The Civil War in Alabama
Morgan Averette
The Civil War:
Tuscaloosa’s Involvement
Throughout history, America has been involved in many wars. No war hit quite as close to home as the Civil War. Brothers fought against brothers, and families were torn apart. Living in the United States during this time was rough, but living in the south was even harder. Tuscaloosa, being so close to the University of Alabama, played a significant role in the Civil War; it is important to understand Tuscaloosa’s involvement in the Civil War. The University of Alabama’s campus holds a significant piece of history from the Civil War, along with its military school history, and ultimately being the site of the attack on Tuscaloosa. In the spring of 1861, decades of simmering tensions between the northern and southern United States, over issues including states' rights versus federal authority, along with westward expansion and slavery, exploded into the American Civil War. The Civil War broke out because of uncompromising differences between the free and slave states, feuding over the power of the national government to prohibit slavery in the territories that had not become states just yet. When Abraham Lincoln won the election in 1860, he was the first Republican president pledging to keep slavery out of the territories (McPherson, “A Brief Overview of the American Civil War”). Seven slave states in the Deep South seceded and formed a new nation, the Confederate States of America. According to an article in the Civil War Daily Gazette, it is said that Southern General Robert E. Lee was actually against succession, but he was dedicated to fighting for his home state of Virginia (“Robert E. Lee’s Letter Against Secession”). Battles broke out across the North and the South, and many lives were lost. Alabama was the site for about 7 of these Civil War battles, including the Battle of Mobile Bay and the Battle of Selma. With the Civil War being fought so close to home, it is understandable why the
The Civil War:
Tuscaloosa’s Involvement
Throughout history, America has been involved in many wars. No war hit quite as close to home as the Civil War. Brothers fought against brothers, and families were torn apart. Living in the United States during this time was rough, but living in the south was even harder. Tuscaloosa, being so close to the University of Alabama, played a significant role in the Civil War; it is important to understand Tuscaloosa’s involvement in the Civil War. The University of Alabama’s campus holds a significant piece of history from the Civil War, along with its military school history, and ultimately being the site of the attack on Tuscaloosa. In the spring of 1861, decades of simmering tensions between the northern and southern United States, over issues including states' rights versus federal authority, along with westward expansion and slavery, exploded into the American Civil War. The Civil War broke out because of uncompromising differences between the free and slave states, feuding over the power of the national government to prohibit slavery in the territories that had not become states just yet. When Abraham Lincoln won the election in 1860, he was the first Republican president pledging to keep slavery out of the territories (McPherson, “A Brief Overview of the American Civil War”). Seven slave states in the Deep South seceded and formed a new nation, the Confederate States of America. According to an article in the Civil War Daily Gazette, it is said that Southern General Robert E. Lee was actually against succession, but he was dedicated to fighting for his home state of Virginia (“Robert E. Lee’s Letter Against Secession”). Battles broke out across the North and the South, and many lives were lost. Alabama was the site for about 7 of these Civil War battles, including the Battle of Mobile Bay and the Battle of Selma. With the Civil War being fought so close to home, it is understandable why the