Aided by circuit riders & camp meetings, Methodists increase to 2.7 million
Religion
1850
Nathaniel Hawthorne publishes "House of Seven Gables"
Arts
1851
Herman Melville's Moby-Dick is published
Arts
1851
Commodore Perry arrives in Tokyo Bay to open trade with United States
Trade
1853
George Eliot publishes "Silas Marner"
Arts
1861
Homestead Act opens millions of acres in the Midwest of the United States
Geography
1862
In November, President Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address
Human Rights
1863
On April 14, President Lincoln assassinated
Government
1865