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From Europe, 104 English men and boys arrived in North America to start a settlement and they choose Jamestown to settle in. Jamestown was intended to become a long-term settlement and creating wealth for investors and recreating English society in North America. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America. The English language, laws, and secular and religious institutions in time spread across North America and the globe. -
The headright system was a grant of land typically 50 acres given to the settlers of the thirteen colonies. It was used as a way to attract new settlers to North America and to address the labor shortage. It allowed poor people to come to the New World because they couldn't afford it. The system was greatly important to the growth of the colonies. Their main crop was Tabaco which required a lot of land and many workers. -
The Navigation Acts, were acts of Parliament intended to promote the self-sufficiency of the British Empire by restricting colonial trade to England and decreasing dependence on foreign imported goods. The colonies continued to smuggle goods to continue inter-colonial trade. The Acts increased colonial revenue by taxing the goods going to and from British colonies. -
Albany Congress, conference in U.S. colonial history at Albany, New York, that advocated a union of the British colonies in North America for their security and defense against the French. Benjamin proposed the Congress to talk about future alliances with natives. The political cartoon he made "join or die" was to encourage all of the colonies that rising together was better for defense. The Congress failed but it planted the seeds of union. Known as the Founding Fathers. -
British-produced boundary marked in the Appalachian Mountains at the Eastern Continental Divide. The Proclamation Line prohibited Anglo-American colonists from settling on lands acquired from the French following the French and Indian War. It appeased Native Americans by checking the encroachment of European settlers on their lands. It was the first law that affected all thirteen colonies. -
It was a law that required colonial authorities to provide food, drink quarters, fuel, transportation stations within their towns. It included everyone and if British soldiers came to your house for shelter you had to provide them. Colonists resented the Quartering Act not because it meant they had to house British soldiers in their homes, but because they were being taxed to pay for provisions and barracks for the army. -
As tensions were still brewing, a patriot mob attacked a British loyalist who fired a gun at them and killing a young boy. The Boston Massacre was pressured by the Townsend Acts that were passed by British Parliament. The event in Boston helped to unite the colonies against Britain. What started as a minor fight became a turning point in the beginnings of the American Revolution. Made Americans further explore the idea of American Independence. -
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest at Griffin's Wharf in Boston, Massachusetts. American colonists, frustrated and angry at Britain for imposing taxation without representation. The Sons of Liberty dumped 342 crates of tea into the harbor. This was the first important act of defiance against Great Britain. Contributed to the American Revolution. -
The first Continental Congress met in Carpenter's Hall in Philadelphia. The colonies presented there were united in a determination to show a combined authority to Great Britain, but their aims were not uniform at all. Up to this time the colonies had always acted as individuals and not as a whole. During the Revolutionary war the Congress served as a temporary government of the American colonies. The Congress drafted the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States. -
Patrick Henry gives the idea that it is time for the colonists to take action against the tyranny of the British. He spoke to a Virginia convention considering breaking away from British rule stating “The war is actually begun. The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms,”. Henry's speech impacted Americans by preparing them for the war that was soon going to happen between the U.S and Great Britain. -
The revolution had already begun when the Congress met. The Second Continental Congress assumed the normal functions of a government, appointing ambassadors, issuing paper currency, raising the Continental Army through conscription, and appointing generals to lead the army. The Congress powers were still limited. The Second Continental Congress also wrote petitions such as the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms and the Olive Branch Petition. -
Took place a few months after the start of the Revolutionary war. The British decided to take two hills, Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill, in order to gain a strategical advantage. The American forces heard this and went to defend the hills. Americans secretly moved their troops onto Bunker and Breed's Hill, two unoccupied hills just outside of Boston in Charlestown, Massachusetts. They built up fortifications during the night and prepared for battle. Ultimately the Americans won and gained hope. -
Common sense was a 47 page pamphlet written by Thomas Paine advocating independence from Great Britain to the people of the thirteen colonies. It is considered one of the most influential pamphlets in American History. Paine marshaled moral and political arguments to encourage common people in the Colonies to fight for egalitarian government. Common Sense was credited with uniting citizens and political workers behind the idea of independence. -
