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Jamestown
This was the first colony of the Americas. 104 English men arrived in North America to start an English colony. This settlement became the first American colony in America. The name of the colony was named after the current king which was King James I. -
First slaves in America
On August 20, 1619, Angolans kidnapped by the Portuguese, arrived in the British colony of Virginia and were then bought by English colonists. The arrival of enslaved Africans in the New World marks the beginning of two and a half centuries of slavery in North America. -
The Great Awakening
The Great Awakening was a religious revival that took place in the 1730s and 40s. The idea came about after the idea of religion had grown stale. It sought to revive religion of any kind but mainly Christianity. The result of the movement was renewed religion. -
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is also known as the Seven Years War. The American colonies were against the French. Both sides received support from Indian tribes. The war put the Americas in a pit after the fight with the French. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act of 1765 was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain. It imposed a direct tax on the British colonies in America and required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper. The stamped paper was produced in London and had a revenue stamp. -
Boston Masacre
The tensions between the British and the patriots were growing. In Boston on February 1770 a patriot mob attacked a British loyalist and a gun was fired. This started an official brawl and many were killed. People know this to be the unofficial start of the Revolution. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a political protest against the tax on tea. The citizens were unhappy with the tariff placed on tea and had to show that. So, the American colonists dumped 342 chests of tea into the harbor. -
Battle of Lexington
The battles of Lexington and Concord were the very first engagements in the Revolutionary War. This battle is often remembered as "the shot heard around the world". It was the first shot taken in the Revolutionary war. Neither side knew who shot it and it didn't connect to anyone but after the shot the war broke out. -
The battle of Bunker Hill
The battle of Bunker Hill was the bloodiest battle of all time. It was fought on June 17, 1775 during the early stages of the war. It is assumed that it was fought on Bunker Hill but most of the fighting was actually on Breed's Hill. The American patriots were defeated but proved they could hold their own. -
Declaration of Independance
This document written by Thomas Jefferson was written to declare independence from Britain. We had made them surrender and were ready to become our own nation. The Declaration of Independence was the first formal statement by a nation's people asserting their right to choose their government. -
Articles of Conderation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 original states of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate by the Second Continental Congress on November 15, 1777, and sent to the states for ratification. The agreement helped establish the functions of our national government just after we declared independence. -
British Surrender
The British army surrendered officially in Yorktown. America declared their independence in 1776 but it was another 5 years before we got it. But, on October 19, 1781, General Charles Cornwallis surrendered his army and we had officially won our freedom. -
Shays Rebellion
Shays rebellion was what kickstarted the government we have now. Farmers were upset with the way that the government was protecting the people. So, to show that they held a rebellion. They marched to the capital and stormed it showing that there was no protection. After this, the government changed to protect the people. -
The 3/5 Compromise
The 3/5 compromise was a deal between the North and the South. It decided whether or not the slaves would count towards electoral votes. Northerners didn't have slaves so it was not fair to count them. They settled on counting each slave as 3/5 of a person. -
Washington's Presidency
The presidency of George Washington began on April 30, 1789, when Washington was inaugurated as the first president of the United States and ended on March 4, 1797. Washington took office after the 1788–89 presidential election, the nation's first presidential election as we know it today. He was elected unanimously. -
Compromise of 1790
The Compromise of 1790 was a compromise between Alexander Hamilton with Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Hamilton won the decision for the national government to take over and pay the state debts. While Jefferson and Madison obtained the national capital for the South. -
Bill of Rights
These were the first 10 amendments added to the US constitution in 1791. These were added to gain support from the anti-federalist party who did not want a government. The 10 amendments added were meant to bring both parties togeth to create a more unified nation. -
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion was a violent tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 and ending in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington. Under the command of American Revolutionary War veteran Major James McFarlane. The people were mad about the tax on their whiskey so they protested. -
The First Bank of America
The First Bank of the United States was the first central bank to serve as the American government's fiscal agent. It was also a stable national bank open to public and commercial transactions. At a time when the nation only had local banks with limited scope, this was on a much bigger scale. Many people were frightened and worried about their rights of their own money. -
Temperance Movement
