March 25, 1833 Letter from John C. Calhoun to Samuel Ingham · Historical Question: Utilizing the strengths and weaknesses present in the Union and Confederacy, create a multi-part

Historical Question: Utilizing the strengths and weaknesses present in the Union and

Confederacy, create a multi-part strategy for victory in the Civil War for the Union and

Confederacy. (CP, Honors)

Historical Question: Through an investigation of political, cultural and military factors of the

United States during the Antebellum Era (1820-1860) design a plan of action for the Union and

Confederacy to be victorious in the Civil War which is able to accentuate strengths while

limiting weaknesses. (AP, IB)

Source A: John Calhoun letter to Samuel Ingham (March 25, 1833)

Calhoun, J. C. (1833, March 25). Letter, 1833 March 25, J. C. Calhoun to Samuel D. Ingham,

page 2-5 [Letter to Samuel D. Ingham].

This source is part of a letter sent from John C. Calhoun to Samuel D. Ingham on March 25,

1833 regarding the doctrine of consolidation passed by Congressmen Daniel Webster and Louise

McLane aided by the influence of President Andrew Jackson.

March 25, 1833 Letter from John C. Calhoun to Samuel Ingham

"But though we have gained ground, much yet remains to be done, in order

to guard against the approach of despotic power. Though the protective

system is substantially put down, we have in its place the force act; a

measure, which sticks more directly at the principles of our Government,

than any which has ever been adopted. It was passed in fact by the join

influence of Webster & McLane aided by the influence of Jackson, with the

express intention of establishing the doctrine of consolidation. … I think, the

South will rally against it, on the old [Democratic] Republican ground, and, I

trust, that there will be sufficient aid from other sections, to erase it with

disgrace from among the acts of the Government. We must establish beyond

controversy the sovereignty of the State, with the right of practically

asserting their reserved powers, or our system will end in the most odious

despotism. It is what all, who love freedom, of every section, may agree in;

and contending for it, will present the broad lines of distinction between the

[Democratic] Republican, and federal party - the lovers of freedom and the

lovers of powers."

South Carolina Department of Education | Office of Standards and Learning in partnership with

the University of South Carolina

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Guiding Questions: 1. What is the primary concern of John C. Calhoun in this letter to Samuel Ingham in 1833?

2. When John C. Calhoun speaks about the South rallying against “the doctrine of

consolidation”, is he referring to the use of warfare or political action?

3. What weakness of the North (and future Northern Republicans) is John C. Calhoun

identifying in 1833?

4. How could the future Confederacy exploit the ideology of “consolidation” that was

supported by Northern politicians, Daniel Webster (Massachusetts) and Louis McLane

(Delaware)?



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Source B: Abraham Lincoln - Cooper Union Address (February 27, 1860)

Lincoln, A. (n.d.). Cooper Union Address. Retrieved July 27, 2018, from

http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/cooper.htm (Annotation) Abraham

Lincoln Speech - Cooper Union Address - New York, New York - February 27, 1860

In October 1859 Abraham Lincoln accepted an invitation to lecture at Henry Ward Beecher's

church in Brooklyn, New York. The carefully crafted speech examined the views of the 39

signers of the Constitution. Lincoln noted that at least 21 of them -- a majority -- believed

Congress should control slavery in the territories, rather than allow it to expand. Thus, the

Republican stance of the time was not revolutionary, but similar to the Founding Fathers, and

should not alarm Southerners, for radicals had threatened to secede if a Republican was elected

President. Lincoln set out to use the speech to speak of the Founding Fathers and to speak

directly to Democrats and Republicans in the months prior to the 1860 Election. This source is

an excerpt of the speech given by Abraham Lincoln on February 27, 1860.

Excerpt of Abraham Lincoln's Cooper Union Address (February 27, 1860)

"A few words now to Republicans. It is exceedingly desirable that all parts

of this great Confederacy shall be at peace, and in harmony, one with

another. Let us Republicans do our part to have it so. Even though much

provoked, let us do nothing through passion and ill temper. Even though the

southern people will not so much as listen to us, let us calmly consider their

demands, and yield to them if, in our deliberate view of our duty, we

possibly can. Judging by all they say and do, and by the subject and nature



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of their controversy with us, let us determine, if we can, what will satisfy

them.

The question recurs, what will satisfy them? Simply this: We must not only

let them alone, but we must somehow, convince them that we do let them

alone." Guiding Questions:

1. What action(s) are Abraham Lincoln advocating Republicans should take?

2. How would you contrast Lincoln’s view of the South to that of the South’s view of

Lincoln?

3. What actions had the South taken to this point that threatened the North and Republican

ideals?

