secession for different reasons. There had been an abolitionist movement in East Tennessee in the early 19th century, but it had largely dissolved by the 1840s. By 1860, the region's Unionist leaders opposed both secession and abolition. Many members of the East Tennessee Convention were slave owners, and at least one (William C. Kyle of Hawkins County) was actually a slave trader. Reasons for the strong Unionist movement in East Tennessee typically focus on long-standing political disputes with Middle and West Tennessee, economic differences with the other two divisions (including a significantly smaller slave population relative to the rest of the South), and the region's mountainous isolation. First Knoxville session The Unionists' victory in February 1861 was short-lived. Following the Battle of Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, sentiments in Tennessee began to shift in favor of secession. Harris rejected Lincoln's call for troops to put down the rebellion, and initiated efforts to align Tennessee with the burgeoning Confederate States of America. In early May, the General Assembly passed legislation establishing a military alliance with the Confederacy and issued a "Declaration of Independence" from the United States. A new referendum was slated for June 8 for Tennessee's voters to choose whether or not to adopt the new Declaration and effectively lead Tennessee into the Confederacy. Tennessee Unionists blasted the state government's actions as unconstitutional and despotic, but nevertheless began a determined campaign for the June 8 vote. In mid-May, several of Knoxville's Unionist leaders gathered at the Gay Street law office of Oliver Perry Temple, and decided to hold a convention at the end of the month to coordinate strategy. One of them, Connally Trigg, wrote a summons which was published in the Knoxville Whig on May 18. In subsequent days, counties throughout the region held smaller conventions to choose delegates and give them instructions. These county conventions were momentous events, often accompanied by impassioned speeches and brass band performances. On May 30, the East Tennessee Convention's 469 delegates from 28 East Tennessee counties gathered in a grove near Temperance Hall in East Knoxville. The Reverend Thomas William Humes delivered the opening sermon. Congressman T. A. R. Nelson (of Washington County) was chosen as president, James G. Spears (of Bledsoe) was chosen as vice president, and John M. Fleming (of Knox) was named secretary. Richard D. Wheeler (Campbell), James C. Murphy (Sevier), M. R. May (McMinn), John Williams, Jr. (Knox),