User blog comment:TR/Playing with presidents/@comment-25626-20110730055716/@comment-21519-20110731025206

Ah, enjoy your time off.

At a glance I can't think of much of a way to start the ACW in 1860. Plenty of options for doing it in the 1850s, though: The Compromise of 1850 doesn't happen, Kansas-Nebraska plays out differently, Bleeding Kansas goes national, the Harper's Ferry raid gets out of hand. Door Number Three would be my first choice.