4. Why would the South not be convinced by the content of Abraham Lincoln’s

speech? Why would the North not be convinced by the content of Abraham Lincoln’s

speech?



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Source C: James Henry Hammond - “Cotton is King” speech (March 4, 1858)

Hammond, J. H. (n.d.). Speech of Hon. James H. Hammond. Retrieved July 27, 2018, from

http://lincoln.lib.niu.edu/islandora/object/niu-lincoln:35455 (Annotation) Speech - James H.

Hammond - "Cotton is King”

James Henry Hammond (1807--1864) was a prominent South Carolina planter who served the

state as United States Congressman (1835--1836), Governor (1842--1844), and United States

Senator (1857--1860). This source is an excerpt of a speech given in open session of the United

States Senate by James Henry Hammond in defense of slavery and the plantation system.

Hammond also co-authored the Pro-Slavery Argument: As Maintained by the Most

Distinguished Writers of the Southern States with Thomas Roderick Dew, William Harper and

William Gilmore Simms during the Antebellum Era.

Excerpt of James Henry Hammond's "Cotton is King" speech given in the

United States Senate (March 4, 1858)

"Without firing a gun, without drawing a sword, should they make war on us

we could bring the whole world to our feet. The South is perfectly

competent to go on, one, two, or three years without planting a seed of

cotton. … I will not stop to depict what everyone can imagine, but this is

certain: England would topple headlong and carry the whole civilized world

with her, save the South. No, you dare not make war on cotton. No power on

earth dares to make war upon it. Cotton is king."



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Guiding Questions: 1. According to Hammond, what value does cotton have to the South during the Antebellum

Era?

2. How dependent on cotton is the industry of the North and Great Britain during the

Antebellum Era?

3. What are the central concerns of the North at the time of Hammond’s “Cotton is King”

speech?

4. What are the vulnerabilities of the cotton system implemented in the South during the

Antebellum Era that could be exploited by the North?



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Source D: 1863 Military Map of the United States (including Forts, Military Posts and

Enlarged Southern Harbors)

Johnson, A. J., Colton, J. H. & Johnson And Ward. (1863) Johnson's New Illustrated Steel Plate

Family Atlas, With Descriptions, Geographical, Statistical, and Historical. New York: Johnson &

Ward. [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2006458040/.

The source is one of the many maps of the United States by Alvin J. Johnson and his company

Johnson and Ward, named for Johnson and a financial backer of the company, Benjamin P.

Ward. Several of Johnson's maps are held in the Library of Congress archives, including this

map, as important artifacts from the Civil War Era in American history.

1863 Johnson and Ward Map of the United States



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Guiding Questions: 1. What makes this map helpful to an individual studying Civil War strategy?

2. Which element of the map would be most helpful to a Union General at the start of the

Civil War: the location of all American forts and military posts or enlarged and detailed

plans of Southern harbors?

3. How would this map be beneficial for the implementation of the Union’s Anaconda Plan?

4. What is more vulnerable in the South: the Southern forts and military posts or Southern

harbors? Which vulnerability is easier for the South to prepare for?



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Source E: United States Navy Ship List - December, 1860

Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the Navy of the United States. (n.d.). U.S.

Navy Ship List - December 1860. Retrieved July 27, 2018, from

https://bluejacket.com/usn_ship_list_1860.htm

The source is an abridged list of the United States Navy Ship list as of December, 1860. All

commissioned warships remained as part of the Union's naval forces as Southern states debated

and carried out secession from the Union.

Abridged United States Navy Ship List (December, 1860)

Ships of the Line (10 total in 1860)

Name Guns Where Built When Built Home Port

(in 1860)

Ohio 84 Brooklyn, NY 1820 Boston, MA

North Carolina 84 Philadelphia, PA 1820 New York, NY

Vermont 84 Charlestown, SC 1848 Boston, MA

Frigates (10 total in 1860)



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Constitution 50 Charlestown, SC 1797 Annapolis, MD

Santee 50 Kittery, ME 1855 Kittery, ME

Sloops of War (20 total in 1860)

Portsmouth 22 Kittery, ME 1843 Coast of Africa

Saratoga 20 Kittery, ME 1842 Coast of Africa

Decatur 16 Brooklyn, NY 1839 San Francisco, CA

The United States Navy had 90 commissioned ships at the end of 1860. On

April 12, 1861 the United States Navy had 144 commissioned ships. On April

12, 1861 the Confederate States of America had 0 commissioned warships.

On April 12, 1861 only one of the twenty Ships-of-the-Line and Frigates will be

posted (and available) in an American port (Brooklyn, NY) as most

commissioned ships will be posted in international locations or not available for

use.