The introduction sentence claims the purpose is to explain the colonists right to revolution. To declare the causes that impel them to the separation from Britain. The declaration states ideas that 'god made all men equal and gave them the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The declaration helped unify the colonies so they would fight together rather than against each other in their separation from Britain. -
Due to their separation from Britain, the colonists recognized that they needed a form of official government. Benjamin Franklin wrote the first version and presented it to Congress. The document stated the functions of the national government. Leaving most power to the states, it created a loose confederation of sovereign states and a weak central government. Later, the Constitution was written for the need for a stronger central government. -
The Treaty of Paris officially ended the Revolutionary War. Signed by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Henry Laurens. The treaty created a new United States of America that Granted all British lands between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mississippi River and North to British Canada. -
The writers of the Constitution created the role of the president due to the importance of a strong military to protect the country and its citizens. Washington was the first choice because he was a national hero, military commander and Virginia's favorite son. Washington established many crucial presidential presidents and significantly influenced the path for future presidents moving forward, setting standards in political power, economic policy, and military practice. -
The Constitution granted the supreme court jurisdiction over all laws. The Judiciary Act of 1789 gave the court control to issue writs of legal orders compelling government officials to act in accordance to the law. Its purpose was to provide the American people equal justice under the law. The Supreme Court protects civil rights and liberties by ending laws that violate the Constitution. -
President Washington signed the bill into a law for a national bank in February 1791. The bank was supported by Alexander Hamilton, Washington's Secretary of Treasury, who was a loose constitutionalist and Federalist. It was opposed by Thomas Jefferson, the Secretary of State and a strict constitutionalist and Anti- federalist. Like these presidential cabinet members the U.S was divided in the views of the bank. In the end, It helped fund the public debt left from the American Revolution. -
Eli Whitney created the cotton gin. The cotton gin works to make the cotton move freely through a machine small enough so the seeds could not. Due to the stickiness of the cotton seeds and fiber separating cotton was a very time consuming, laboring job and wasn't very profitable. The cotton gin made cotton become profitable. Cotton production changed the course of the South becoming one of the only money- makers. They used cotton for clothes, military arms, and economic power for the south. -
After Washington stepped down, his vice president Adams became the second president. Adams avoids war with the French by negotiating peace with Napoleon called the XYZ affair. Adams created the U.S Navy to protect American trade routes, ships and coast. The Alien Act allowed Adams to deport anyone considered dangerous. The Sedition Act made it illegal newspapers to print material that is critical by the president or congress. Adams was an example of a fearful president corrupted by power. -
It was drafted by Massachusetts delegates Rufus King and Nathan Dane. The ordinance established a government for the Northwest territories. It outlined the process of becoming a state into the Union. It granted newly welcomed states equality to the original thirteen states. Under the ordinance slavery was forever outlawed in the Northwest territory, freedom and other civil liberties were guaranteed, the resident Indians were promised decent treatment and educated was provided. -
Worried that the U.S is losing control of New Orleans and access to the Mississippi River he send James Monroe to negotiate New Orleans but ends acquiring Louisiana from Napoleon. Jefferson commissions the Lewis and Clark expedition to explore new territory, find a water route to the Pacific and begin a trading relationship with the Native Americans. As the third president, he stabilized the U.S economy, and defeated the pirates of North Africa, and doubled the size of the U.S. -
The Supreme Court case established the principle of judicial review, the power of the federal courts to declare legislative and executive acts unconstitutional. President Adams named Marbury a justice of peace on his last day in office. When Jefferson became president he that the commissions be withheld. Marbury sued the new secretary of state, James Madison, in order to obtain his commission. It created the doctrine of judicial review and made the Court chief interpreter of the Constitution. -
Jefferson wanting access to the Mississippi River purchased Louisiana. Not an easy decision for Jefferson being a strict constitutionalist, when the Constitution doesn't mention acquiring new land. He wrestled with the idea proposed by the French during negotiations of purchasing all of Louisiana for $15 million instead of the part containing the river. Deciding to purchase Louisiana the U.S doubles in size and resources. -
Francis Scott Key, was a poisoner of the British Barge and witnessed British bombardment of Fort McHenry. U.S. soldiers at Baltimore's Fort McHenry raised a huge American flag to celebrate a crucial victory over British forces during the War of 1812. The sight of those “broad stripes and bright stars” inspired Francis Scott Key to write a song that eventually became the United States national anthem. It symbolled national unity and pride. -
