The creation of the Blockade

The very first thing that caught my eye when I sat down in the archives were the papers from Abraham Lincoln announcing the closing of the ports around the south. The announcement which took place on April 27th 1861 closed all major ports in the south. Lincoln placed his seal on the proclamation and said that the only way that it could be removed was by another presidential order. The first order called for any foreign cargo trying to enter the ports to be confiscated and would then become property of the United States. The collection contains three different orders from Lincoln that were published by the Navy department just three days before Lincoln’s assassination. The second proclamation was Lincoln fixing his mistake and allowing Key West to remain open for business. This was weird to me until I did some more research on the subject and found that the city of Key West remained in the Union despite Florida’s secession. The naval base Zachary Taylor was an important outpost for the north as they could still receive imports and then send them north along the railroad. The third proclamation involves the way that ships are being treated in foreign ports. This was an obvious reaction to United States embargo on imported goods to the south and American ships of war were being refused rights that they had previously enjoyed. All of these documents paint the picture of what Lincoln was dealing with the entire time he was in office. Lincoln goes on to tell these unnamed countries that the same actions will be taken against any and all ships that try to make port in the US. All of these proclamations were made from the president himself. Lincoln was working under war powers so he could do whatever he wanted to make sure the war would go smoothly. He continually made proclamations like this one throughout the war and they would go into effect almost immediately after they were announced.