Eighty years after the United States gained its independence from England, the Civil War began. During this period, the nation that once fought as one found itself divided by differing opinions about the moral status quo. The Battle of Fort Sumter may have been a short battle, but it sparked an even bigger war. During the Civil War, thousands of plots of land were fought over, the first being Charleston Harbor. Beginning with the secession of South Carolina, a two-day battle and ending with the surrender of Union soldiers. On December 20, 1860, South Carolina seceded from the union following a (civil) conflict of beliefs. Six days later, on December 26, 68 Union soldiers, led by Major Robert Anderson, retreated from South Carolina to Fort Sumter, located in Charleston Harbor. The island on which the fort was located had not always been there. It was built with over 70,000 tons of rock. Contractors from all over came and dumped the material into Charleston (National) Harbor. Northerners considered this region of the country part of the Union because they had contributed to the...