The final major battle of the War of 1812, fought between the British empire and the U.S. American troops led by Andrew Jackson, defeated the British troops which had a much larger military force. Due to the win it bolstered the U.S troops hopes for the war to end quickly. It removed the threat of Native Americans from the Ohio River Valley, embarked on foreign trade and began to build a transportation system. The American saw the U.S as a whole, and unified the states. -
The canal system was created to link towns to major rivers and lakes. Along with the canal system we see the beginning of trains and railroads. The system established settlement patterns for most of the United States, and made New York the financial capital of the world, provided a critical supply line which helped the North win the Civil War, and precipitated a series of social and economic changes throughout America. -
The steam engine was invented by Thomas Savory and James Watt. A steam engine is a heat engine that preforms mechanical using steam as its power source. It became a energy source for many machines and helped factory production become mechanized. Created transportation of goods over the U.S. Created future possibilities for future transportation needs. -
Signed into law by president Andrew Jackson. He granted lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for the Indian lands within existing state borders. Some tribes went peacefully, but many resisted the policy, resulting in Cherokee Nation v. GA and Worcester v. GA. Jackson responding to John Marshall by saying "he has made his decision now let him enforce it." Following the removal millions of acres became available for settlement, but many Indians had to adapt to new territory and the loss. -
Douglas founded the North Star newspaper during the Abolitionism movement. The title referred to the bright star, Polaris, that helped guide those escaping slavery to the North. He simply wanted to "promote the moral and intellectual improvement of the colored people." Along with strong supporting African American equality, he also strongly supported women's rights. The North Star soon developed into one of the most influential African American antislavery publications of the pre-Civil War era. -
Ended the war between the United States and Mexico. Mexico gave up 55% of its territory including parts of present-day Arizona, California, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah, to the United States. The treaty made Texas apart of the United States and that Rio Grande is the border. It was the first time America has a border on the Pacific Ocean. After the forced war by James K. Polk the Treaty of Guadeloupe would lead to more expansion out West. -
Planned by , planned by Lucy Stone, Lucretia Mott, and Abby Kelley, is held in Worcester, Massachusetts. It draws 1,000 people, and women's movement leaders gain national attention. Annual national conferences are held through 1860. This convention launched the women's suffrage movement, which more than seven decades later gave women the right to vote. The convention amounted to women's Declaration of Independence. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford was a landmark Supreme Court case in which the court held that the U.S Constitution was not meant to include American citizenship for people of African decent. This regarding the fact if you were enslaved or free. Dred was fighting for his freedom for a long decade. Dred and his wife lost the court case, but he eventually became a free man and died free. The case ruling on Dred Scott declared that "there are no free states." -
Prior to the Civil War, the 1860 election demonstrated the divide in the U.S. The North seemed to be rallying around Lincoln for the parties nomination. The South was worried about what Lincoln becoming president would mean for slavery, the economic system, and their way of life. Lincoln finally got Douglas to debate with him known as the first presidential campaign debate and said "A house divided against itself cannot stand". Lincoln became the first modern republican party president. -
An island located in Charleston Harbor in North Carolina. It was the site of the first shots fired of the Civil War. The attack on Fort Sumter marked the official start of the Civil War and it lasted over two days before soldiers surrendered. Confederate leaders ordered the attack in response to Lincoln saying the southern states that had succeed from the Union had no right to succeed. -
The Emancipation Proclamation was an ultimatum from president Lincoln proposed to the southern states. It said that MS, KY, MD, and DE still had legal slaveholding but not in all other states. It strengthened Lincoln's campaign by him saying he tried to end slavery. When the south refuse Lincoln gets to enforce no slavery. It also signified to all other countries to not interfere with the south and had a moral change of the world. -
The Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania was the largest battle of the American Civil War. The battle was won by the North It stopped the Confederate general Robert E. Lee's hopeful second pursuit to invade the North and bring the Civil War to a swift end. It gave the Federals a badly needed victory and boosted Northern morale. Could have possibly been the changing point in the war that changed the power back to the Union military that led to them winning the war. -
The Anaconda Plan was a military strategy proposed by Union General Winfield Scott early in the Civil War. The plan included a naval plan to surround the Southern coast, New Orleans, Virginia, and Charleston North Carolina. It would be difficult to complete the plan without changing things. The plan ultimately was proved to be successful and cut of the souths ability to gain imported resources and were cut off from access to the oceans. -
