Disagreements over slavery and other issues led to the Civil War. Some people believed slavery should be illegal. Other people did not. When the Civil War started in 1861, enslaved African Americans worked on farms and in cities. Many people in the South believed their economy and daily life needed slaves. Many people in the North wanted to stop slavery. The South fought the Civil War because they wanted states rights to keep slavery legal. The North won the war in 1865. Slavery became illegal in all states. Slavery, economic reasons, and states' rights were problems that led to the Civil War.
Section "Learn and Explore" uses official instructions and media files of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, US National Museum of American History, The Smithsonian Institution and other governmental and public organization.