THE WILMINGTON DAILY HERALD, North Carolina, Jan. 31, 1861 

* Future Confederate port city 
* American Civil War close 

 From this Southern port city from shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War. This was the last Confederate port city to fall to the Yankees when it did so in February, 1865, completing its blockage of the Atlantic coast.
Items include: "Important Army Intelligence" regarding General Scott's order to officers on leave of absence; "The Convention at Washington" beginning: "The Commissioners from some of the border states will meet in Washington...to endeavor to effect a settlement of the national difficulties..."; and: "The New Administration Still in Favor of Correcion".
Four pages, very nice condition.

Background: The articles contained within this January 31, 1861 issue of The Wilmington Daily Herald capture the United States at a critical, breathless tipping point, documenting the final, failed institutional efforts to avert the Civil War just weeks before Abraham Lincoln's inauguration. The "Convention at Washington" (the Peace Conference of 1861) represents the tragic climax of upper South and border-state diplomacy, where moderate politicians desperately attempted to forge a constitutional compromise to halt the secession wave that had already claimed six Deep South states. Simultaneously, the coverage of General Winfield Scott recalling officers from leave and the anxious reporting on the incoming administration’s "coercion" policies signal the chilling reality that both sides were actively transitioning from political debate to military mobilization. Because Wilmington would ultimately leverage its treacherous geography and formidable defenses to become the Confederacy’s most enduring, vital lifeline for global contraband, this specific newspaper provides a profound baseline snapshot of a strategic Southern port city watching the constitutional fabric of the nation permanently unravel just prior to the outbreak of hostilities.