Exploring the most important 55 months in American history
The governor of Kentucky rejects President Lincoln’s request for troops, emphasizing the state’s desire for neutrality. This sentiment is echoed by both Unionists and secessionists, fearing threats from either side. Tiny Delaware also seeks neutrality, with the governor unsure of his authority to raise militia for the Federal government.
The states of the upper South and the border with the North continue to contemplate joining the Deep South in seceding. Some, like Delaware and Maryland, resist secession while others, such as Missouri and Tennessee, show division and caution.
Edmund Kirby Smith begins the Confederate incursion into Kentucky as the political turmoil in that state continues.
Confederates form a defense line across Kentucky while Federals open recruitment efforts, thereby ensuring that turmoil in the state will continue.
The Unionist Kentucky legislature demands that Confederates leave the state, but Leonidas Polk refuses unless the Federals do the same.
Kentucky’s neutrality, which had been in question for several months, officially ends with the Confederate occupation of Columbus.