| January 1 | 1st homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice, Nebr |
| January 1 | Battle of Galveston, Texas-Confederates recapture the city |
| January 1 | Battle of Helena, AK |
| January 1 | Emancipation Proclamation issued by Abraham Lincoln |
| January 1 | Franz Schuberts "Missa Solemnis," premieres in Leipzig |
| January 1 | President Lincoln declares slavery in Confederate states unlawful |
| January 2 | Battle of Murfreesboro (Stone's River) ends |
| January 4 | 4 wheeled roller skates patented by James Plimpton of NY |
| January 10 | 1st underground railway opens in London |
| January 10 | General McClernand's Union troops surround Fort Hindman Ark |
| January 10 | January-uprising begins in Poland |
| January 10 | London's 1st subway opens |
| January 11 | Naval engagement near Galveston between CSS Alabama and USS Hatteras |
| January 11 | Union forces capture Arkansas Post, or Ft. Hindman, Arkansas |
| January 12 | President Davis delivers his "State of Confederacy" address |
| January 13 | Chenille manufacturing machine patented by William Canter, New York City |
| January 13 | Thomas Crapper pioneers one-piece pedestal flushing toilet |
| January 14 | Battle between gunboats at Bayou Teche Louisiana |
| January 15 | 1st U.S. newspaper printed on wood-pulp paper, Boston Morning Journal |
| January 17 | Civil War skirmish near Newtown, Virginia |
| January 19 | General Mieroslawski appointed dictator of Poland |
| January 21 | City of Dublin leases part of Cattle Market for 100,000 years |
| January 22 | Union General Burnside's "Mud March" |
| January 25 | Battle of Kinston, NC |
| January 25 | General Joseph Hooker replaces Burnside as head of Army of Potomac |
| January 26 | 54th Regiment (Black) infantry forms |
| January 26 | War Department authorizes Mass governor to recruit black troops |
| January 29 | Battle at Bear River, Washington: U.S. Army vs indians |
| January 31 | 1st black Civil War regiment, South Carolina Volunteers, mustered into U.S. army |
| February 2 | Samuel Clemens becomes Mark Twain for 1st time |
| February 9 | Fire extinguisher patented by Alanson Crane |
| February 10 | 1st U.S. fire extinguisher patent granted to Alanson Crane, Virginia |
| February 10 | P. T. Barnum stages wedding of Tom Thumb and Mercy Lavinia Warren (New York City) |
| February 24 | Arizona Territory created |
| February 24 | Forrest's raid on Brentwood, Tennessee |
| February 25 | Congress creates national banking system, comptroller of currency |
| February 26 | Lincoln signs National Currency Act |
| February 28 | Confederate raider "Nashville" sinks near Fort McAllister Georgia |
| March 2 | Congress authorizes track width of 4'8" for Union Pacific Railroad |
| March 3 | 1st U.S. wartime military conscription bill enacted |
| March 3 | Abraham Lincoln approves charter for National Academy of Sciences |
| March 3 | Congress authorizes a U.S. mint at Carson City, Nevada |
| March 3 | Federal ironclad ships bomb Fort McAllister Georgia |
| March 3 | Free city delivery replaces zone postage; 449 letter carriers hired |
| March 3 | Gold certificates (currency) authorized by Congress |
| March 3 | Idaho Territory forms |
| March 3 | Lincoln approves charter for National Academy of Sciences |
| March 4 | Battle of Thompson's Station, Tennessee |
| March 4 | Territory of Idaho established |
| March 17 | Battle of Kelly's Ford, Virginia (211 casualities) |
| March 20 | Battle of Pensacola Florida - evacuated by Federals |
| March 21 | Naval Engagement at Havana Cuba-USS Henrick Hudson vs BR Wild Pigeon |
| March 25 | 1st Army Medal of Honor awarded |
| March 25 | Skirmish at Brentwood Tennessee |
| March 26 | Voters in West Virginia approve gradual emancipation of slaves |
| March 27 | President Davis calls for this to be a day of fasting and prayer |
| March 30 | Danish prince Wilhelm Georg of Sleeswok-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksburg chosen as king George of Greece |
| March 31 | Battle of Grand Gulf MS and Dinwiddie Court House VA |
| April 1 | 1st wartime conscription law in U.S. goes into effect |