Existing president defeated other candidate General George B. McClellan. By re-electing Lincoln it ensure that he would have a successful conclusion over the Civil War. Lincoln's victory made him the first president to win re-election since Andrew Jackson in 1832, as well as the first Northern president to ever win re-election. Unfortunately, Lincoln was assassinated early the next year in 1865 by John Wilkes Booth. The next president was Andrew Johnson. -
The 13th amendment forever abolished slavery over the whole of the U.S states and territories. In addition to banning slavery, the amendment outlawed the practice of involuntary servitude and peonage. Congress forced former Confederate states to ratify the amendment to be able to enter the Union again. Although, not ending discrimination it ended slavery and began the long-term goal of achieving equality for all Americans. -
During the Reconstruction period after the Civil War, the Freedmen's Bureau was created to help newly freed blacks transition to a life of freedom by starting schools, negotiating labor contracts, securing loans, helping find and purchase land, and providing legal aid. It got mixed results due to African American's lack of trust and it was short lived. It was short lived because of a lack of funding and it was vetoed by president Johnson after existing for only two years. -
William Henry Seward wanted a commercial empire where the U.S demanded equal access to foreign markets and the link of U.S factories and parts to Asia and the Pacific. Seward acquired the island of Midway in the Pacific and Alaska. Many people thought it was a mistake calling it Seward's Foley. Due to the new land and foreign access the U.S was opened to new power and influence by the idea of Imperialism. -
The 14th amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the U.S. This included enslaved people which provided them with equal protection under the laws. The amendment was passed in the Reconstruction era to aid in abolishing slavery and establish legal and civil rights for black Americans. -
It was North Americas first transcontinental railroad. It was a 1,911 mile long railroad line that was constructed between 1863 and 1869. It connected the existing eastern U.S. rail network at Council Bluffs, Iowa with the Pacific coast at the Oakland Long Wharf on San Francisco Bay. Lincoln hired two companies and gave them a timeline to finish it in ten years. It caused competition and was finished within 6 years. It ensured a production boom with the connection to both oceans across the U.S. -
It was a system where a landlord would hire labors to use his equipment and land in exchange for a share of the crop. It encourages the labors to produce as much crop as they could. Since the landlord controlled the money he could set how much the laborer would really make it ensured that they would remained tied to the land and were unlikely to leave for other opportunities. The laborer could not leave as long as they were in debt to the landlord. It can be considered as a new form of slavery. -
The WCTU was a religious organization whose primary purpose was to combat the influence of alcohol on families and society. After Frances Willard took over leadership in 1879, the WCTU became one of the largest and most influential women's groups of the 19th century by expanding its platform to campaign for labor laws, prison reform and suffrage. She expanded the organization’s platform to include such issues as labor laws and prison reform. -
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also called Custer's Last Stand, marked the most decisive Native American victory and the U.S. defeat in the long Indian War. The Natives began to believe they angered their gods by rejecting their traditional life so they began to reject white ways and retaliating against them. When Native Americans won it strengthened white Americans dislike Native Americans and back the thoughts of them being blood thirst and uncontrolable. -
It was the Homestead act but for Native Americans. It offered 160 acres for each Native American family or 80 acres to singe Native American men. Natives took advantage of the chance to own and farm land. Many whites believed this was a generous act from the U.S. The government saw it as a chance to gain the Natives land. It acted as an attack on the Natives culture, tradition, wreaking the tribal bonds and loyalty. The Natives lost 86 million acres of reservation land. -
United States declared war on Spain following the sinking of the Battleship Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. The U.S quickly defeated the Spanish, and they surrender a little over 3 months after the war started. The Teller Agreement the U.S has for Cuba helped reassure and created a alliance between the two countries. As a result of the war, Spain lost its control over the remains of its overseas empire -- Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines Islands, and Guam. -
Roosevelt was an American politician, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer. He 26th president of the United States from 1901-1909. He promoted the conservation movement, emphasizing efficient use of natural resources. He expanded the system of national parks and national forests. He was a leader of the progressive movement and championed his Square Deal domestic policies, promising the average citizen fairness, breaking of trusts, regulation of railroads, and pure food and drugs. -
Coal strike was a strike by the United Mine Workers of America in the anthracite coalfields of eastern PA. Miners striked for higher wages, shorter workdays, and the recognition of their union. Roosevelt demanded that the owners negotiate or he would use military force to take over the mine. This signals a big shift as its the first time government sides with labor over business. It helped moderate labor leaders and progressive businessmen who championed negotiations as a way to labor peace. -
