Secretary of War John B. Floyd faces charges of corruption and collusion with the South, as Major Robert Anderson moves his Federal garrison from Fort Moultrie to the stronger Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina.

Exploring the most important 55 months in American history
Secretary of War John B. Floyd faces charges of corruption and collusion with the South, as Major Robert Anderson moves his Federal garrison from Fort Moultrie to the stronger Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina.
The quickly spreading news of South Carolina’s exit from the Union shakes America like nothing before in her history.
Delegates to the Convention of the People of South Carolina unanimously approve an ordinance to secede from the United States and form the Palmetto Republic.
Maj. Robert Anderson begins looking for a more defensible position for his Federal garrison in Charleston Harbor, and South Carolina officials go to Washington to negotiate Anderson’s withdrawal from their state.
President James Buchanan got an alarming request from Major Robert Anderson to send military reinforcements for the Federal garrison in Charleston Harbor.
The commanding general of the U.S. Army replaced the aging commander of the Charleston Harbor defenses, as secession hysteria continued sweeping through South Carolina and beyond.