 In 1861, the rest of the county largely consisted of scattered farms and plantations (including the Abingdon Plantation), the occasional house, fields for grazing livestock, and Arlington House, owned by Mary Custis, wife of Robert E. Lee.Following the surrender of Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina, on April 14, 1861, new American president Abraham Lincoln declared that "an insurrection existed" and called for 75,000 troops to be called up to quash the rebellion.The move sparked resentment in many other southern states, which promptly moved to convene discussions of secession.