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Period: to
First Half of 19th Century
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Jefferson Becomes Presidant
Jefferson negotiated with France for the purchase of the land West of the Mississippi River until the Pacific Ocean, now known has the Louisiana Purchase. Later, he ordered the Louis and Clark Expedition to explore the new land. -
The Naturalization act of 1802
This act required that foreigners must become fully loyal to America and demonstrate good moral character to become a citizen. The act nullified all Naturalization Acts before 1802. Also, every citizen in the USA felt at home in the country because they were not discriminated for being a foreigner. -
The Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase almost doubled the size of the United States and gave them valuable natural resources that were not found in the East. -
Ohio Becomes a State
In 1803, Ohio joined the Union. Until then, it was part of the Northwest territory. -
Land Act of 1804
This act put fedral lands up for sale in the northwest territory. Although the price was still $2 an acre, the minimum purchase was cut in half to 160 acres. Even though it doesn't seem like much, this was too much for most farmers to pay at one time. Agian the government came to the rescue alowing the settlers to buy the land on credit. This act helped boost the settlement of that area. -
Natchez Trace
Congress approves work to revive the trail. Created and used by Native Americans, this trail later was used by many settlers moving west. -
The Non-Intercourse Act
This Act opened up all American shipping lanes, except to France and England. Also, it gave the newly independent American trade opportunities to develop relations with other countries through trade. -
Appalachian Mountains
After the Louisiana Purchase most colonists headed west across the Appalachian Mountains because the colonies were getting very populated and there were fewer and fewer jobs. It was a hard travel though because of the mountains. They wanted to travel across the mountains to find new land and start new jobs. Then, when they got across, they could start a new beginning. -
War of 1812
United States goes to war with Britain after British interferes with US trade. America, who was eager to prove themselves, would not be taken advantage of. The British Army intended on seizing New Orleans and the vast territory that came with the Louisiana Purchase, but Andrew Jackson and American forces defeated their invading army. -
Louisiana Becomes a State
Louisiana joins the Union as the 18th State. This improvement brought 76,556 people into the United States. -
Mississippi Joins the Union
After being permitted by Congress, Mississippi joined the Union as the 20th state. -
American Economy Destabilized
Around this time, the United States' economy became destabilized. Several factors caused this to happen but the main reason is due to the War of 1812. Our country was extremely young and we didn't have enough funds to support our side of the war and our nation at the same time. -
Treaty of Ghent
American and British negotiators met in Ghent, Belgium to settle on a peace agreement. The treaty ended The War of 1812. Negotiators agreed government affairs would return to normal after the signing of the treaty. -
Era of Good Feelings
After becoming destabilized around the War of 1812, the American Economy pulled itself together. It was able to do this because each region developed an economy based on a different industry. -
Indiana Becomes a State
In 1816, Indiana joined the Union. -
Main Road Constructed
In 1817, construction began on a National Road traveling across the United States. With roads separating from the main road and connecting almost every major city, this was an extremely efficient way of travel for settlers. -
Mississippi Becomes a State
Mississippi joins the Union. -
Illinois Becomes a State
Illinois joins the Union. -
Adams-Onis Treaty
This treaty gave the U.S. control of Florida and the panhandle from Spain. Also, it clearly defined US border in the southwest along the Sabine River in Texas. Most importantly the treaty gave the US complete control of the east. -
Alabama Becomes a State
Alabama joins the Union. -
Maine Becomes a State
Before it was the State of Maine, it was called the District of Maine. It belonged to Massachusetts. -
Population in America Rises 33%
In 1820, the U.S. census shows that America included 9,638,453 people. That is 33% more than what was revealed in 1810. -
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an agreement between the Pro-Slavery and Anti-Slavery factions in the United States. This agreement primarily allowed slavery in Western territories. -
Land Law of 1820
In 1820, a Land Law was passed opening up new territories to the public. This Law allowed settlers to purchase 80 acres of land for $1.25 per acre. Not only was the cost remarkable, but this Law caused settlers to move even further West. The settlers migrated over the Mississippi River and across the Midwest. -
Missouri becomes a State
In August of 1821, Missouri became the 24th state by joining the Union. -
Santa Fe Trail
In 1821, the Santa Fe Trail was opened. This trail made it possible to trade more items with New Mexico. -
First African American Slaves Settle
A Black group known as the Republic of Liberia arrived on African soil at Providence Island in 1822. They were the first freed black slaves ever to settle in America. -
Monroe Doctrine
This policy discouraged European from establishing colonies in both North and South America. Giving European no reason to be in the Americas helped the United States less things to worry about while they were still a young country. -
John Quicy Adams
Following his job as Secretary of State, Adams became the 6th president of the United States. Adams was off to rough start losing both the popular vote and the electoral vote. In spite of this, Adam's term started to turn around. He developed a program called the American system. The system provided a tax to promote industry, a national bank to foster commerce and federal subsidies for roads and canals to promote a market for agricultural. -
The German Immigrants
The second largest group of immigrants were German immigrants. They started migrating over here because of the bitterly cold winters. They came to America for better climate and to start a new beginning. -
Andrew Jackson Becomes President
Andrew Jackson was elected President in March of 1829. His most famous accomplishment is approving the Indian Removal Act, including the Trail of Tears. -
Demand for American Cotton
In 1829, there was the first great demand for American cotton. Having several other countries, such as France and England, wanting our cotton, production on the plants improved and the population increased majorly in the South. -
Irish Enter United States
Between 1830 and 1880, nearly 7.5 million Irish Natives migrated to America. The main motivation of this was the poverty in their homeland. Many families could not pay the landlords and had to leave and find a different place to live. -
British Enter America
In 1830, the amount of people leaving Great Britain increased dramatically. Most of them were farmers and laborers. By any means, these people had lived in the country that was hit the hardest by the agricultural depression. Between 1820 and 1870, more than 2,335,000 British Natives migrated to America. -
Europeans Enter United States
From 1820 until 1830, the number of people grew about four times more when 599,000 Europeans were lured to America by the cheap and fertile land. Many more came trying to escape political and economic situations in their homeland. -
First Act to Protect Natural Resource
The First Act of Congress was signed to protect a natural resource. This Act reserved four medium-sized land parcels with hot springs in the Arkansas Territory. -
Black Hawk War
Sac and Fox Indians returned to the Midwest trying to reclaim their homeland lost in a treaty. Evading the Army for months, the Indians were finally engaged in Wisconsin Heights. Ending with an American victory, Sac and Fox indians where forced even farther west to an even smaller area and even farther from their homeland. -
Bison or Beaver?
