The wright brothers- 1903
Thomas edison-1879
Yes it would have because if Virginia had rejected secession, the prospect of Lee in command of Union forces rather than Confederate forces would have presented major problems for the Confederacy. The South would have lost a major economic and political asset, the state of West Virginia would never have been created, the war would almost certainly have been shorter. Interestingly, such circumstances might cast some doubts on how determined the North would have been to end slavery permanently.
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