The temperance movement took place in the United States from about 1800 to 1933. In the early 1800s, many Americans believed that drinking was immoral and that alcohol was a threat to the nation's success. These beliefs led to widespread support for temperance. Temperance means not drinking alcohol. Many people thought that being a sober nation was for the benefit of the people. -
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from Napoleonic France in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or approximately eighteen dollars per square mile, the United States nominally acquired a total of 828,000 square miles. -
End of Slave Trade
On the first day of January 1808, a new Federal law made it illegal to import captive people from Africa into the United States. This date marked the permanent, legal closure of the trans-Atlantic slave trade in our country. -
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought between the United States and Great Britain. It was primarily over the impressment of American sailors by the British Navy. But, there were also disagreements over trade, western expansion, and Native American policy. The war ended inconclusively after three years of fighting. -
Monroe Doctrine
In 1823 U.S. President James Monroe proclaimed the United States as protector of the Western Hemisphere. The doctrine became a mainstay of U.S. foreign policy, laying the groundwork for U.S. expansionist and interventionist practices in the decades to come. -
Andrew Jackson's Presidency
Jackson was elected the seventh president of the United States in 1828. Known as the "people's president," Jackson destroyed the Second Bank of the United States, founded the Democratic Party, supported individual liberty, and instituted policies that resulted in the forced migration of Native Americans. -
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was part of the Indian Removal Act. The Indian Removal Act was a series of forced displacements and ethnic cleansing of approximately 60,000 Native Americans. This happened to all of the Five Civilized Tribes between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government. -
The Alamo
The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar, killing most of the Texians and Tejanos inside. -
The Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the United States and abroad. -
Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo
This treaty, signed on February 2, 1848, ended the war between the United States and Mexico. By its terms, Mexico ceded 55 percent of its territory, including parts of present-day Arizona, California, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah, to the United States. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850 that defused a political confrontation between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired in the Mexican–American War. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas describes the period of repeated outbreaks of violent guerrilla warfare between pro-slavery and anti-slavery forces following the creation of the new territory of Kansas in 1854. In all, some 55 people were killed between 1855 and 1859. -
Dredd Scott case
Dred Scott v. Sandford was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that the United States Constitution was not meant to include American citizenship for people of African descent, regardless of whether they were enslaved or free. -
John Brown's raid
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was an effort by abolitionist John Brown, from October 16 to 18, 1859, to initiate a slave revolt in Southern states by taking over the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. It has been called the dress rehearsal for, or Tragic Prelude to, the Civil War. -
Lincoln's Presidency
Abraham Lincoln's career as America's 16th president spanned about four years, from March 4, 1861, to his murder on April 15, 1865, by a Confederate sympathizer. Abraham Lincoln was most known for his role in the Civil War but had many other contributions also. One was the trans-continental railroads. -
Battle of Shiloh
This battle took place from April 6 to April 7, 1862, and was one of the major early battles of the Civil War. The battle began when the Confederate Army launched a surprise attack on Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant in Tennessee. After initial successes, resulting in a Union victory. Both sides suffered heavy losses, with more than 23,000 total casualties, and the level of violence shocked North and South alike. -
Emancipation Proclamation
President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, as the nation approached its third year of bloody civil war. The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." -
13th Ammendment
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for a crime. The amendment was passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified by the required 27 of the then 36 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18. -
Lincoln's Assassination
Abraham Lincoln was killed at a theater while watching a play. He was killed by John Wilkes Booth. John Wilkes Booth was a confederate sympathizer and didn't support Lincoln's actions. -
14th Ammendment
All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. -
Plessy v Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson, was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that racial segregation laws did not violate the U.S. Constitution as long as the facilities for each race were equal in quality, a doctrine that came to be known as "separate but equal". -
The USS Maine Explosion
The USS Maine was a United States Navy ship that sank in Havana Harbor in 1898. This provoked the US. It was a very big contributor to the start of our next war, Spanish-American war. -
The Annexation of Hawaii
The Spanish-American war was causing many changes in the world. This particular change is the reason Hawaii is a state. Hawaii declared itself an Independent Republic. This was brought up because of the Spanish-American war. After this, we annexed Hawaii in 1898 and officially made it a territory in 1900. -
