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Maryland Historical Society
Library of Maryland History
201 W. Monument Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
Phone: 410-685-3750
Fax: 410-385-2105
E-mail: library @mdhs.org
Buy the Book
Maryland
History In Prints: 1752-1900
by Laura Rice |
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The Lexington of 1861
Published by Currier & Ives
1861
Lithograph, hand colored |
On April 18, 1861, rumors spread through Baltimore: northern troops, sent
to subdue seceding southern states, would pass through the city the following
day. Angry citizens expressed their displeasure amid "the greatest
excitement.since the news of the attack on Fort Sumter" six days previous.
On the morning of the nineteenth, the Massachusetts Sixth Regiment arrived
at President Street Station on their way through to Washington, D.C.
As they prepared to march to Camden Station for a southbound train, a hostile
crowd gathered, hurling insults and heavy objects. As tension mounted,
shots were exchanged, leaving civilians and soldiers injured and dead.
The first blood of the Civil War was spilled in Baltimore.
Northern printmakers Currier and Ives commemorated the event, portraying
Baltimore rioters in a decidedly unfavorable light while celebrating the
heroism of the Massachusetts troops. The title refers to the date
of the incident, the anniversary of the first battle of the American Revolution.
While southerners interpreted this event as had the colonists rallying
for independence from British tyranny, the North reacted with outrage.
The bloody riot exacerbated fears that Maryland might join the Confederacy.
Within a month, Union troops occupied Baltimore, eliminating any threat
of Maryland secession.
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