Timeline: 1950-2000

Jun 25, 1950

Korean war/President Truman, without the approval of Congress, commits American troops to battle

President Truman, without the approval of Congress, commits American troops to battle

Nov 1, 1952

First hydrogen bomb is detonated by the U.S. on Eniwetok, an atoll in the Marshall Islands

Jul 27, 1953

End of korean war Armistice agreement is signed

Armistice agreement is signed

Apr 22, 1954

Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy accuses army officials, members of the media, and other public figures of being Communists during highly publicized hearings

Jan 31, 1958

Explorer I, first American satellite, is launched

Jan 3, 1959

Alaska becomes the 49th state

Feb 20, 1962

Lt. Col. John Glenn becomes first U.S. astronaut to orbit Earth

Aug 28, 1963

Marin luther king Jr spech "I Have A Dream"

Jul 2, 1964

President Johnson signs the Civil Rights Ac

Apr 4, 1968

Martin Luther King, Jr., is assassinated in Memphis, Tenn.

Jun 5, 1968

F. Kennedy is assassinated in Los Angeles, Cali

Jan 20, 1977

Jimmy Carter is inaugurated as the 39th president

Jan 20, 1980

President Carter announces that U.S. athletes will not attend Summer Olympics in Moscow unless Soviet Union withdraws from Afghanistan

Jan 20, 1981

U.S. hostages held in Iran are released after 444 days in captivity

Oct 25, 1983

U.S. invades Caribbean island of Grenada after a coup by Marxist faction in the government

Apr 14, 1986

It is the worst accident in the history of the U.S. space program. U.S. bombs military bases in Libya in effort to deter terrorist strikes on American targets

Feb 26, 1993

Bomb explodes in basement garage of World Trade Center, killing 6, injuring 1,000, and causing more than $500 million in damage

May 6, 1994

aula Jones, a former Arkansas state employee, files a federal lawsuit against President Clinton for sexual harassment

Aug 20, 1998

U.S. launches missile attacks on targets in Sudan and Afghanistan following terrorist attacks on U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

Dec 16, 1999