In 1832, beaver trapping caused shortages in their population and led to scarcity in beaver pelt sales. Forced to find something else to sell, traders started hunting bison and that soon took control of the economy. -
The Force Bill
Andrew Jackson signs the force bill. This bill authorizes the use of troops to enforce federal law in any state including South Carolina. -
Transportation Routes Grow
In 1833, the National Road had reached Columbus, Ohio. The Ohio and Erie Canal also opened connecting Michigan and the East with a faster and easier way to transport goods. Railroad construction also continued to grow all around the country. This made commerce with the West much easier. -
Specie Circular
The Specie Circular Act, issued by Andrew Jackson, demanded that public lands be bought with gold and/or silver. This would help clairfy how much land was worth instead of buying and selling with unfamiliar money. But, this also slowed the selling of land and induced the destabilization of the Western economy and the Panic of 1837. -
Era of Free Banking
In 1833, President Andrew Jackson vetoed the recharter of and withdrew all funds from the 2nd Bank of the United States of America. In this time, separate banks were opening across the country with their own currency. -
Republic of Texas
Republic of Texas breaks away from Mexico. The Republic broke away from Mexico in a Revolution and later became a U.S. State. This established an obvious border, Rio Grande, and gave the United States a monumental amount of land. -
Battle of the Alamo
All 400 occupants of the Alamo were killed in the battle. The Texans were overwhelmed by the numbers of the Mexican Army. The news struck fire in the hearts of the Texans and they flocked to Houston and later defeated the Mexicans. -
Arkansas Becomes a State
Arkansas joins the Union. -
Michigan Becomes a State
Michigan became a state on January 26, 1837. The governor of Michigan, Mason Stevens, argued several times that extended farther than originally announced. The quarrel was between Ohio and Michigan was over whether the city of Toledo was a part of Ohio or Michigan. -
Panic of 1837
In 1837, the United States went into a great depression lasting until the late 1940's; this depression was called the Panic of 1837. Many factors caused this but the main ones were related to Wildcat Banking. After President Jackson failed to recharter the 2nd Bank of America, many other banks opened their own businesses and created their own currency. With several different ways of paying for goods and services, America's economy slowly fell apart. -
Women Gain Rights to Own Property
Jackson, Mississippi, passes law allowing women the right to own property. This was the first law passed of its kind. -
New Orleans' Industry Expands
In 1840, the New Orleans' Port became one of the largest in the country. This port handled more than $50 million worth of goods, which was more than two times the amount passing through in 1830. -
U.S. Reaches 17 Million
The United States Census of 1840 showed 34% of population growth from 1930 - 1940 in the U.S. In 1840; Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia exceeded one million people. As the population in the U.S. grew to 17,063,353, the settlers also started moving farther Southwest. -
President William Henry Harrison.
President William Henry Harrison was sworn into office one month before he died from having pneumonia. His time in office was the shortest in history. He was in office for one month and he was the first president to die in office. -
Texas Becomes a State
After the war with Mexico, Texas became a republic. Later, in 1845, they officially became a state. Texas was a leading producer of cotton and cattle. -
Florida Becomes a State
In 1845, Florida joins the United States as the 27th state. -
Texas Becomes a State
In 1845, Texas joined the U.S. as the 28th state. Of course, before it announced it's statehood, Texas was a Republic. -
Iowa Becomes a State
Iowa joins the U.S. as the 39th state. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
This treaty officially ended the Mexican war with America. In this treaty Mexico cedes California,Arizona,Nevada and Utah to United States. Also, the treaty placed the U.S.-Mexico border as the Rio Grande. -
California Gold Rush
James W. Marshall founded gold in Sutter’s mill in Coloma, California. When people in Oregon, Hawaii and Latin America found out they started immigrating to the state in 1848. Then the news of gold brought 300,000 people to California. The gold seekers came from around the world like Latin America, Europe, Australia and China. Most of them came to get out of poverty and to start a new life. -
Wisconsin Becomes a State
Wisconsin becomes the 30th state in the U.S. At this time, it was smaller than what we now know as the State of Wisconsin. There was a small. leftover part of the territory that wasn't added to the state until March 3, 1849. -
Zachary Taylor Becomes President
Zachary Taylor became president on March 4th, 1849. One of the most important things that Zachary Taylor took part of was the Mexican American War. He successfully defeated Mexican Forces in September of 1846 and allowed them to have a two-month timespan of peace upon their retreat.