The emergence of muckraking was sparked in the Jan. 1903 issue of McClure's Magazine by articles on municipal government, labor, and trusts, written by Lincoln Steffens, Ray Stannard Baker, and Ida M. Tarbell. Muckrakers were journalists and novelists of the Progressive Era who sought to expose corruption in big business and government with accurate journalistic accounts. The work of muckrakers influenced the passage of key legislation that strengthened protections for workers and consumers. -
Americans quickly dominated the automotive industry despite the late start. Henry Ford innovated mass production and the assembly line for techniques that became the standard. In 1908 Ford introduced the Model T, an affordable car for the middle-class. Due to the huge middle-class population the Model T became a necessity in transportation and economic status. The automobile gave people access to places to live, jobs and contributed to the influx of leisure activities that lead to new services. -
Muckraking the Meat-Packing Industry. Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle to expose the appalling working conditions in the meat-packing industry. The Jungle showcased the unsanitary meat packing process. His detailed descriptions of rotten contaminated food spurred food safety laws. Theodore Roosevelt signed the Pure Food and Drug Act to ensure the protection of people against contaminated food and drugs. Upton Sinclair promoted change that needed to be made for society to be safe and successful. -
W.E.B. DuBois was an African American writer, teacher, sociologist and activist whose work transformed the way that the lives of Black citizens were seen in American society. Considered ahead of his time, DuBois was an early champion of using data to solve social issues for the Black community, and his writing, including his groundbreaking The Souls of Black Folk became required reading in African American studies. -
Heavy artillery, machine guns, tanks, motorized transport vehicles, high explosives, chemical weapons, airplanes, field radios and telephones, aerial reconnaissance cameras, and rapidly advancing medical technology and science were just a few of the areas that reshaped twentieth century warfare. The new technology changed and introduced new ways of war, also making it the most deadly war of its time. The new weapons and wholescale death has catastrophic phycological effects on soldiers. -
The Panama Canal is a constructed waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans across the Isthmus of Panama. The Panama Canal was built to lower the distance, cost, and time it took for ships to carry cargo between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Before the canal, ships would have to go around the entire continent of South America. It has increased cargo traffic flow from the West Coast to the East Coast, decreasing transportation costs and increasing transit time in the U.S. -
The Red Scare was hysteria over the threat posed by Communists in the U.S. during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States. The Red Scare led to a range of actions that had a profound and enduring effect on U.S. government and society. Federal employees were analyzed to determine whether they were sufficiently loyal to the government, and the HUAC, as well as Senator McCarthy, investigated allegations of subversive elements in the government and the Hollywood film industry. -
The amendment illegalized the manufacture, transportation, and sale of alcohol. After the amendment was ratified, Congress passed the Volstead Act to provide federal enforcement of prohibition. It had profound consequences, in expanding state and federal government, inspiring new forms of sociability between men and women, and suppressed elements of immigrant and working-class culture. It also had a rise in organized crime and an increase in smuggling, and a decline in tax revenue. -
The "Lost Generation" were a group of American writers who came of age during World War I and established their literary reputations in the 1920s. Some well known authors are Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein. They were often characterized by the similar themes discussed in their work, such as disillusionment in the post-World War I society, loss of identity and tradition, and an uncertainty of the future. They had great impact because they showcased the effect war has on people. -
The nineteenth amendment granted women the right to vote. The amendment helped millions of women move closer to equality in all aspects of American life. After accomplishing the right to vote, women advocated for job opportunities, fairer wages, education, and birth control. The nineteenth amendment extended the vote in theory to between 26 million and 30 million women making it the single largest expansion of voting rights in United States history. -
It limited the number of immigrants that were allowed entry into the U.S through a national origins quota. The quota provided 2% of the total number of people in each nationality entry. The quota excluded immigrants from Asia. The law was passed because of the uncertainty of national security. It was designed to keep wages and living standards high for both existing populations and the new legal arrivals. -
As Charles Lindbergh piloted the Spirit of St. Louis down the dirt runway of Roosevelt Field in New York on May 20, 1927, many doubted he would successfully cross the Atlantic Ocean. Yet Lindbergh landed safely in Paris less than 34 hours later, becoming the first pilot to solo a nonstop trans-Atlantic flight. It highlighted the potential of long distance flight. As a result of the achievement, aircraft industry stocks rose in value/interest in commercial aviation skyrocketed in the U.S. -
