Today in
U.S. Civil War History
U.S. Civil War History
1861 - Union troops suffered a defeat at the Battle of Ball's Bluff. It was the second major engagement of the war. Colonel Edward Baker was killed in the battle becoming the first martyr of the war.
| "The time for compromise has now passed, and the South is determined to maintain her position, and make all who oppose her smell Southern powder and feel Southern steel." - Jefferson Davis used these words in his inaugural speech on February 16, 1861 |