Source: Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the Navy of the

United States, including Officers of the Marine Corps, and other, for the Year

1861

Guiding Questions: 1. What is the significance of the home port of the ships in 1860?

2. Why would warships of the United States Navy be located in major ports around the

world by 1860?

3. What events (domestic or foreign) from 1800 to 1860 could have caused such a rapid

growth of the American Navy?



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4. What advantages and disadvantages face the Union when attempting to use the United

States Navy as part of their strategy of the Civil War? How did they use these

advantages and how did they respond to the disadvantages?



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Source F: 1856 Political Map of the United States (Comparative Area of Free and Slave

States and Statistics)

Reynolds, W. C. & Jones, J. C. (1856) Reynolds's political map of the United States, designed to

exhibit the comparative area of the free and slave states and the territory open to slavery or

freedom by the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. New York: Wm. C. Reynolds and J.C.

Jones. [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2003627003/.

This source was a map published by William Reynolds, a supporter of the Republican Party,

during the presidential campaign of 1856. The map was designed and published as a stand-alone

map by William C. Reynolds, J.C. Jones and Rufus Blanchard.

Political Map of the United States (1856) – See Next Page



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Guiding Questions: 1. What value does this map provide for the military planning of the Union and

Confederacy as the Civil War began?

2. Compare the map in Source F to the map in Source D. Which map would be more

beneficial for the military planning of the Confederacy?

3. Use the chart on the right of the map titled “Congressional Representation”: Create a

timeline of events that led to the inequality referenced in the chart.



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4. What weaknesses of the Union and Confederacy can be identified through the use of the

map in Source F?



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Source G: Resources of the Union and the Confederacy, 1856

Reynolds, W. C. & Jones, J. C. (1856) Reynolds's political map of the United States, designed to

exhibit the comparative area of the free and slave states and the territory open to slavery or

freedom by the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. New York: Wm. C. Reynolds and J.C.

Jones. [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2003627003/.

The chart of information was created according to data from the 1850 census and contained on a

map designed and published as a stand-alone map by William C. Reynolds, J.C. Jones and Rufus

Blanchard in 1856 (see Source F).

Resources of the Union and Confederacy

Union Confederacy Union Advantage

Total Population 13,434,922 9,664,656* 1.4 to 1

White Population 13,238,670 6,184,477 2.1 to 1

Manufacturing Value $431,290,351 $95,029,877 $4.53 to 1

Valuation of Property $4,102,162,098 $2,936,090,737 $1.39 to 1

Railroad Mileage 16,828 miles 6,414 miles 2.6 to 1

Land Area 612,597 sq. miles 851,508 sq. miles 1 to 1.38



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* Slaves accounted for 3,204,313 or 33.15% of the Confederate total population.

Guiding Questions:

1. What role will manufacturing play in the Civil War?

2. What is the significance of the number of slaves counted as part of the Southern

population and how will this affect the South during the Civil War?

3. How could the North use their advantages in population, manufacturing and railroad to

develop a strategy for the Civil War? How could the South use their superior size to

develop a strategy for the Civil War?

4. What is the nature of the discrepancy between the data in the chart (Valuation of

Property) and the speech given in Source C (Hammond - “Cotton is King”)?



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Source H: Remarks in the Citadel Register (1859-1860)

Gibbs, R. W. (1860). Official Register: South Carolina Military Academy (pg. 2, 1860 ed., Vol.

April, Official Register by State Printer). Columbia, SC.

doi:https://www.dropbox.com/s/2ifr6onqo1gb84v/1860.pdf?dl=0

This source is from the annual Official Register of the South Carolina Military Academy, an act

of the South Carolina State Legislature that created two military academies in South Carolina

and established a common Board of Visitors that would oversee the operations at both

institutions. One would be located in Columbia, South Carolina and called "the Arsenal

Academy" and the other would be located in Charleston, South Carolina and called "the Citadel

Academy". The two military academies would operate independently until 1845, when the

Arsenal Academy was modified into an auxiliary to the Citadel Academy and would only accept

first year cadets who would then transfer to the Citadel Academy to complete their education.

The Official Register of the South Carolina Military Academy was thereby produced annually

and would contain general remarks, a listing of the Board of Visitors, Academic Boards, Cadet

Academic and Discipline Records and Records of Graduates of the institutions. (Thomas, 30-31)

John Thomas, The History of the South Carolina Military Academy (Charleston, S.C.: Walkers,

Evans and Cogswell 1893), p. 30-31.