Televisions had created an enormous effect on society that had lasting impacts. The tv completely reshaped how people spent their leisure time. As well as changing how children behaved and economic and social structure. By the 1960's 46 million American households had televisions. The television is how people began to get news and entertainment. From the Election of 1960 and on political debates were aired and view by the public changing political views and leading to more popularity. -
As the Depression worsened and millions of urban and rural families lost their jobs and depleted their savings, they also lost their homes. Desperate for shelter, homeless citizens built shantytowns in and around cities with rare possible job opportunities across the nation. These camps came to be called Hooverville's, after the president. Public reaction to the Hooverville's added to Hoover's unpopularity, leading to his landslide defeat by FDR in the 1932 presidential election. -
Black Tuesday hit Wall Street as investors traded 16 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. Thousands of investors were lost and billions of dollars were lost. America descended into a Great Depression. Stock prices continued to drop and were only 20% of what they were months before. It accelerated a global economic collapse as the rest of the world were dealing with after war damages. Half of American banks failed, and unemployment reached 15 million people. -
The southern plain was drought stricken, which suffered severe storms during a dry period in the 1930s. People and livestock across the region. It intensified the crushing economic impacts of the Great Depression. The Dust Bowl drove many people do migrate in search of better working/living conditions. The Homestead Act of 1862 provided inexperienced farmers with land that they over plowed which contributed to the Dust Bowl. Several economic and agricultural factors led to the Dust Bowl. -
After victory in World War l, the US government promised in 1924 that servicemen veterans would receive a bonus for their service in 1945. Since the Great Depression was current many veterans wanted their bonus’ right then. Over 10,000 veterans partake in a March gathered in Washington D.C. Upset with the no response the March became violent to a point in which President Hoover ordered for their removal. The March underlined the panic of the Great Depression brought upon the American people. -
Program for employment and infrastructure created by Roosevelt during the Great Depression in 1935. WPA put nearly 8.5 million people to work. The WPA sponsored projects in the arts and employed thousands of musicians, writers and other artists. It was created in part with the New Deal to aid the country during the Great Depression. The WPA built schools, hospitals, and repaired city needs. Even though the government ended the program it benefited many Americans during the Depression. -
Women labored in construction, drove trucks, cut lumber and worked on farms. They worked in factories, building munitions, planes, trains and ships. Women also worked in the military in Women's Army Corps, Women's axillary Service Pilots or as nurses. We won the war in part based on our industrial output, made possible by women taking the jobs that had been left behind by soldiers that had gone to war. -
In reaction to fear thousands of African Americans marching on the nations capital, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, banning discriminatory employment practices by Federal agencies and all unions and companies engaged in war related work. The order also established the Fair Employment Practices Commission. The executive order helped establish the foundation for Title Vll of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and Executive Order 11246 in 1965. -
A surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, an American naval base, by Japan spurred the U.S' involvement in WW ll. On an early morning hundreds of Japanese fighter planes descended over the bases where nearly 20 American naval vessels were destroyed. As well as 8 battleships, and 300 airplanes. More than 2,000 Americans died and over 1,000 injured. The next day President F.D.R asked Congress to declare war on Japan. Pearl Harbor resulted in the U.S joining the war with the Allied forces. -
Pittsburgh Courier, an African American newspaper launched the Double Victory Campaign, which stood for Victory Abroad and Victory at Home. It championed military success against fascism overseas and Victory at Home demanded equality for African Americans in the U.S. had limited success as while it promoted patriotism and support for the war effort and fostered a narrow appreciation for the complexity wartime situations and did not address or impact the underlying structure of racism of America. -
The executive order initiated a long-term controversy of Japanese Americans with lasting effects. After Pearl Harbor the nations fear over another surprise attack grew mostly near the West Coast. 9066 also affected Italian and German Americans but the largest number of detainees were Japanese Americans. Over 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry, two thirds being American citizens were incarcerated in concentration camps. After Congress issued an apology and passed the Civil Liberties Act. -
In World War two, the Battle of Normandy resulted in the liberation of West Germany from Nazi's control. American, British and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50 mile stretch on the heavily fortified coast. The invasion was one of the largest military assaults with extensive planning. They mislead the Germans about the intended target and surprised them leading them to the Allied win. The Normandy win was the beginning to the end of the war. -
