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Lewis & Clark Expedition Begins
It was the first American expedition to cross the western portion of the United States. It began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and made its way westward, and passed through the Continental Divide of the Americas to reach the Pacific coast. -
10 Percent Plan
The Ten Percent Plan was introduced by President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War in order to reunify the North and South after the end of wars. On December 8, 1863 he issued a Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction offering pardon to Confederates who would swear to support the Constitution and the Union. The Ten percent Plan first required 10% of seceded state voters take oath of loyalty to Union. -
Lincoln Assasination
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States. On April 14, 1865 he became the first president to be assassinated. He was shot in the head by a man named John Wilkes Booth. -
Thirteenth Amendment
This was the abolishment of slavery. On December 18, 1865 the thirteenth amendment was ratified which kept people from doing involuntary servitude, other than punishment for a crime. -
Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad
The Transcontinental Railroad is among the greatest achievements of the nineteenth century. The Union Pacific and The Central Pacific competed with each other to see who could lay more track. They met in promontory point, Utah in 1869. -
Fifteenth Amendment
On February 3rd the fifteenth amendment was ratified. This gave all men the right to vote, specifically African American men. "Right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude." -
The Battle of Little Bighorn
Also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes and the United States Army. The battle, which resulted in the defeat of U.S. forces, was the most significant action of the Great Sioux War of 1876. -
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral
The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a 30-second shootout between lawmen and members of a loosely organized group of outlaws called the Cowboys that took place on October 26, 1881, in Tombstone, Arizona Territory. -
The Opening of The Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid cable-stayed/suspension bridge in New York City. It is one of the oldest roadway bridges in the United States and was the world's first steel-wire suspension bridge. It was a symbol of American ingenuity. -
Dedication of The Statue of Liberty
The copper statue was a gift from the people of France to the people of the United States, was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi. It is located in Liberty Island, New York. It was dedicated on October 28, 1886. -
Ellis Island Opens
In 1891, the federal government assumed responsibility from the states for regulating immigration through the Immigration Act of 1891. They opened the first immigration station on January 1, 1892. -
First Person Through Ellis Island
On January 1, 1892, 17-year-old Annie Moore became the first immigrant registered through Ellis Island. She was given a $10 coin to commemorate the event. -
The End of Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy claimed to be one-eighth black and refused to move from the white train car. He wanted to test the law. The ruling was "separate but equal" -
National Association of Colored Women's Clubs
On July 21, 1896 Ida B. Wells founded the National Association of Colored Women's Clubs. The organization helped all African-American women by working on issues of civil rights and injustice, such as women’s suffrage, lynching, and Jim Crow laws. They also led efforts to improve education, and care for both children and the elderly. -
Explosion of The USS Maine
The USS Maine exploded in Cuba's Havana Harbor. The U.S. believed it was Spain. The explosion killed 260 of the near 400 crew members. -
Congress Declares War on Spain
America's short war with Spain in 1898 was the nation's first step on the pathway to becoming a world power. It hadn't been proven Spain exploded the Maine. War was declared April 25, 1898 -
Battle of San Juan Hill
July 1 U.S. General William Shafter ordered an attack on the village of El Caney and San Juan Hill. Ground troops were the Theodore Roosevelt-led “Rough Riders,” a collection of Western cowboys and Eastern blue bloods officially known as the First U.S. Voluntary Cavalry. -
Cuba Given Idependence
The involvement of the United States in the war resulted in the defeat of Spanish forces who surrendered sovereignty over Cuba on December 10th, 1898 in the signing of the Treaty of Paris, which provided for the Independence of Cuba from Spain. There was 3.5 years of the US military rule before Cuba became inpendent on May 20, 1902. -
Invasion on Poland
German troops invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, triggering World War II. The assault on Poland demonstrated Germany’s ability to combine air power and armor in a new kind of mobile warfare. In response to German aggression, Great Britain and France declared war on Nazi Germany. -
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is a U.S. naval base near Honolulu, Hawaii, that was the scene of a devastating surprise attack by Japanese forces on December 7, 1941. Just before 8 a.m. on that Sunday morning, hundreds of Japanese fighter planes descended on the base, where they managed to destroy or damage nearly 20 American naval vessels, including eight battleships, and over 300 airplanes. -
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a brutal military campaign between Russian forces and those of Nazi Germany and the Axis powers during World War II. The battle is infamous as one of the largest, longest and bloodiest engagements in modern warfare: From August 1942 through February 1943, more than two million troops fought in close quarters – and nearly two million people were killed or injured in the fighting, including tens of thousands of Russian civilians. -
Battle of the Bulge
Called “the greatest American battle of the war” by Winston Churchill, the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes region of Belgium was Adolf Hitler’s last major offensive in World War II against the Western Front. Hitler’s aim was to split the Allies in their drive toward Germany. The German troops’ failure to divide Britain, France and America with the Ardennes offensive paved the way to victory for the allies. -
V-E Day
On this day in 1945, both Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Day. Cities in both nations, as well as formerly occupied cities in Western Europe, put out flags and banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi war machine. -
D-Day
Codenamed Operation Overlord, the battle began on June 6, 1944, also known as D-Day, when some 156,000 American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50-mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region. The invasion was one of the largest amphibious military assaults in history and required extensive planning.
