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The Battle of Little Bighorn
In the Battle of Little Bighorn, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, an American army officer, led his forces up the Black Hill territories. As he approached a camp of Lakota Sioux, he was met with an army of Native Americans far larger than he expected. The Sioux defeated Custer quickly in a bloody battle. As word of Custer's defeat spread, Americans were shocked and enraged. In response, the government sent out military reinforcements to destroy any remaining Native American power. -
The First Sioux Surrender
Crazy Horse, a leader of the Sioux tribe, led a group of Native Americans to surrender after being battered and starved by a harsh winter in the wilderness. -
The Great Railroad Strike
After the stock market crash in Europe in the early 1870s, European investors began to sell their stocks in American companies. Big railroads companies such as the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad started to cut wages to try to save money as they continued to lose investments. This angered the railroad workers and caused them to go on strike destroying rail property as they fought for higher wages. Eventually, the strike was stopped by militia, but the ordeal resulted in improved working conditions. -
Invention of Electric Light
In 1879, Thomas Edison produced the first incandescent light source from his lab in Menlo Park, New Jersey. This invention allowed for the growth of nightlife and a greater convenience compared to other light sources such as candles. -
The Final Indigenous surrender
After many other tribes had fallen to surrender, Sitting Bull and his followers admitted defeat and moved to reservations. -
Haymarket Protest
After police action had been taken in an earlier strike at a McCormick company, other workers gathered in Haymarket Square to protest the brutal acts against the McCormick rioters. During this protest, a bomb was launched into the mob killing multiple policemen. This led many bystanders to believe that those fighting for labor rights were radical or even dangerous and caused growing suspision in an anarchist movement. -
"Gospel of Wealth"
In 1889, Andrew Carnegie wrote the article "Gospel of Wealth". This article spread the belief that rich men, like Carnegie himself, had a moral obligation to share their riches with charitable means. Carnegie donated millions of dollars to good causes and inspired others around him to do the same. -
The Start of the Populist Party
Farmers started to become frustrated with the American government and economy as their financial stability rode the rollercoaster of the general publics' dipping & rising of demand and price for fresh goods. This encouraged the farmers to create a new political party: the "Populist" or "Peoples" Party. This party tried to encourage the American government's involvement in the economy and fight for human rights up until the party lost its political significance in the 1896 election. -
Pullman Strike
In the midst of an economic recession, George Pullman cut his worker's wages. This caused his employees to launch into a strike led by Eugene Debs. The Illinois government sympathized with the workers and did not intervene, so the strike lasted until Grover Cleveland sent militia to halt the ordeal. In the end, Debs was arrested and the movement fizzled out, but this strike proved yet again that unhappy workers could cause great disruptions -
Spanish American War
Americans supported Cuba and the Philippines through their conflict with the Spanish which caused Spain to become angry with the US. The US sent its ship, Maine, to the Cuban coast, where it sat unmoved for a couple of weeks before it was exploded by Spain. This pushed America and Spain to War, and they fought for months until Spain surrendered in July 1898 in Santiago. -
Treaty of Paris
This Treaty marked the end of the Spanish-American War. Under this treaty, America gained control of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines while Cuba won its independence from Spain. -
Philippine-American War
The Philippines had been fighting for its independence since before the Spanish-American War. After the Treaty of Paris was signed, the Philippines thought they had won their freedom, but America had only bought their territory from Spain. Tensions rose and the Philippines did not hesitate the resume its fight for independence. This bloody war lasted three years and ended in an American victory.