Who fought in the Civil War?

Step 1: Go to the ArcGIS Online map, A Nation Divided, and explore the map.

Step 2: Click the orange, blue, and gray states to answer the following questions.

• How were states classified during the Civil War?
• Which states allowed slavery?

How close were the capital cities?

Step 3: With the Details button underlined, click the button Content.

Step 4: Turn on the layer, Civil War Cities.

Step 5: Click Bookmarks, and choose Capitals.

• What was the Union’s capital?
• Using the Measure tool, how many miles separate these cities?
• Why do you think this proximity was significant to the Civil War?

Step 6: Turn on Key U.S. Civil War Battles – Decisive, Key U.S. Civil War Battles – Major and Union Blockade.

Step 7: Click Bookmarks, and choose Civil War Battles.

Where did the armies fight?

• Which coastlines did the Union blockade close?

Step 8: On the time slider, press Play to watch the battle locations change between 1861 and 1865. Press Pause at the end of the slider so that all battles appear.

• What spatial patterns do you notice around battle locations?
• In which direction(s) did the battles move during the Civil War?
• What spatial patterns do you notice in Georgia?

How did the Union gain control of the Confederacy?

Step 9: Turn on the layer, Union Control. Click the layer’s button, Show Legend.

Step 10: Turn off the Battle layers.

• In which year did the Union gain complete control of the Mississippi River and New Orleans?
• In which year was the Confederacy “split in two” because Georgia came under Union control?
• In which year did the Union gain control of Richmond, Virginia?