JANUARY 1, 1863 : THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION

http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/emancipation_proclamation/ JANUARY 1, 1863, this Executive Order, first issued by President Abraham Lincoln in September 1862, became law. It enabled the enlistment of black troops in the Union Army, out of "military necessity." More famously, it "freed" the slaves in rebellious Southern states, over which he had no authority, while leaving enslaved those in border states, over which he had authority: Missouri and Kentucky, most prominently. Even so, even this much was widely heralded by the blacks, who had been running away by the tens of thousands to attach themselves to Union armies, whenever they drew near their situs, being deemed "contraband of war," since May 1861. These new troops' bravery, daring, and energy in battle won the war for the Union, and preserved the United States of America as one nation.