Citadel Register Remarks (1859-1860) – See Next Page



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Guiding Questions: 1. What was the purpose of the two military schools located in South Carolina during the

Antebellum Era?

2. Why would the government of South Carolina choose to create a pair of schools modeled

after the United States Military Academy at West Point?

3. What events in the South during the Antebellum Era (1820-1860) could have prompted

the construction of military colleges (The Citadel, 1842 - South Carolina, Virginia

Military Institute, 1839 - Virginia) throughout the future Confederate states?

4. How did the Confederate strategy in the Civil War benefit from military schools such as

The Citadel, Columbia Arsenal Military Academy and the Virginia Military Institute?



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Source I: Andrew C.L. Gatewood (VMI Student) letter to Gatewood Family (April 18,

1861)

Gatewood, A. C. (1861, April 18). Andrew C. L. Gatewood Letters, 1860-1864 [Letter to

Andrew C.L. Gatewood to Family (pg. 2)]. Virginia Military Institute Campus, Lexington,

Virginia. (Annotation) April 18, 1861 Letter from Andrew C.L. Gatewood to Gatewood Family

in Virginia Military Institute Archives

This source is part of a letter sent from VMI (Virginia Military Institute) cadet Andrew C.L.

Gatewood to his family in Mountain Grove, Virginia on April 18, 1861. This letter is part of a

larger series preserved at the Virginia Military Institute Archives in Lexington, Virginia of

Andrew C.L. Gatewood's correspondence with family before, during and after the Civil War.

April 18, 1861 Letter from Andrew C.L. Gatewood to Gatewood Family



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Transcript: "any other way. I will stand up and fight like a man for our

rights with as light a heart as anybody else. If we are ordered off to any point

it will be to Washington. But I think we will be distributed over the state in a

few days to drill recruits for the Army. If I am ordered off any where to drill

recruits I will write to you and let you know where I am going. That will be

fine fun for us but if I do have drill I am going to be very strict, &c &c."

Guiding Questions: 1. What role does the speaker expect to play as the Civil War starts?

2. Why would this VMI cadet expect that his early assignment in the Civil War may include

being ordered to Washington DC?

3. Create a list of the rights that the Confederacy were fighting for during the Civil War.

4. For each of the listed rights, develop a plan for the South to accomplish it successfully.



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Source J: List of Graduates from South Carolina Military Academies and Current

Profession - The Citadel (Charleston, SC) and Columbia Arsenal Military Academy

(Columbia, SC) in 1863

Gibbs, R. W. (1863). Official Register: South Carolina Military Academy (pg. 23, 1863 ed., Vol.

April, Official Register by State Printer). Columbia, SC.

doi:https://www.dropbox.com/s/2ifr6onqo1gb84v/1860.pdf?dl=0

This source is from the annual Official Register of the South Carolina Military Academy, an act

of the South Carolina State Legislature that created two military academies in South Carolina

and established a common Board of Visitors that would oversee the operations at both

institutions. One would be located in Columbia, South Carolina and called "the Arsenal

Academy" and the other would be located in Charleston, South Carolina and called "the Citadel

Academy". The two military academies would operate independently until 1845, when the

Arsenal Academy was modified into an auxiliary to the Citadel Academy and would only accept

first year cadets who would then transfer to the Citadel Academy to complete their education.

The Official Register of the South Carolina Military Academy was thereby produced annually

and would contain general remarks, a listing of the Board of Visitors, Academic Boards, Cadet

Academic and Discipline Records and Records of Graduates of the institutions. (Thomas, 30-31)

This source is from the 1862-1863 Annual Review, produced in 1863, which lists the

occupations of the graduates of the South Carolina Military Academies at the time of the

publication.

John Thomas, The History of the South Carolina Military Academy (Charleston, S.C.: Walkers,

Evans and Cogswell 1893), p. 30-31.



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1863 Occupations of the Graduates of the South Carolina Military Academies

(the Citadel - Charleston, South Carolina and the Columbia Arsenal Military

Academy (Columbia, South Carolina) – See Next Page



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Guiding Questions: 1. How many men listed were not actively participating in the Civil War in 1863?

2. After reading Source I and Source J compare the experiences of students or recent

graduates of military academies in the South during the Civil War.

3. How were the volunteer soldiers of the Confederacy different from the volunteer soldiers

of the Union during the Civil War or the militias that served as part of the Continental

Army during the American Revolution?

4. Use Sources D, E and F: What military advantages did the Union possess during the Civil

War and how could they defeat a superiorly trained force?

Documents

March 25, 1833 Letter from John C. Calhoun to Samuel Ingham · Historical Question: Utilizing the strengths and weaknesses present in the Union and Confederacy, create a multi-part