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Period: 1400 to
European Exploration
This refers to a time when people were going out to explore the world around them. It had many different purposes but mainly being for scientific reasons along with commercial reasons. They wanted to find trade routes along with seeing the plants and wildlife around them. -
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Slavery
Slavery began with people being kidnapped from Africa to work in the American colonies. They worked as indentured servants and labor in the cotton and tobacco fields of the colonies. During this time period it was completely legal. -
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Triangular trade
This refers to the transatlantic trade between Europe, Africa and the Americas. European products were sent from Europe to Africa, where they were traded for slaves, and then sent to the Americas to be sold. From Africa to the Americas was known as the middle passage and many of the slaves died from this voyage. -
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Revolutionary War
The revolutionary war was also known as the American war. This war was brought on by growing tensions between the 13 North American colonies and colonial government. It began in Lexington and Concord but quickly grew into full on vengeful attacks to fight for independence. -
Declaration of Independence
In June and July of 1776, 56 delegates met in Philadelphia to claim the nation's independence by forming the Declaration of Independence. The delegates used this document to explain that they thought of themselves as 13 sovereign states who wanted to break free from being under Britain's rule. It was written by Thomas Jefferson and adopted by the second continental congress. -
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Articles of Confederation
The articles of confederation is known as the United States' first constitution. It provided the nation with experience in self-government under a written document and paved the way into the constitutional convention. Under the articles the states remained sovereign and independent and the congress served only as a last result to appeal a dispute. -
Bill of Rights
This is the first 10 amendments of our constitution and lays out our basic freedoms of the United States citizens. It guarantees civil rights and liberties as well as reserves powers not delegated to the federal government to the people of the states. It provides limits to government control. -
Invention of the Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin that revolutionized cotton production. This invention served to greatly sped up the process of removing seeds from the cotton fiber. Although a huge success, it worked to justify plantation owners need for slavery. -
Louisiana Purchase
This refers to the exponential amount of land that the United States bought from France during Thomas Jefferson's presidency. This doubled the size of the United States and was known as the greatest land bargain in history. The purchase gave the US access to the highly sought after New Orleans port. -
Invention of the Steam Boat
Robert Fulton, who invented the first commercially successful steamboat, was an engineer and inventor. This invention paved the way to better alternative for transporting goods. It also allowed things to be transported upstream and stimulated the economy allowing new settlements to be created. -
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Lewis and Clark
This expedition consisted of the Corps of discovery and was led by Lewis and Clark. The purpose was for science and commercial reasons. They wanted to create maps and document plants and animals, but also hoped to establish trade and identify natural resources. -
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War of 1812
This was an armed conflict between the United States and the British empire. The Americans believed that the British had violated the U.S maritime rights. It ended with the exchange of ratification of the treaty of Ghent. -
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Industrial Revolution
The industrial revolution refers to a time when the manufacturing of good was moved to a much larger scale of factories. It brought about change by changing the economy as many people moved from their small rural towns to big cities in order to find work. Steam power and cotton gin played an important role in this era. -
Monroe Doctrine
This document was written by president James Monroe and secretary John Quincy Adams. It is a foreign policy statement that created separate spheres of European and American influence. It stated that the free American continents were not subject to future colonization by European powers. -
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Trail of Tears
During this time period the Indians were forced to leave their homes by the federal government in order to make room to grow cotton on their land. After being forced out the Indians had to walk thousands of miles to a specified territory across the Mississippi River. It was a difficult and deadly journey which is where it got it's name. -
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Manifest Destiny
This was the widespread belief that it was the American settler's destiny to expand and move across the continent. They believed that enlighten the people all while spreading their traditions and institutions. The belief was used to justify the forced removal of Indians from their homelands. -
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Westward Movement
The westward movement was fueled by manifest destiny, the gold rush, and the Oregon trail. It began with the Louisiana Purchase and slowly grew despite the many trial the US faced. The Americans were determined to spread their beliefs and values across the continent. -
Dred Scott decision
This refers to a ruling by the Supreme Court made in regards to Dred Scott's freedom. The ruling stated that living in a free state did not entitle a slave to his/her freedom. The ruling argued that since Scott was a slave, he was not a citizen so I he could not sue in a federal court. -
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Civil War
The war was caused by slavery but are focused towards the economic consequences it brought. It was the deadliest and costliest war ever fought on American soil and ended in a confederate surrender. -
13th Amendment- Abolition of Slavery
This was the first explicit mention of slavery in the United States constitution. Although the emancipation proclamation was already put into place, it did not completely abolish slavery because it only applied to 11 confederate states. Even after the amendment was passed, involuntary servitude and slavery would still be permitted as a punishment for crimes. -
14th Amendment- Equal treatment under the law
This amendment granted citizenship and equal and civil rights to African Americans and slaves who had been emancipated after the civil war. This amendment was passed during the reconstruction era as a means to give all people fair treatment under the law. It served as the basis for many Supreme Court decisions in years to come. -
15th Amendment- Voting rights for black men
This amendment permitted the right for black men to vote. It stated that the right of a US citizen to vote will not be denied or abridged on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Despite the amendment discriminatory practices were used to prevent black men from voting, especially in the South. -
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World War I
The war began with the assignation of Ferdinand and lasted until 1918. Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria and the Ottoman Empire fought against Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Romania, Japan and the United States. The war brought on destruction like no one had ever seen before and the Allied Powers claimed victory. -
19th Amendment- Voting rights for women
This amendment grated women the right to vote and prohibited any United States citizen to be deified their voting right based on their sex. It was ratified after a long battle known as the women's suffrage movement. The passing of this amendment ended a century long protest. -
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Great Depression
This was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world. It began after the stock market crash of 1929 which sent Wall Street into a panic. At it lowest point 15 million Americans were unemployed and nearly half the country's banks had failed. -
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New Deal
This was the recovery efforts being made due to the Great Depression. It consisted of a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations which was all put into place by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The new deal permanently changed the federal government by expanding its size and scope. -
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World War II
This war began when Germany invaded Poland in 1939. Great Britain and France responded to the invasion by declaring war on Germany. It ended in Europe with Germany's surrender and ended in the Pacific when Japan surrendered. -
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Korean War
This war began when the North Korean Communist army crossed the 38th parallel and invaded noncommunist South Korea. The North Korean army quickly overran South Korea but the United States quickly came to South Korea's aide. By the end of the brutal war Korea was still divided into two hostile states. -
Brown vs. Board of education
This refers to the decision made by the Supreme Court stating that established state laws allowing segregation in school was unconstitutional. They made this decision despite the argument saying that serrated schools are otherwise equal. This helped establish that "separate-but-equal" was not actually equal at all. -
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Vietnam War
This war was between North Vietnam and South Vietnam and include the US as South Vietnam's ally. The conflict was intensified with the ongoing Cold War and ended with more than 3 million people killed. This war divided Americans even after Nixson's orders withdrawal. -
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Montgomery bus boycott
This was a civil-rights protest that took place in Montgomery, Alabama. African American people refused to ride city buses to protest segregated seating. It is regarded as the first large-scale protest against segregation. -
"I Have A Dream" Speech
This speech was derived by Martin Luther King in Washington and is one of the most famous speeches in all of history. King tells about the struggles of African Americans living at the time and calls attention to the rights they were guaranteed to have but have not received. He ends his speech by describing his dreams for America. -
9/11
On September 11, 2001 19 militants involved with the group known as al Queda hijacked four airplanes and carried out attacks on the United Stated. Two planes targeted the twin towers in New York city while the third plane hit the pentagon outside of Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.