January 31, 1865 Congress passes the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolishes slavery throughout the United States. February 17 Columbia, South Carolina, is almost completely destroyed by fire, most likely set by Sherman’s troops. March 4 Lincoln is inaugurated as President for a second term. March 29 The Appomattox campaign begins, with Grant’s move against Lee’s defenses at Petersburg, Virginia. April 2 Petersburg falls, and the Confederate government evacuates its capital, Richmond. Confederate corps commander Ambrose Powell Hill is killed in action while attempting to rally his men. April 3 Union troops occupy Richmond. April 9 Robert E. Lee surrenders the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant at Appomattox. April 14 John Wilkes Booth shoots President Lincoln at Ford’s Theater; Secretary of State William H. Seward is stabbed and wounded in an assassination attempt inside his Washington home. April 15 Lincoln dies, and Andrew Johnson is inaugurated as President. April 26 Joseph E. Johnston surrenders to William T. Sherman in North Carolina; John Wilkes Booth is shot in a barn in Virginia and dies. May 10 Jefferson Davis is captured and taken prisoner near Irwinville, Georgia. May 26 In New Orleans, terms of surrender are offered to General E. Kirby Smith, commander of the Trans-Mississippi Department. His acceptance on June 2 formally ends Confederate resistance. June 30 All eight conspirators are convicted for the assassination of President Lincoln; four are sentenced to death.