The Road to Secession

Even though many North Carolinians discussed the possibility of leaving the Union if a Republican president were elected, the majority rejected it. However, the October 1860 Republican nomination of Abraham Lincoln against Democrat Stephen A. Douglas and Whig John C. Breckinridge revived their nervousness. The election results in November increased the possibility of southern secession.

As South Carolina and lower southern states began forming their own Confederate Union, North Carolinians were divided on whether to remain with the Union or join their southern neighbors. Most North Carolinians did not want to leave the economic security the Union gave them, and a public vote on a possible convention caused a clear split in sentiments. Residents who wanted to stay in the Union accused South Carolina of trying to start a war. Secessionists, including Governor Ellis, claimed that the Republicans were intent on abolishing slavery and forecasted revolts and destruction.

Although the February election on the convention clearly indicated that most North Carolinians rejected secession, the majority stipulated that their final decision on whether or not to stay in the Union rested on President Lincoln's attitude toward the seceded states. If Lincoln forced the southern states back into the Union or raised up arms against them, they reasoned that they would have no choice but to leave the Union.

North Carolinians watched as more and more southern states left the Union. Virginia left, then Arkansas, then Tennessee. The separated states formed the Confederate States of America, creating their own flag, electing Jefferson Davis as their president and printing their own money. Undecided, North Carolina's governor waited until the first shots were fired at Fort Sumter and President Lincoln issued a formal declaration of war. On May 20, 1861, North Carolina joined her neighbor states, the last of the southern states to join the Confederacy.

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Sources:
Harris, William C. North Carolina and the Coming of the Civil War. Raleigh: NC Dept of Cultural Resources, 1988.>

Bradley, Mark L. This Astounding Close: The Road to Bennett Place. Chapel Hill: The U of North Carolina P, 2000.