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| Monday April 8, 1861 |
State Department Clerk R.S. Chew and Captain Theodore Talbot
arrive in Charleston and read President Lincoln's note to South
Carolina Governor Francis Pickens. Francis Pickens is the
grandson of General Andrew Pickens, hero of the Battle of
Cowpens during the Revolutionary War. Licoln's message states
that Fort Sumter would be resupplied but not reinforced if there is
no resistance from the Confederacy. Governor Pickens delievers
the message to General P.G.T. Beauregard, the Confederate
militart commander of Charleston. All Confederate forces in
Charleson are put on alert and ordered to man their stations.
During the night there is a false alarm that the fighting has broken
out in Charleston.
In Washington, DC, Secretary of State William Steward unofficially
informs the Confederate Commissioners that the United States will
defend its possession only if attacked.
From New York the Revenue Cutter Harriet Lane departs for Fort
Sumter carrying relief supplies.