Serviceman's Readjustment Act of 1944 provided aid for returning veterans with funds for education, government banking of loans, unemployment allowances, and job-finding attendance. Sent more than eight million veterans to school between 1945 and 1956, instilling the importance of education on more lower and middle-class families. It saved the American economy from a potential unemployment epidemic. The bill contributed greatly to shaping America post- World War ll. -
Manhattan Project scientists detonated the first atomic bomb in a test near Alamogordo in southern N.M. The legacy of the Manhattan Project is immense. The advent of nuclear weapons not only helped bring an end to WW II but ushered in the atomic age and determined how the next war, the Cold War, would be fought. It also sparked a nuclear arms race during the Cold War. It helped in medical and energy production development. Scientists believe that they can accomplish things with more research. -
Baby Boomer refers to a member of the demographically large generation born between the end of WWII and the mid-1960s. The Baby Boomers involved many factors including people wanting to start the families they put off during World War II, the Great Depression, and a sense of confidence that the coming era would be safe and prosperous. Because of their high numbers and the relative prosperity of the U.S economy during their careers, the baby boomers are an economically influential generation.
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Iron Curtain speech, speech delivered by former British prime minister Winston Churchill in Fulton, Missouri, on March 5, 1946 in which he stressed the necessity for the United States and Britain to act as the guardians of peace and stability against the menace of Soviet communism, which had lowered an “iron curtain” which symbolizes efforts by the Soviet Union to block itself from non-Soviet-controlled areas. His speech helped bolster American and Western European opposition to Communism. -
The Truman Doctrine established that the United States would provide political, military and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from external or internal authoritarian forces. Mainly in supporting country's from falling to Communism. The Truman Doctrine successfully convinced many that the United States was locked in a life-or-death struggle with the Soviet Union, and it set the guidelines for over 40 years of U.S.-Soviet relations. -
The Hollywood Ten were 10 motion-picture producers, directors, and screenwriters who appeared before the HUAC and refused to answer questions regarding their possible communist affiliations. The impact of the Hollywood 10 was long-lasting and quickly established the "blacklist", a collection of names of Hollywood personalities suspected of having communist ties. Those on the list rarely found work in the movies. They only contributed to Americans fear that communists could be anyone. -
The Marshall Plan was a U.S sponsored program designed to rehabilitate the economies of 17 western and southern European countries in order to create stable conditions in which democratic institutions could survive in the aftermath of WW II. It generated a resurgence of European industrialization and brought extensive investment into the region. It was also a stimulant to the U.S. economy by establishing markets for American goods. The plan was successful in stopping the spread of Communism. -
The Soviet Union created a blockade around West Berlin in response to American and British officials refusal to allow Russia say in the economic future of Germany. Truman's administration responded by a massive airlift of food, water, clothing, and medicine to people in the surrounded city. American planes provided over 2 million people with supplies. The airlift's success backfired against Russia by showcasing America's technological advantage. West Germany became an independent nation. -
NATO was created in 1949 by the United States, Canada, and several Western European nations to provide collective security against the Soviet Union. NATO was the first peacetime military alliance the United States entered into outside of the Western Hemisphere. NATO not only helps to defend the territory of its members, but also engages where possible and when necessary to project its values further afield, prevent and manage crises, stabilize post-conflict situations and support reconstruction. -
Rock and Roll emerged as the sound in the 1950s. Rock and Roll had a transformative effect on American society because it encouraged younger people to break out of the more conservative American mold of the older generations. Rock and Roll also increased the use of technology in daily life, as well as implemented civil rights movements that bolstered minority groups and races. -
Korean War, conflict between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea- North Korea and the Republic of Korea- South Korea. The Korean War boosted GDP growth in the U.S through government spending, which in turn constrained investment and consumption. While taxes were raised significantly to finance the war, the Federal Reserve followed an anti-inflationary policy. In the aftermath of the war, the United States funneled significant aid to South Korea under the auspices of the (UNKRA). -
Named after the firm Levitt & Sons, Inc. founded by Abraham Levitt, the settlement was built for returning World War II veterans and is today considered one of the first mass-produced suburbs in the country. These homes were more affordable and allowed families to move out of apartments or older building of the inner cities. The Suburbs helped Americans fulfill part of the American Dream of home ownership. These towns became the most influential housing development of its time. -