| April 2 | Bread revolt in Richmond Virginia |
| April 7 | Battle of Charleston, South Carolina, failed Federal fleet attack on Fort Sumter |
| April 10 | Rebel General Earl Van Dorn attacks at Franklin, Tennessee |
| April 11 | Battle of Suffolk, Virginia (Norfleet House) |
| April 13 | Battle of Irish Bend, Louisiana (Ft. Bisland) |
| April 13 | Hospital for Ruptured and Crippled in New York is 1st orthopedic hospital |
| April 14 | William Bullock patents continuous-roll printing press |
| April 17 | R Grierson's: La Grange, Tennessee to Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| April 19 | Union troops/fleet occupy For Huger, Virginia |
| April 21 | Declaration of Baha'u'llah; Baha'i Feast of Ridvan (Jalal 13, 20) |
| April 24 | Skirmish at Okolona/Birmingham, Mississippi (Grierson's Raid) |
| April 27 | Battle of Streight's raid: Tuscumbia to Cedar Bluff, AL |
| May 1 | Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia (29,000 injured or died) |
| May 1 | Battle of Port Gibson, Mississippi |
| May 1 | Confederate "National Flag" replaces "Stars and Bars" |
| May 1 | Confederate congress passed resolution to kill black soldiers |
| May 2 | South defeats North in Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia |
| May 2 | Stonewall Jackson attacks Chancellorsville, wounded by his own men |
| May 3 | Battle of Chancellorsville - Beaten Union army withdraws |
| May 3 | Battle of Fredricksburg, Virginia (Marye's Heights) |
| May 3 | Battle of Salem Church, Virginia |
| May 4 | Battle of Chancellorsville - action at Salem Church |
| May 4 | End of Chancellorsville - Beaten Union army withdraws |
| May 5 | Battle of Tupelo, Mississippi |
| May 5 | Joe Coburn KOs Mike McCoole for U.S. boxing title in 63rd round |
| May 8 | Confederacion Granadina becomes Estados Unidos de Colombia |
| May 12 | Battle of Raymond, Mississippi |
| May 14 | Battle of Jackson, Mississippi |
| May 16 | Battle of Champion's Hill, MS-bloodiest action of Vicksburg Campaign |
| May 17 | Battle of Big Black River Bridge, Mississippi |
| May 18 | Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi |
| May 19 | Siege of Vicksburg, investment of city complete |
| May 21 | Siege on Port Hudson, Louisiana begins |
| May 22 | General Grant begins siege on Vicksburg |
| May 22 | War Department establishes Bureau of Colored Troops |
| May 27 | CSS Chattahoochie explodes on Chattahoochie River GA, 18 die |
| May 27 | Siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana |
| May 28 | 1st black regiment (54 Mass) leaves Boston to fight in Civil War |
| June 2 | Harriet Tubman leads Union guerrillas into Maryland, freeing slaves |
| June 5 | Battle of Franklin's Crossing, Virginia, Deep Run |
| June 5 | CSS "Alabama" captures "Tailsman" in Mid Atlantic |
| June 6 | Battle of Milliken's Bend, LA and Williamsport, MD |
| June 7 | Battle of Milliken's Bend, Louisiana - Jefferson Davis' home burnt |
| June 7 | Mexico City captured by French troops |
| June 9 | Battle of Brandy Station, Virginia, Fleetwood, Beverly Ford |
| June 10 | Battle of Brice's Crossroads, Miss; Forrest w/3500 defeats 8000 Feds |
| June 13 | Battle of Winchester, Virginia |
| June 13 | Samuel Butler publishes 1st part of "Erewhon," Christchurch, New Zealand |
| June 13 | Skirmish at Berryville Virginia |
| June 14 | Battle of 2nd Winchester, Virginia |
| June 15 | 2nd battle at Winchester Va, ends in Federal defeat; 1350 casualities |
| June 17 | Battle at Middleburg, Virginia |
| June 17 | Battle of Aldie, Confederates fail to drive back Union in Virginia |
| June 17 | Naval Engagement at Warsaw Sound GA-USS Weehawken vs CSS Atlanta |
| June 17 | Travelers Insurance Co of Hartford chartered, 1st accident insurer |
| June 18 | After long neglect, Confederates hurriedly fortify Vicksburg |
| June 19 | Battle at Middleburg Virginia, 100+ casualties |
| June 20 | 1st bank chartered in U.S., National Bank of Davenport, Iowa |
| June 20 | Skirmish at Greencastle Pennsylvania |
| June 20 | West Virginia admitted as 35th U.S. state |
| June 21 | Battle at Upperville Virginia, 389 casualities |
