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Thomas Jefferson becomes President of the United States
Thomas Jefferson of the Democratic-Republican party is elected the third President of the United States. He served two terms in office. -
Louisiana Purchase
President Jefferson negotiated a deal with France for the Louisiana territory following France's failed attempts to oversee colonies in the Americas, and particularly in Haiti, which had experienced slave rebellion. The land doubled the territory owned by the United States and was purchased for only $15 million, which amounts to about $250 million today. -
Lewis and Clark Expedition
Lewis and Clark set out from St. Louis, MO to explore the western territory. Their journey secures the Oregon territory for the United States. -
Robert Fulton's Steam Boat
Inventor Robert Fulton creates the first commercial North River Steamboat which traveled on the Hudson River -
James Madison becomes President of the United States
Democratic-Republican James Madison is elected as the fourth President of the United States. He served two terms. -
War of 1812
This war between the United States and Great Britain comes about following trade disputes and the British Navy regularly impressing American sailors into their ranks. The war ens February 17, 1815. -
James Monroe becomes President of the United States
Democratic-Republican James Monroe becomes the fifth President of the United States. He served two terms. -
John Quincy Adams becomes President of the United States
Democratic-Republican John Quincy Adams, son of the second President of the United States, John Adams, becomes the sixth President of the United States. -
Andrew Jackson becomes President of the United States
Democrat Andrew Jackson becomes the seventh President of the United States. He served two terms. -
Indian Removal Act
Congress passes the Indian Removal Act of 1830 which forces 16,000 Cherokee to travel the Trail of Tears from Georgia to Oklahoma. Approximately 6,000 die in the process. -
Martin Van Buren becomes President of the United States
Democrat Martin Van Buren becomes the eighth President of the United States. He served one term. -
William Henry Harrison becomes President of the United States
William Henry Harrison of the Whig party becomes the ninth President of the United States, only to die a month later after falling ill after his Inaugural Address. His Inaugural Address was the longest ever given, and his presidency the shortest. -
John Tyler becomes President of the United States
Whig Vice President John Tyler becomes the tenth President of the United States following the death of President William Henry Harrison. He fulfills the remainder of Harrison's first term. He was eventually cast out of the Whig party after clashing views caused division. -
First Travel on Oregon Trail
The first organized wagon train left Elm Grove, MO with approximately 100 pioneers to traverse the Oregon Trail. -
John O'Sullivan Coins the term "Manifest Destiny"
Sullivan publishes an article in The United States Magazine and Demoratic Review of the United States God-given mission to settle the West and spread American Democracy and values. -
James K. Polk becomes President of the United States
Democrat James K. Polk becomes the eleventh President of the United States. He served one term. -
Gold Discovered in California
Gold is discovered on John Sutter's property in California, which starts the California Gold Rush. Sutter's property was swarmed and his crops destroyed in the name of gold. -
Zachary Taylor becomes President of the United States
Following a successful campaign in the Mexican American War, Whig Zachary Taylor becomes the twelfth President of the United States. He served until his death in 1850 from intestinal complications. -
Millard Fillmore becomes President of the United States
Vice President of the Whig party, Millard Fillmore, becomes the thirteenth President of the United States following the unexpected death of President Zachary Taylor. He served the remainder of Taylor's first term. -
Franklin Pierce becomes President of the United States
Democrat Franklin Pierce becomes the fourteenth President of the United States. He served one term. -
James Buchanan becomes President of the United States
Democrat James Buchanan becomes the fifteenth President of the United States. He served one term. -
Abraham Lincoln becomes President of the United States
Republican Abraham Lincoln becomes the sixteenth President of the United States, as well as the leader of the Union (North) during and through the end of the American Civil War. He was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth following the conclusion of the war. -
American Civil War
The American Civil War split the country into two sides: the North (Union) and the South (Confederacy). The dispute centered on the issue of slavery. Northern states, behind President Abraham Lincoln wished to see it abolished. Southern states clung to it for the slave industry fueled the highly profitable cotton industry. -
Battle of Gettysburg
General Lee loses to Meade, Pickett's Charge fails, and this battle ends the second invasion of North. The Confederate army arrived in Gettysburg to resupply army, unaware of Union army nearby. -
Gettysburg Address
President Abraham Lincoln of the National Union remembers the fallen in the Battle of Gettysburg and reminds his listeners that when the Founders drafted the Declaration of Independence, they did so to create "a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." -
Battle of Appomattox Courthouse
In one of the final battles of the American Civil War, General Lee surrenders to General Ulysses. S. Grant. The war would conclude soon thereafter. -
Andrew Johnson becomes President of the United States
Vice President Andrew Johnson of the Republican party and Union (North) becomes the seventeenth President of the United States following the murder of President Abraham Lincoln. He served without a Vice President through one term. -
Ulysses S. Grant becomes President of the United States
Republican Ulysses S. Grant becomes the eighteenth President of the United States. He served two terms
