Monday April 14, 1861

Anderson Withdraws

At noon, the first gun salute began and the American flag was slowly lowered in a ceremony at Fort Sumter. At 4 p.m., the fort was formally transferred to Confederate possession. With the Sumter flag under his arm, Anderson accompanied his garrison out of the fort and boarded a steamer, which would take them to the Baltic for their journey to New York. "I . . . marched out of the fort Sunday afternoon, the 14th instant, with colors flying and drums beating, bringing away company and private property, and saluting my flag with fifty guns," Anderson recounted.

In Washington, where news of Sumter's surrender had arrived, Lincoln met with his cabinet to approve a call for 75,000 militia and to convene a special session of Congress on July 4.

Commentary

Bibliography: OR, pp. 12, 29; Meredith, Storm over Sumter, pp. 185-90; Swanberg, First Blood, pp. 326-30; Current, Lincoln and the First Shot, pp. 156-57; Long, Civil War, p. 59.