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President William McKinley is assassinated by anarchist Leon Czolgosz.
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Upton Sinclair's novel "The Jungle" exposes the conditions of the meatpacking industry leading to the passage of the Meat Inspection Act and Pure Food & Drug Act by Congress.
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The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory catches fire in Manhattan leading to the death 146 workers and the injury of 71 others due to the doors of the factory having been locked to prevent workers from taking unauthorized breaks.
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Archduke Ferdinand, heir to the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, is assassinated along with his wife which marked the beginning of World War I.
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The R.M.S. Lusitania is sunk by German submarine attack leading to the death of over one hundred Americans.
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German diplomat Arthur Zimmermann sends a telegram to the Mexican government in hopes of gaining aide for Germany during World War I but it is intercepted by British forces.
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Pancho Villa and his supporters raid the town of Columbus, New Mexico, killing over a dozen soldiers and citizens prompting President Woodrow Wilson to order the army led by General John Pershing to enter northern Mexico and capture Villa.
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Congress declares war on Germany and officially enters World War I.
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A new strain of flu virus appears resulting in the deaths of over 50,000,000 people worldwide.
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Congress ratifies the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote.