Early American Wars

  • The Battles of Lexington and Concord

    The Battles of Lexington and Concord
    The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy, and Cambridge
  • The Winter at Valley Forge

    The Winter at Valley Forge
    Valley Forge is the location of the 1777-1778 winter encampment of the Continental Army under General George Washington during the American Revolutionary War.
  • Benedict Arnold turns traitor

    Benedict Arnold turns traitor
    In 1779, he entered into secret negotiations with the British, agreeing to turn over the U.S. post at West Point in return for money and a command of the British army
  • The Battle of Cowpens

    The Battle of Cowpens
    The Battle of Cowpens was an engagement during the American Revolutionary War fought on January 17, 1781, near the town of Cowpens, South Carolina, between U.S. forces under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan and British forces under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton, as part of campaign in the Carolinas.
  • The USS Constitution defeats the HMS Guerriere

    The USS Constitution defeats the HMS Guerriere
    USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere was a battle between an American and British ship during the War of 1812, about 400 miles southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It took place on the 19th of August 1812, one month after the war's first engagement between British and American forces
  • The Battle of Baltimore

    The Battle of Baltimore
    The Battle of Baltimore was a sea/land battle fought between British invaders and American defenders in the War of 1812. American forces repulsed sea and land invasions off the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland, and killed the commander of the invading British forces
  • The Battle of New Orleans

    The Battle of New Orleans
    The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815 between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles southeast of the French Quarter of New Orleans, in the current suburb of Chalmette, Louisiana.
  • The Election of Andrew Jackson

    The Election of Andrew Jackson
    The 1828 United States presidential election was the 11th quadrennial presidential election. It was held from Friday, October 31 to Tuesday, December 2, 1828.
  • The battle of the Alamo

    The battle of the Alamo
    In December 1835, in the early stages of Texas' war for independence from Mexico, a group of Texan (or Texian) volunteers led by George Collinsworth and Benjamin Milam overwhelmed the Mexican garrison at the Alamo and captured the fort, seizing control of San Antonio.
  • Mexico loses California, New Mexico, and Arizona

     Mexico loses California, New Mexico, and Arizona
    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 the present-day states of California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, most of Arizona and Colorado, and parts of Oklahoma, Kansas, and Wyoming.
  • South Carolina secedes from the United States

    South Carolina secedes from the United States
    South Carolina became the first state to secede from the federal Union on December 20, 1860. The victory of Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 presidential election triggered cries for disunion across the slaveholding South.
  • Abraham Lincoln Elected President

    Abraham Lincoln Elected President
    The 1860 United States presidential election was the 19th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 6, 1860.
  • The First Battle of Bull Run

    The First Battle of Bull Run
    The First Battle of Bull Run, also known as the Battle of First Manassas, was the first major battle of the American Civil War. The battle was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, just north of the city of Manassas and about 30 miles west-southwest of Washington, D.C.
  • The Battle of Gettysburg

    The Battle of Gettysburg
    The Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War
  • The Treaty at Appomattox Courthouse

    The Treaty at Appomattox Courthouse
    The Battle of Appomattox Court House, fought in Appomattox County, Virginia, on the morning of April 9, 1865, was one of the last battles of the American Civil War (1861–1865). It was the final engagement of Confederate General in Chief, Robert E. Lee, and his Army of Northern Virginia before they surrendered to the Union Army of the Potomac under the Commanding General of the United States Army,
  • The sinking of the USS Maine

    The sinking of the USS Maine
    On February 15, 1898, an explosion of unknown origin sank the battleship U.S.S. Maine in the Havana, Cuba harbor, killing 266 of the 354 crew members. The sinking of the Maine incited United States' passions against Spain, eventually leading to a naval blockade of Cuba and a declaration of war.
  • The Adoption of the Star Spangled Banner as the National Anthem

    The Adoption of the Star Spangled Banner as the National Anthem
    Star-Spangled Banner' becomes U.S. national anthem, March 3, 1931. On this day in 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed a bill designating “The Star-Spangled Banner” as the official national anthem of the United States.