Process Paper
The fall of Fort Sumter marked the beginning of the Civil War, a war that would tear America in two, creating a division still seen today in modern politics. Yet, in such an important part of American history, ones understanding of how and why it began can be muddled and lead to misconceptions of the topic, for this is the reason I chose the topic of why the Civil War began at Fort Sumter.
My research began by searching terms like “Civil War” and “Fort Sumter”, looking for basic knowledge. Researching a historian I found, David Detzer, I came upon his book, “Allegiance”. Allegiance talks about Major Anderson. I’m trying to see what influence he had on the Civil War and if he had any power on the way the war had went. In looking for primary sources, I found a report that Abner Doubleday wrote on his experiences at Sumter, one a confederate general wrote on the events, and several newspaper articles from the time about the battle. I’m using these sources to answer, “How did different people feel about the battle and South Carolina’s succession?” Using jstor.org, I found a scholarly journal on Buchanan’s view points on slavery and succession. I started to narrow my topic question. I changed it from “Why did the Civil War start at Fort Sumter” to “How did different individuals in power in the beginning of the Civil War and places cause and influence the war to start at Fort Sumter?” I then found a website I used a lot in the writing of my essay called “Crisis at Fort Sumter”. Written by a history professor at Tulane University, it gives a very detailed assessment of the events at Fort Sumter along with actions made by individuals like Lincoln, Buchanan, and Anderson. I also discovered that Buchanan wrote a memoir of his experience in office and I am using it to discover how he felt about the events at Sumter from his own mouth. My most used sources ended up being Allegiance and Crisis at Fort Sumter.
By the mid 19th century, tensions grew between the northern and southern states over issues of slavery, state rights, and simply social and economic differences between the two. These tensions built until exploding at Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the Civil War. Besides these long term causes of the Civil War, Sumter’s location and great men of the time’s decisions and personalities helped cause the war to begin specifically at Sumter. Personalities and actions of these great men include President Buchanan’s indecision, Lincoln’s resupply attempt, Major Anderson’s loyalty and Confederate President Jefferson Davis’s order of attack. Because of this, the south attacked the Union in a bloodless battle that began the bloodiest war this nation has ever seen, inciting the Civil War and sectional differences Americans still feel to this day.
(478 Words)
The fall of Fort Sumter marked the beginning of the Civil War, a war that would tear America in two, creating a division still seen today in modern politics. Yet, in such an important part of American history, ones understanding of how and why it began can be muddled and lead to misconceptions of the topic, for this is the reason I chose the topic of why the Civil War began at Fort Sumter.
My research began by searching terms like “Civil War” and “Fort Sumter”, looking for basic knowledge. Researching a historian I found, David Detzer, I came upon his book, “Allegiance”. Allegiance talks about Major Anderson. I’m trying to see what influence he had on the Civil War and if he had any power on the way the war had went. In looking for primary sources, I found a report that Abner Doubleday wrote on his experiences at Sumter, one a confederate general wrote on the events, and several newspaper articles from the time about the battle. I’m using these sources to answer, “How did different people feel about the battle and South Carolina’s succession?” Using jstor.org, I found a scholarly journal on Buchanan’s view points on slavery and succession. I started to narrow my topic question. I changed it from “Why did the Civil War start at Fort Sumter” to “How did different individuals in power in the beginning of the Civil War and places cause and influence the war to start at Fort Sumter?” I then found a website I used a lot in the writing of my essay called “Crisis at Fort Sumter”. Written by a history professor at Tulane University, it gives a very detailed assessment of the events at Fort Sumter along with actions made by individuals like Lincoln, Buchanan, and Anderson. I also discovered that Buchanan wrote a memoir of his experience in office and I am using it to discover how he felt about the events at Sumter from his own mouth. My most used sources ended up being Allegiance and Crisis at Fort Sumter.
By the mid 19th century, tensions grew between the northern and southern states over issues of slavery, state rights, and simply social and economic differences between the two. These tensions built until exploding at Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the Civil War. Besides these long term causes of the Civil War, Sumter’s location and great men of the time’s decisions and personalities helped cause the war to begin specifically at Sumter. Personalities and actions of these great men include President Buchanan’s indecision, Lincoln’s resupply attempt, Major Anderson’s loyalty and Confederate President Jefferson Davis’s order of attack. Because of this, the south attacked the Union in a bloodless battle that began the bloodiest war this nation has ever seen, inciting the Civil War and sectional differences Americans still feel to this day.
(478 Words)