1900-1920: Progressive Era

By Ruth_Perry

  • The Great Galveston Hurricane

    It is the deadliest natural disaster in American history still. It killed 8,000 people and caused $700 million of damage (today’s dollars).

  • Presidential election: William McKinley vs William Jennings Bryan

    McKinley won and became president.

  • President McKinley's assassination

    Anarchist Leon Czolgosz shot him in Buffalo, New York while the president was visiting the Pan-American exposition.

  • First airplane flight

    The Wright brothers were the first ones to fly an airplane. They flew the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.

  • Presidential election: Theodore Roosevelt vs Alton B. Parker

    Theodore Roosevelt was elected, after already having been president since the assassination of President McKinley.

  • San Francisco earthquake

    500 people died or went missing as a result of the destructive earthquake.

  • Bureau of Investigation

    As America continued to grow and develop larger cities, crime grew with it. Bonaparte, the attorney general, created the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to conduct investigations for the Department of Justice.

  • Presidential election: William Howard Taft vs William Jennings Bryan

    The Secretary of War, William Howard Taft was elected president.

  • Presidential election: William Howard Taft vs Woodrow Wilson

    Woodrow Wilson defeated all other candidates and became president of the U.S.

  • World War I began

    Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia after the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, starting World War I.

  • Panama Canal opening

    Opened up to traffic to allow ships to travel through the canal from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, making traveling much easier.

  • First woman in the House of Representatives

    Jeannette Renkin was elected into the House of Representatives and made history by being the first woman.

  • Presidential election: Woodrow Wilson vs Charles E. Hughes

    Europe was in World War I already, but the U.S. was peaceful as Woodrow Wilson was re-elected back into office.

  • U.S. declared war on Germany

    After the sinking of American ships and discovering the Zimmerman telegram Germany sent to Mexico concerning U.S. land, the United States formally declared war on Germany.
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    Spanish Influenza Pandemic

    This fatal disease killed over 20 million people, making it the most devastating epidemic in history. It was commonly known as the "Spanish flu".

  • 18th Amendment

    The prohibition of alcohol in the U.S. was ratified.

  • Treaty of Versailles

    The Treaty of Versailles was signed, formally ending World War I. It harshly punished Germany who most people blamed for the war. They took away some of Germany's land, stripped its army down to barely anything, and confiscated their weapons. They also had to pay a large sum of money to make up for their crimes and the damage they caused.

  • 19th Amendment

    Women were granted the right to vote by the 19th amendment.