He signed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and sent Army troops to enforce federal court orders which integrated schools in Little Rock. His largest program was the Interstate Highway System. He promoted the establishment of strong science education via the National Defense Education Act. He served as Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force in Europe. He planned the invasion of Normandy from the Western Front. Eisenhower dramatically changed many economic and social changes in the U.S. -
This was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court which the Court ruled that U.S. state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional. Previously, Plessy v Ferguson determined that schools could be separate if they were equal, but they weren't equal. This lead Thurgood Marshall to represent Linda Brown in advocating for desegregated schools. Ending segregation in the nation's public schools provided a major catalyst for the civil rights movement. -
Sparking the civil rights movement, Rosa refused to give her seat up for a white man on a segregated Montgomery bus in 1955. Thus the Montgomery Bus Boycott was created by leaders of the local black community. The boycott lasted more than a year, which deeply wounded the bus company. As a result Rosa lost her job. It ended when Supreme Court ruled that bus segregation was unconstitutional in Browder v Gayle. She became a symbol of strength and dignity in the struggle to end racial segregation. -
President Eisenhower saw the advantage of highways during World War ll, as they enhanced mobility of the Allies. Highways were seen as a national defense system to help the well-being of citizens. Funding for the bill posed an issue that was resolved by the U.S' fear of surprise attacks of the USSR. The Federal Aid Act of 1956 that allowed highways altered the modern day of people. Newfound mobility spurred substantial growth in interstate commerce and urbanization over the future decades. -
Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Christian minister and activist who became the most visible spokesman and leader in the civil rights movement. He advocated for peaceful approaches to some of society's biggest problems. He was the driving force behind watershed events such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the 1963 March on Washington, which helped bring about such landmark legislation as the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. His "I Have A Dream" speech influenced civil rights. -
The Little Rock Nine were nine students who enrolled at a formally all-white high school in Little Rock Arkansas. They were used as a test of the Brown v Board of Ed. Supreme Court case that declared segregated schools were unconstitutional. They were denied entrance into the school by the Arkansas National Guard and were harassed by hundreds of protesters. They were escorted by the troops sent by Eisenhower to ensure they were protected at school. They paved the way for desegregated schools. -
The Greensboro sit-in was a civil rights protest that started in 1960, when young African American students staged a sit-in at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina, and refused to leave after being denied service. The sit-in movement soon spread to college towns throughout the South. The sit-in movement produced a new sense of pride and power for African Americans. By rising up on their own and achieving substantial success protesting against segregation. -
Ruby Bridges was the first African American child to integrate an all-white public elementary school in the South. She never missed a day of school despite the protests and violence towards her and displayed her on-going fight to desegregate schools and support the civil rights movement. Ruby Bridges helped reform education to where it is now. No more white schools or African-American schools, just one school of all the future generations together as one. -
It was believed that Cuba held Soviet missiles that could potentially be fired on the U.S. Leaders of the U.S and the Soviet Union engaged in a stand-off over the ship with USSR nuclear weapons. JFK notified Americans about the missiles which sent a panic in the U.S. He explained his plan to enact and naval blockade around Cuba to show the U.S would use military force if threatened to ensure national security. This led to the U.S promising to not invade Cuba. -
The Children's Crusade also known as the Children's March, was a march by over 1,000 students in Birmingham, Alabama. Initiated and organized by Rev. Bevel, the purpose of the march was to walk downtown to talk to the mayor about segregation in their city. Many students were arrested only to be set free to do it again the next day. Bull Connor had the crowds sprayed with fire hoses and released dogs on them. It was televised and caused JFK to publicly support the civil rights legislation. -
A massive protest of over 250,000 people that gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. The march for jobs and freedom was aimed at shining light on the inequalities faced by African Americans after a century since the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. MLK Jr. also gave his famous speech "I have a dream". The march helped spark John F Kennedy to issue executive order forbidding discrimination against workers in defense industries and government. -
The act outlawed discriminatory voting practices adopted in many southern states after the Civil War. This included literary tests and a prerequisite to voting. African Americans in the south faced troubles in voting. They risked harassment, violence, and intimidation when registering to vote. Civil rights leaders ...