| June 23 | Tullahoma campaign, Tennessee |
| June 24 | Planning an invasion of Pennsylvania, Lee's army crosses Potomac |
| June 25 | U.S. General George Meade replaces General Hooker to be more aggressive |
| June 27 | Skirmish at Fairfax (Courthouse) Virginia |
| June 29 | Battle at Westminster Maryland: Federal assault |
| June 29 | George A. Custer (23) appointed Union Brigadier-General |
| June 29 | Lee orders his forces to concentrate near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania |
| June 29 | Very 1st First National Bank opens in Davenport, Iowa |
| June 30 | Battles in Hanover Pennsylvania: 80 casualties |
| June 30 | Dutch colony Suriname counts population of 33,000 slaves |
| June 30 | Skirmish at Sporting Hill, Pennsylvania |
| July 1 | Battle at Baltimore: Crump's Crossroads Virginia |
| July 1 | Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Lee's northward advance halted |
| July 1 | Free city delivery of mail begins in 49 U.S. cities; postage 3 cents per oz |
| July 1 | Slavery abolished in Suriname and Netherlands Antilles |
| July 2 | Battle of Gettysburg (2nd day) |
| July 3 | Battle of Gettysburg Pennsylvania ends, major victory for North |
| July 4 | Boise, Idaho founded (now capital of Idaho) |
| July 4 | Failed Confederate assault on Helena Arkansas (640 casualties) |
| July 4 | General Lee's army withdraws from Gettysburg |
| July 4 | Skirmish at Smithburg, Tennessee |
| July 4 | Vicksburg, Mississippi surrenders to Union forces |
| July 5 | Battle of Jackson, Mississippi and Battle of Birdsong Ferry, Mississippi |
| July 6 | Northern Territory passes from New South Wales to South Australia |
| July 7 | 1st military draft by U.S., exemptions cost $100 |
| July 7 | Orders barring Jews from serving under U.S. Grant are revoked |
| July 9 | Union troops enter Port Hudson |
| July 11 | Japanese battle cruiser shoots at Dutch warship Medusa, kills 4 |
| July 13 | Anti-draft mobs lynch blacks in New York City; about 1,000 die |
| July 13 | Battle of Bayou La Fourche, Louisiana |
| July 14 | Battle of Falling Waters, MD (Beaver Creek) |
| July 14 | Jews of Holstein Germany granted equality |
| July 15 | President Davis orders service duty for confederate army |
| July 16 | Utrecht-Swells railway opens |
| July 17 | Battle of Honey Springs - largest battle in Indian Territory |
| July 18 | Battle of Fort Wagner, South Carolina - Second assault US1500 CS174 |
| July 19 | Battle of Buffington's Island (St. George Creek), Ohio |
| July 23 | Alexandra Park opens in North London |
| July 24 | Battle at Battle Mountain, Virginia |
| July 25 | Skirmish at Barbee's Crossroads, Virginia |
| July 26 | Battle of Salineville OH, John Hunt Morgan and 364 troops surrender |
| July 30 | President Lincoln issues "eye-for-eye" order to shoot a rebel prisoner for every black prisoner shot |
| August 1 | Battle of Little Rock AK and Start of Chattanooga campaign |
| August 1 | Cavalry action near Brandy Station-End of Gettysburg Campaign |
| August 3 | Governor Seymour asks Lincoln to suspend draft in New York |
| August 3 | Saratoga Racetrack, New York, opens |
| August 11 | Cambodia becomes French protectorate |
| August 12 | 1st cargo of lumber leaves Burrard Inlet (Vancouver, BC area) |
| August 15 | Submarine "HL Hunley" arrives in Charleston on railroad cars |
| August 16 | Chickamauga campaign GA |
| August 16 | Emancipation Proclamation signed |
| August 17 | Federal batteries and ships attacked Fort Sumter in SC |
| August 17 | Skirmish at Calfkiller Creek (Sparta), Tennessee |
| August 21 | Raid at Lawrence KS by William Quantrill |
| August 26 | Battle of Rocky Gap WV (White Sulphur Springs) |
| September 1 | 6th Ohio Cavalry ambush at Barbees Crossroads Virginia |
| September 1 | Federal troops reconquer Fort Smith Arkansas |
| September 1 | RR and ferry connection between San Francisco and Oakland inaugurated |
| September 5 | Bread revolt in Mobile Alabama |
| September 6 | After 59 day siege, confederates evacuate Ft. Wagner, SC |
| September 6 | Confederate troops vacate Fort Wagner South Carolina (1700 casualties) |
