Kentucky in the American Civil War Kentucky in the American Civil War Kentucky was a border state of key importance in the American Civil War. President Abraham Lincoln recognized the importance of the Commonwealth when, in a September 1861 letter to Orville Browning, he wrote: I think to lose Kentucky is nearly the same as to lose the whole game. Kentucky gone, we cannot hold Missouri, nor Maryland. These all against us, and the job on our hands is too large for us. We would as well consent to separation at once, including the surrender of this capitol. Kentucky, being a border state, was among the
Michigan in the American Civil War Michigan in the American Civil War Michigan made a substantial contribution to the Union during the American Civil War. While the state itself was far removed from the combat theaters of the war, Michigan supplied a large number of troops and several generals, including George Armstrong Custer. When, at the beginning of the war, Michigan was asked to supply no more than four regiments, Governor Austin Blair sent seven. Before the Civil War, President James Buchanan took a weak position amid a looming South secession crisis. Secretary of State Lewis Cass of Michigan, a 78-year-old elder statesman who has been