The de Lome Letter is Published
In 1898, a letter written by the Spanish minister was intercepted by Cuban revolutionaries and given to US officials. It was then published nationwide by Hearst Press on February 9th. It criticized President McKinley and admitted that they had no intentions of honoring a deal with the US. It was one of the final straws for our declaration of the Spanish-American war. -
Anthracite Coal Strike
Coal miners went on strike after mine operators wouldn't negotiate with them to meet their demands for better working conditions and higher wages. The miners threatened to stop production which would've devastated the U.S. economy. Roosevelt stepped in and demanded that mine owners negotiate with the demands or he would use the U.S. military to take control of the mines. This was huge as it represented the first time in US history that the government sided with labor over big business. -
The Jungle
Upton Sinclair became one of the most famous muckrakers due to his novel, "The Jungle". "The Jungle" was made to expose the terrible conditions of the meat packing industry. It gave terrible descriptions of meat and wild descriptions of the conditions of the factories. This shocked the nation, and it was a huge factor in the creation of the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, which led to the eventual creation of the FDA we know today. -
Hepburn Act
United States federal law expanded the jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce Commission and gave it the power to set maximum railroad rates, which led to the discontinuation of free passes to loyal shippers. The Act effectively created the federal government's first true regulatory agency. The Act gave the government the power to set and limit shipping costs, which changed the government's role in industry. -
The Antiquities Act
President Theodore Roosevelt created the Antiquities Act, and it was the first law to protect historic, prehistoric, and scientific features on Federal lands. It allows presidents to protect both historic and natural sites. This ranged from national parks such as Yosemite to historic sites such as the Statue of Liberty. This law has allowed a lot of the natural beauty of America to be preserved while also giving knowledge, appreciation, and entertainment for generations to come. -
The Pure Food and Drug Act
Many people in the progressive era began to question how safe the food and drugs they were consuming were. Upton Sinclair's novel "The Jungle" brought this concern to the forefront. It exposed the unsanitary practices in the meat packing industry. Pressured by public outrage, Congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act which prohibited the sale of misbranded or adulterated food and drugs and laid the foundations for the US's first consumer protection agency called the FDA. -
The Model T
Henry Ford created the first mass-made vehicle, the Model T, by creating a highly efficient moving machine revolutionized the industry, in which he was able to produce a mass amount of uniform vehicles and sell them for very low rates. Not only did this create a massive boom in the automobile industry, but it also supported other industries such as steel, glass, oil, etc. The production of the Model T is responsible for the mobilization of America and the advancement of the US as a whole. -
NAACP
The NAACP was created in 1909 by an interracial group of WEB Du Bois and others concerned with fighting for the rights of African Americans. It was created following a deadly race riot in Springfield. The NAACP went on to lobby for landmark legislation including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. It is the nation's oldest civil rights organization and led the black civil rights struggle in fighting injustices throughout the 20s and 30s. -
The Great Migration
The Great Migration was one of the largest population movements in history. Millions of African Americans migrated from the South to Northern urban areas. Historians argue about the exact duration of the migration, but many agree that it peaked during WWI. Millions of white men went overseas and left millions of jobs behind giving African Americans opportunities they had never had before. -
Federal Reserve Act
The panic in 1907 led Congress to write the Federal Reserve Act. The Federal Reserve Act was implemented to establish economic stability in the US by creating a central bank to oversee monetary policy, which is one of the most influential laws shaping the US financial system. The system consisted of twelve regional Federal Reserve banks jointly responsible for managing the country's money supply, making loans providing oversight to banks, and serving as a lender of the last resort. -
16th Ammendment
The 16th Amendment allows Congress to levy a tax on income from any source without apportioning it among the states and without regard to the census. Essentially, the amendment established Congress's right to impose a federal income tax. This affects the US today as Congress can also put laws on taxes in order. The collected income taxes allow the government to keep an army, build roads and bridges, enforce laws, and carry out other important duties. -
Federal Reserve is Created
The Federal Reserve was created under President Woodrow Wilson by Congress in order to provide the U.S. with a safer, more flexible financial system. Before this, the nation was struck by the financial crisis, which caused people to withdraw all their money from banks. This act caused thousands of banks to collapse. The Federal Reserve was then created to provide an emergency reserve for banks to fall back upon in times of crisis and to prevent further major bank collapses. -
Clayton Antitrust Act
