Rachel Doherty Period 81863 Essay: Rough DraftBattle of Gettysburg, Emancipation Proclamation, and Abraham Lincoln. You might wonder: what do all these have in common? They all happened in an important year in American history, 1863. I chose to study the year 1863 because I like studying the Civil War and I went to Gettysburg, where the Battle of Gettysburg was fought in 1863. Some important events in Del 1863 was the Emancipation Proclamation, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Gettysburg Address. You may ask: How are these events of 1863 relevant today? Well, the Emancipation Proclamation gave slaves freedom, so these are like today's freedom movements. Some social, economic, and cultural changes during this year were African Americans acting like free people, women helping in the war, the South's economy weakening, while the North became industrial, and music was very popular. These are some of the key changes that occurred in America in 1863. There were many key people and events that year. The president of the United States at the time was Abraham Lincoln. He was elected the sixteenth president in 1861. The South had threatened that if Lincoln won the election, they would secede because they knew that if he won, he would try to end slavery. The South ended up being the first of many states to secede. The South became the Confederate States of America and in April 1861 fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina when the Union refused to surrender the fort, starting the Civil War. Lincoln also issued the Emancipation Proclamation, delivered one of the shortest speeches in American history, the Gettysburg Address, and declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. Then there is Robert E. Lee, one of...... middle of paper... ...ning, in the line, "Five years ago, a great American in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Proclamation of Emancipation" (Martin Luther King Jr.). Here is how the events of 1863 are relevant to today.In conclusion, 1863 was a very important year in American history. The key people were Abraham Lincoln, General Pickett, General Meade, and Robert E. Lee. The key events were the Emancipation Proclamation, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Gettysburg Address. The effect of 1863 was that the turning point of the war occurred, many African Americans joined the army and the former slaves began to be freed. The effect that 1863 had today is that the Emancipation Proclamation led to equal rights between whites and blacks and that the South is still not fully recovered. This is why 1863 is a very important year in American history.