 
Congress abolishes slavery in Washington, D.C., and the territories.
1862
Lincoln urges the border states to adopt gradual, compensated emancipation and advocates the colonization of freed blacks.
1862
Lincoln signs the Homestead Act, which gives public land in the public domain to qualified private citizens, including black heads of house over 21 years old and single black women.
1862
The Second Confiscation Act gives freedom to slaves of treasonous parties and supporters of the Confederate rebellion.
1862
The Militia Act authorizes the President to employ all persons, including blacks, in military or naval service and gives enemy-owned slaves freedom in return for service to Union forces.
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1862
Virginia, followed by other Southern states, authorizes the use of slaves to perform military labor.
1862
A group of South Carolina slaves, led by Robert Smalls, takes possession of The Planter, a Confederate ship, and delivers it to the Union army at Fort Sumpter.
1862
South Carolina authorizes the recruitment of black soldiers.
1862
The first black regiment with full War Department authorization is raised in South Carolina.
1862
West Virginia is admitted to the Union as a free state. Its constitution calls for gradual emancipation.
1862
Utah abolishes slavery.
1862
In Ohio, Mary Jane Patterson receives a degree from Oberlin, becoming the first black woman to graduate from an American college.
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