected president of the U.S. December 20: South Carolina secedes from the Union. 1861 January 28: Telegraph line completed from Memphis to Little Rock February 4: Confederate States of America founded. March 4: Arkansas convention meets, rejects secession. Lincoln inaugurated as president of U.S. April 14: Fort Sumter in South Carolina surrenders after Confederate bombardment May 6: Arkansas convention reassembles, votes for secession July 21: First battle of Bull Run, Virginia 1862 February 646: Federal troops capture Forts Henry and Donelson, Tennessee March 7-8: Battle of Pea Ridge or Elkhorn Tavern, near Rogers April 6-7: Battle of Shiloh, Tennessee June 6: Federals capture Memphis, Tennessee June 26-July 1: Seven Days Battle, Virginia September 16-17: Battle of Antietam, Maryland September 22: Lincoln issues preliminary Emancipation Proclamation December 7: Battle of Prairie Grove, near Fayetteville December13: Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia 1863 January 10-11: Federal capture of Fort Hindman, Arkansas Post May 1-4: Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia July 1-3: Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania July 4: Confederate attack on Helena fails. Federal forces capture Vicksburg, Mississippi September 10: Federal army occupies Little Rock; state government moves to Washington September 19-20: Battle of Chickamauga, Tennessee 1864 January 8: David 0. Dodd executed as a Confederate spy April 8-9: Defeat of Federal Red River expedition April 18: Isaac Murphy takes office as Union governor of Arkansas April 18-30: Steele’s campaign in South Arkansas; engagements at Poison Spring (near Camden), Marks Mill (near Fordyce), and Jenkins’ Ferry (near Sheridan) May 5-18: Battles of Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Virginia June 1-3: Battle of Cold Harbor, Virginia September 2: Federal troops capture Atlanta, Georgia September 22-October 2: Arkansas Confederate state government in session at Washington September 20-October 28: Price’s expedition to Missouri November 30: Battle of Franklin in Tennessee; death of Pat Cleburne 1865 April 2: Federal army occupies Petersburg and Richmond, Virginia April 9: Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia April 15: Lincoln dies May 24: Skirmish near Monticello, the last military action in Arkansas May 26: Confederate armies west of the Mississippi River surrender After a divided Arkansas seceded from the Union in 1861, it became a strategic target for both North and South because of its location on the Mississippi River and its role as a gateway to the Southwest. Included among the state's more than 750 military engagements were a number of major conflicts. The war's largest battle west of the Mississippi was fought at Pea Ridge in March 1862. Participating were some 26,000 soldiers. The Union victory dashed Confederate hopes of occupying Missouri. In December, 1862, more than 11,000 Confederates battled Union forces at Prairie Grove in a failed attempt to prevent federal occupation of Fort Smith. Photo Facts Sunset at Pea Ridge National Military Park The control of Arkansas River commerce was at stake when 30,000 Union troops overwhelmed 5,000 Confederates at Arkansas Post in January 1863, while control of the Mississippi figured in the Battle of Helena on July 4, 1863. Union forces occupied Little Rock on Sept. 10, 1863, despite numerous skirmishes. The state's Confederate government moved its capital to the town of Washington. In the spring of 1864, 13,000 federal troops headed southwest from Little Rock in an attempt to complete the Union conquest of the state. That failed venture is now known as the Red River Campaign.