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June 2^nd, 1865: In an event that is widely regarded as marking the end of the Civil War, Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith surrendered to the Union. Smith was commander of Confederate forces West of the Mississippi was the final standing army of the Confederates, and his surrender signaled an official end to the Southern Insurrection. Smith would later flee to Mexico, where he served and fought for years under the United States Army in the Mexican American Wars. Due to his notorious reputation in Mexico he was forced to flee and moved to Cuba. Smith was on the run from both governments whom he felt would charge him for treason. He would return to Lynchburg, Virginia to sign an amnesty agreement in November of 1865. He had a lot to be fearful of, from being involved in massacres, to the succession attempts, and more. During the Civil War, he effectively conquered Eastern Tennessee temporarily. He had relieved General Zollicoffer, whom he felt had lax policies. Smith immediately suspended habeas corpus, instituted martial law, jailed and deported many suspected Unionists with little to no proof or evidence. His harsh rule would actually have a huge effect on the war and Confederate strategy, as half the state did not want to join General Bragg or the Confederates when he joined Smith’s men later.

This brought an end to the bloodiest conflict in American history. Beginning April 12 1861 with General Beauregard attacked Fort Sumpter located at Charleston Bay in South Carolina. One day later the union commander surrendered, prompting President Lincoln to ask for 75,000 volunteers to reunited the states. In the end, the outcome of the war will continue to affect the United States to the present. The deaths of at least 650,000 American souls, fighting for or against the idea of slavery masked as ‘state’s rights’ has left a still visible scar culturally and politically here. Smith would eventually return to the United States, running an insurance agency. He would become the president of Pacific and Atlantic Telegraph, and would become a full professor of mathematics at the University of the South in Tennessee, where he is buried.