April 20, 1861
- Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army in order to command the forces of the state of Virginia.
- Guyandotte (city) calls for the state to approve the secession actions of the Virginia legislature.
A Chronological History of the Civil War in America1
Great Union Mass Meeting in New York.- Branch mint at Charlotte, N. C., seized by the rebels.
- Bridges on the Northern Central Railroad and other railroads (in Maryland) burned.
- Arsenal at Liberty, Mo., seized by rebels.
- Gosport (Va.) Navy Yard partially destroyed to keep it from the rebels. Property valued at $25,000,000 lost. Eleven U. S. vessels, 21,398 tons, and carrying 602 guns, scuttled. The “Cumberland” was towed out.
- A Chronological History of the Civil War in America by Richard Swainson Fisher, New York, Johnson and Ward, 1863