| September 7 | Federal naval expedition arrives off Sabine Pass |
| September 8 | Battle of Sabine Pass TX: 47 Texas volunteers repel Federal forces |
| September 8 | Federal troops reconquer the Cumperland Gap, Tennessee |
| September 9 | Battle of Cumberland Gap, TN |
| September 10 | George Bizets opera "Les Pacheurs de Perles," premieres in Paris |
| September 17 | Pope Pius IX encyclical On persecution in New Grenada |
| September 19 | Battle of Chickamauga Georgia (near Chattanooga) begins; Union retreat |
| September 20 | Civil War Battle of Chickamauga, near Chattanooga Tennessee, ends |
| September 21 | Union forces retreat to Chattanooga after defeat at Chickamauga |
| September 23 | Confederate siege of Chattanooga begins |
| September 27 | Jo Shelby's cavalry in action at Moffat's Station, Arkansas |
| September 29 | Opera "Pescatori di Perle" is produced (Paris) |
| October 1 | 5 Russian warships welcomed in New York City |
| October 1 | Dutch Breda-Tilburg railway opens |
| October 3 | Lincoln designates last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day |
| October 5 | Confederate sub David damages Union ship Ironsides |
| October 6 | Battle at Baxter Springs Kansas |
| October 6 | Dr. Charles H Sheppard opens 1st public bath, in Brooklyn |
| October 9 | Battle of Brady Station, Virginia (Culpeper Court House, Bristoe Station) |
| October 10 | Skirmish at Blue Springs, Tennessee (166 casualties) |
| October 11 | Skirmish at Rheatown/Henderson's Mill, Tennessee |
| October 13 | Skirmish at Blountsville, Tennessee (50 casualties) |
| October 14 | Battle at Bristoe Station Virginia (about 2000 casualties) |
| October 14 | Skirmish at Catlett's Station, Virginia (Bristoe Campaign) |
| October 15 | Cliff House opens in San Francisco (1st of many on site) |
| October 16 | Grant is given command of Union forces in West |
| October 18 | Battle of Charlestown, West Virginia |
| October 19 | Battle of Buckland Mills, VA |
| October 26 | Football Association forms in England, standardizing soccer |
| October 26 | Soccer rules standardized; rugby starts as a separate game |
| October 26 | Worldwide Red Cross organized in Geneva |
| October 27 | Dutch railway to Harlingen opens |
| October 28 | Battle at Wauhatchie Georgia: 865 killed or injured |
| October 29 | International Comm of Red Cross forms (Nobel 1917, 1944, 1963) |
| November 1 | Averell's Raid (on)to Lewisburg, West Virginia |
| November 1 | Fortifications built on Angel Island (SF Bay) by troops |
| November 3 | Battle of Grand Coteau, Louisiana |
| November 7 | Battle of Rappahannock Station and Kelly's Ford, VA |
| November 14 | Bedford Forrest is assigned to command of West Tennessee |
| November 14 | Skirmish at Danville, Mississippi |
| November 16 | Battle of Campbell's Station TN, 492 casualities |
| November 17 | Lincoln begins 1st draft of his Gettysburg Address |
| November 19 | Lincoln delivers his address in Gettysburg; "4 score and 7 years..." |
| November 23 | Battle of Chattanooga and Orchard Knob, Tennessee begins |
| November 23 | Patent granted for a process of making color photographs |
| November 24 | Battle of Chattanooga, Columbia and Lookout Mountain begins in Tennessee |
| November 25 | Battle of Missionary Ridge, Tennessee |
| November 27 | Battle at Fort Esperanza Texas |
| November 27 | Battle of Payne's Farm, VA |
| November 29 | Battle of Ft. Sanders, Tennessee (Ft. Loudon), 8-900 casualities |
| November 30 | Confederate troops vacate Fort Esperanza, Texas |
| December 3 | Longstreet abandons his siege at Knoxville, TN |
| December 4 | Storm flood ravages Netherlands coastal provinces |
| December 8 | 2,500 reported killed at Church of La Compana, Santiago Chile |
| December 8 | Abraham Lincoln announces plan for Reconstruction of South |
| December 8 | Jesuit church in Chile catches fire, 2,500 die in panic |
| December 8 | President Lincoln offers amnesty for confederate deserters |
| December 14 | Battle of Bean's Station-Confederacy repulses Union in Tennessee |
| December 15 | Skirmish at Bean's Station, Tennessee (Knoxville Campaign) |
BrainyHistory
