The Civil War in Georgia

Abraham Lincoln's election in November 1860 led to the calamitous conflict known as the Civil War. Following other Southern states, delegates to Georgia's convention to consider secession convened in its capital city of Milledgeville in January 1861. After spirited debate, delegates voted 208 to 89 to leave the Union.

Far from the war's early fighting, and being one of the new Confederacy's largest states, Georgia's primary initial war contributions were its men and materials. Some 130,000 Georgians served in the Confederate military, while manufacturing facilities were quickly constructed or expanded in several cities with rail service, including Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Macon and Rome. The state's relatively remote location from the conflict was ideal.

The war reached Georgia in April 1862, with the Federal capture of Fort Pulaski near its largest city and seaport, Savannah. Fort Pulaski's surrender, caused by rifled artillery bombardment, ended the era of masonry coastal defenses.