The new law declared strikes, boycotts, and labor unions legal under federal law. The act continues to regulate US business practices today. It prohibits anticompetitive price discrimination, prohibits certain exclusive deal practices expands the power of private parties to sue and obtain damages, and permits union organization. -
National Park Service
President Woodrow Wilson signed the act to create a new federal bureau in the Department of the Interior. This new Federal Bureau would be responsible for protecting the 35 national parks and monuments that were managed at the time and that were to be established. This was big in the creation and the main reason we have National Parks today. -
WWI
On April 4, 1917, the US Senate voted in support of declaring war on Germany. The House agreed and signed two days later and the US then declared war on German ally Hungary on December 7, 1917. US reasons for entry into the war were unrestricted submarine warfare, the German invasion of Belgium, American loans, and the Zimmerman Telegram. The entry of the US into WWI meant that the defeat of Germany would be possible. Without the US joining, the world could be differently shaped today. -
Espionage Act
The Act prohibited obtaining information, copying descriptions, or recording pictures of any information relating to the national defense. This also applied to any intent or reason to believe that the information may be used for the injury of the US or the advantage of a foreign nation. It made it a crime to intervene or attempt to undermine the efforts of the US armed forces during a war or to assist enemies' war efforts. -
Red Scare
During the Red Scare, fear over the spread of communism filled Americans as many feared recent immigrants and dissidents. They repealed communist, socialist, or anarchist ideologies. Palmer conducted a series of raids on individuals he believed were dangerous to American security, deporting 249 Russian immigrants without just cause. The Scare led to the deportation of many people and Americans greatly feared communism, assuming any immigrant or member of a labor union was one. -
Fourteen Points
The Fourteen Points was a statement of principles for peace that was used for peace negotiations in order to end WWI. It ensured open diplomacy without secret treaties, equal trade conditions, economic free trade on seas, decreased armaments among all nations, and an adjustment of colonial claims. The points were designed to undermine the Central Powers' will to continue and to inspire the Allies to victory. Woodrow Wilson wanted to outline the specific goals of the war for the US. -
Immigration Act of 1924
The act banned the limited number of immigrants allowed entry into the United States through a national origins quota. It gave visas to two percent of the total number of people of each nationality in the US from the 1890 census. It completely excluded Japanese and other East Asian immigrants. -
Scopes Monkey Trial
American legal case in 1925 where a substitute teacher was accused of violating Tennessee's Butler Act, which made it unlawful to teach evolution in any state-funded school. He was found guilty and was fined, but the verdict was overturned on technicality. This trial set the stage for larger culture wars between fundamentalists and their theologically liberal counterparts on feminism, abortion, and the LGBTQ movements that shaped the 20th century. -
The First New Deal
The First New Deal was designed to boost prices to a level that would restore profitability to American agriculture and alleviate rural poverty. President FDR wanted to provide immediate economic relief and bring about reforms to stabilize the economy. The three goals of the New Deal were relief, recovery, and reform. It provided support for the unemployed, youth, farmers, and the elderly. It had new constraints on the banking industry and efforts to re-inflate the economy after prices fell. -
Indian Reorganization Act
The Act was created to conserve and develop Indian lands and resources, extend to Native Americans the right to form businesses and other organizations, establish a credit system for them, and to grant certain rights of home rule and education to them. The Act was aimed at decreasing federal control of American Indian affairs and increasing their self-government and responsibility. The Act improved the political, social, and economic conditions of American Indians in many ways. -
Second New Deal
The Second New Deal included programs to redistribute wealth, income, and power in favor of the old, the poor, and labor unions. The most import programs included Social Security, the Banking Act of 1935, and the National Labor Relations Act. The second New Deal focused on social justice and the creation of economic security instead of a simple economic recovery. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration, giving millions of American jobs constructing stadiums, roads, and bridges. -
Social Security Act
The Social Security act was signed into law by President Roosevelt. It granted several provision for general welfare alongside creating a social insurance program designed to pay retired workers over 65 a continuing income after retirement. It established two types of provisions 1) a Federal aid to the States to enable them to cash pensions 2) a system of Federal age-old benefits for retired workers. Social Security remains ones of the nation's most successful, effective, and popular programs. -
Munich Conference
The Munich Conference was a European diplomatic conference in 1938 where Britain and France conceded to Hitler's demand for Czechoslovakia as long as he agreed to expand no further. It was a settlement between Germany, Great Britain, France, and Italy that allowed Germany to annex Sudetenland. The agreement averted the outbreak of war but gave Czechoslovakia away to German conquest. -
CORE
Nonviolent civil rights organization that was founded in 1942, committed to the "Double V Campaign". The organization worked to improve race relations and discriminatory policies through direct-action projects. In the late 50's, CORE challenged public segregation and launched voter registration drives for AAs. After WWII, CORE became a major force in the civil rights movement with the Freedom Rides of 1961 and the Freedom Summer Project of 1964 being major achievements. -
