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The American Civil War (1861-1865) and the Reconstruction period that followed were the bloodiest chapters of American history to date. Brother fought brother as the population was split along sectional lines. The issue of slavery divided the nation's people and the political parties that represented them in Washington. The tension which snapped the uneasy truce between north and south began building over slavery and statehood debates in California. In 1848, settlers discovered gold at Sutter's Mill, …

…was not withdrawn from Florida until 1876, and South Carolina and Louisiana suffered Union occupation until 1877. The atrocities of some of the military deputies and their units, along with the racial tension between displaced whites and newly freed blacks, armed a time bomb between the races which built up strength for almost 100 years. The Civil War and the Reconstruction set a precedent for racial, territorial, and social prejudice which this country suffers from to this day.