The Spanish American War begins on April 25 and ends on August 12. The war is fought mainly in Cuba and the Philippines. Puerto Rico and the Philippines become possessions of the United States as a consequence of the War.

Union General Ulysses S. Grant confronts Confederate General Robert E. Lee for the first time in the Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia on May 5-7.

On March 3, the U.S. Congress enacts a general military conscription law.