Pearl Harbor
Japanese planes attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This surprise attack by 350 Japanese aircrafts caused 2,403 US personnel deaths with 19 US Navy ships being destroyed or damaged during the attack. The unprovoked attack brought the US into WWII as they immediately declared war on Japan. This attack forever ended the US's pre-1941 stance on isolationism and neutrality as it marked the entry of the world's mightiest military power into WWII. -
Double V Campaign
The Double V Campaign was a slogan that was championed by the largest black newspaper in the US and promoted efforts towards democracy for civilian defense workers and African Americans in the military. The two objectives were to have a victory in the war abroad and victory against discrimination on the home front. The campaign helped black Americans by relieving their plight faced in the army and at home but it did created a narrow appreciation for the complexity of AA wartime situations. -
Executive Order 9066
The order authorized the evacuation of all people deemed a threat to national security from the West Coast to relocation centers further inland. Over 100,000 Japanese American men, women, and children were moved into internment camps, although over half the people evacuated were second-generation Japanese Americans). None of the internees were actually convicted of helping the Japanese government. In 1988, President Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act, giving each former internee $20,000. -
GI Bill
Congress wanted to reward almost all wartime veterans with a bill that provided WWII veterans with funds for college education, unemployment insurance, and housing. It put higher education into the reach of millions of WWII veterans. The program was regarded as a success and a major contributor to stabilizing the post-war economy and America's long-term economic growth. It also kept millions of veterans from flooding the job market all at once. -
D Day
June 6 1944 was the day Allied forces launched the largest amphibious invasion in the history of warfare, where Allies landed on the beaches of Normandy to liberate north-west Europe from Nazi occupation. D-Day was ultimately successful as, by the end of August 1944, all of northern France had been liberated which marked the beginning of the liberation of western Europe. D-Day also served to convince the high German command that their complete defeat was upon them. -
United Nations Founded
The United Nations was founded in 1945 after WWII, wherein 51 countries committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights. The UN is one of the most powerful international organizations that is used to promote international cooperation. The UN has helped many countries and has also put in place a legal framework to combat terrorism. -
The Bomb
The US bombed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (the first instance of atomic bombs being used against humans), killing tens of thousands of people and obliterating the cities. The aim of the bombing was to bring an end to the war by destroying the enemy's war industries, killing employees of those industries, and undermining civilian morale. President Truman knew that attempting to invade Japan would result in horrific American causalities, while the bombs would bring a speedy end. -
Yalta Conference
The Yalta Conference was a meeting of the three WWII allies of US, Britain, and the Soviet Union. President Roosevelt, Prime Minister Churchill, and Premier Stalin met in February in Yalta. It was agreed that the Soviet Union would enter war against Japan and that after Germany's surrender, it would be divided into four post-war occupation zones. The aim of the conference was to shape a postwar peace that represented a plan to give self-determination to the liberated people of Europe. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was a US 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 the aftermath of WWI. It resulted in a resurgence of European industrialization and stimulation of the US economy. Rendered as one of the greatest economic and foreign policy successes of the US, the Marshall Plan ultimately transferred $13 billion dollars to Europe. -
Levittown
Levittown was created following the shortage of housing following WWII. The nation's first planned community was designed to provide a large amount of housing in a time when there was high demand for affordable family homes. This suburban development was the symbol of the "American Dream" because it allowed thousands of families to become home owners. These suburbs allowed people to escape the cramped conditions of the cities. Levitt also revolutionized the process of home building. -
Truman Doctrine
Truman established the doctrine to establish that the US would provide political, military, and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from internal or external authoritarian forces. It was intended to prevent the spread of communism following WWII by providing support to targeted countries. The Truman Doctrine became the foundation of American foreign policy that led to the formation of NATO in 1949. It demonstrated that the US would not return to isolationism after WWII. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Trade Organization was created by the US, Canada, and some Western European nations to provide collective security against the Soviet Union. The binding principle of the alliance is collective defense, a commitment to protect each other. NATO marked the US's departure from an isolationist foreign policy as it became the nation's first peacetime military alliance with states outside of the Americas. It also shaped the politics of the Cold War and is still an organization today.