Andersonville Prison
Andersonville prison was a place where the soldiers of the Union army feared to go. Andersonville prison was the largest Confederate prison during the Civil War. The prison pen was surrounded by a stockade of hewed pine logs that varied in height from 15 to 17 feet. Anyone who would try to escape would got shot right away.
Surrender at Appomattox Court House
General Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse meant that the largest of the Confederate armies had given up the fight. Within two weeks all other large Confederate forces learned of Lee's decision to end the fight and also surrendered.
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the first American president ever assassinated. Lincoln was killed by John Wilkins Booth. Booth was a well know actor. Booth hated Lincoln because he was against everything Lincoln supported.
Reconstruction
In 1865 and 1866, new southern state legislatures passed restrictive "black codes" to control the labor and behavior of former slaves and other African Americans. The north was outraged with the "black codes". The north started something called the Radical Reconstruction and during this time blacks started to have a voice.