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Gabriel Prosser Causes an Outrage
Gabriel Prosser, an enslaved African American blacksmith, organizes a slave revolt intending to march on Richmond, Virginia. The conspiracy is uncovered, and Prosser and a number of the rebels are hanged. Virginia's slave laws are consequently tightened. -
Capital in Washington, DC.
The U.S. capital is moved from Philadelphia to Washington, DC. -
U.S. Congress Meets in Washington
U.S. Congress meets in Washington, DC, for the first time. -
Thomas Jefferson as President
Thomas Jefferson is inaugurated as the third president in Washington, DC. -
Marbury vs. Madison
Marbury v. Madison: Landmark Supreme Court decision greatly expands the power of the Court by establishing its right to declare acts of Congress unconstitutional. -
The Louisiana Purchase
Louisiana Purchase: United States agrees to pay France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory, which extends west from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and comprises about 830,000 sq mi. As a result, the U.S. nearly doubles in size. The treaty was signed on May 2nd. -
Lewis and Clark's Expedition
Lewis and Clark set out from St. Louis, Mo., on expedition to explore the West and find a route to the Pacific Ocean. -
Jefferson's second inauguration
Jefferson's second inauguration -
Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific Ocean
Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific Ocean -
James Madison as President
James Madison is inaugurated as the fourth president. -
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War of 1812 - The Treaty of Ghent
War of 1812: the U.S. declares war on Britain over British interference with American maritime shipping and westward expansion.
Madison's second inauguration. (March 4th, 1813)
British capture Washington, DC., and set fire to White House and Capitol. (Aug. 1814)
Francis Scott Key writes Star-Spangled Banner as he watches British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore. (Sept. 13-14, 1814)
Treaty of Ghent is signed, officially ending the war. -
James Monroe as President
James Monroe is inaugurated as the fifth president. -
McCulloch vs. Maryland
McCulloch v. Maryland: Landmark Supreme Court decision upholds the right of Congress to establish a national bank, a power implied but not specifically enumerated by the Constitution. -
U.S. Gains Florida
Spain agrees to cede Florida to the United States. -
Missouri Compromise
Missouri Compromise: In an effort to maintain the balance between free and slave states, Maine (formerly part of Massachusetts) is admitted as a free state so that Missouri can be admitted as a slave state; except for Missouri, slavery is prohibited in the Louisiana Purchase lands north of latitude 36°30'. -
Monroe's second inauguration.
Monroe's second inauguration. -
Denmark Vesey
Denmark Vesey, an enslaved African American carpenter who had purchased his freedom, plans a slave revolt with the intent to lay siege on Charleston, South Carolina. The plot is discovered, and Vesey and 34 coconspirators are hanged. -
The Monroe Doctrine
Monroe Doctrine: In his annual address to Congress, President Monroe declares that the American continents are henceforth off-limits for further colonization by European powers. -
Gibbons vs. Ogden
Gibbons v. Ogden: Landmark Supreme Court decision broadly defines Congress's right to regulate interstate commerce. -
Erie Canal
Erie Canal, linking the Hudson River to Lake Erie, is opened for traffic. -
John Quincy Adams as President
John Quincy Adams is inaugurated as the sixth president. -
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Construction is begun on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the first public railroad in the U.S. -
Texas Declares Independence
Texas declares its independence from Mexico. -
Andrew Jackson as President
Andrew Jackson is inaugurated as seventh president. -
Native American Relocation
By the late 1830s the Jackson administration has relocated nearly 50,000 Native Americans. -
Indian Removal Act
President Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act, which authorizes the forced removal of Native Americans living in the eastern part of the country to lands west of the Mississippi River. -
Nat Turner and His Rebellion
Nat Turner, an enslaved African American preacher, leads the most significant slave uprising in American history. He and his band of about 80 followers launch a bloody, day-long rebellion in Southampton County, Virginia. The militia quells the rebellion, and Turner is eventually hanged. As a consequence, Virginia institutes much stricter slave laws. -
The Liberator
William Lloyd Garrison begins publishing the Liberator, a weekly paper that advocates the complete abolition of slavery. He becomes one of the most famous figures in the abolitionist movement. -
Jackson's Second Inauguration.
Jackson's second inauguration. -
The Battle of the Alamo
Texan defenders of the Alamo are all killed during siege by the Mexican Army. (Feb. 24th - March 6th) -
Texans Defeat Mexicans
Texans defeat Mexicans at San Jacinto -
Martin Van Buren as President
Martin Van Buren is inaugurated as the eighth president. -
Trail of Tears
More than 15,000 Cherokee Indians are forced to march from Georgia to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. Approximately 4,000 die from starvation and disease along the “Trail of Tears.” -
William Henry Harrison as President
William Henry Harrison is inaugurated as the ninth president. -
John Tyler Steps In
Harrison dies one month later and is succeeded in office by his vice president, John Tyler. -
Manifest Destiny
The term “manifest destiny” appears for the first time in a magazine article by John L. O'Sullivan. It expresses the belief held by many white Americans that the United States is destined to expand across the continent. (July - August) -
Annexation of Texas
U.S. annexes Texas by joint resolution of Congress -
James Polk as President
James Polk is inaugurated as the 11th president -
The Wilmot Proviso
The Wilmot Proviso, introduced by Democratic representative David Wilmot of Pennsylvania, attempts to ban slavery in territory gained in the Mexican War The proviso is blocked by Southerners, but continues to enflame the debate over slavery. -
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Mexican War - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Mexican War: U.S. declares war on Mexico in effort to gain California and other territory in Southwest.
War concludes with signing of Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.
Mexico recognizes Rio Grande as new boundary with Texas and, for $15 million, agrees to cede territory comprising present-day California, Nevada, Utah, most of New Mexico and Arizona, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. -
Oregon Territory
Oregon Treaty fixes U.S.-Canadian border at 49th parallel; U.S. acquires Oregon territory. -
Women's Rights Convention
Women's rights convention is held at Seneca Falls, N.Y. (July 19th - 20th) -
Gold is Discovered
Gold is discovered at Sutter's Mill in California. The gold rush reaches its height the following year. -
Harriet Tubman's Journey
Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery and becomes one of the most effective and celebrated members of the Underground Railroad. -
Zachary Taylor as President
Zachary Taylor is inaugurated as the 12th president. -
Fugitive Slave Act of 1850
The Fugitive Slave Act was passed by the United States Congress as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern slave-holding interests and Northern Free-Soilers. The act required that slaves be returned to their owners, even if they were in a free state. The act also made the federal government responsible for finding, returning, and trying escaped slaves. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin Published
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly, is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. The novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans and slavery in the U.S. and is said to have "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War". -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 was an organic act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. It was drafted by Democratic Senator Stephen A. Douglas, passed by the 33rd United States Congress, and signed into law by President Franklin Pierce. -
Dred Scott vs. Sandford Supreme Court Decision
Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857), was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court held that the Constitution of the United States was not meant to include American citizenship for black people, regardless of whether they were enslaved or free, and therefore the rights and privileges it confers upon American citizens could not apply to them -
Ableman vs. Booth Supreme Court Decision
Ableman v. Booth was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that State courts cannot issue rulings on federal law that contradict the decisions of federal courts, overturning a decision by the Supreme Court of Wisconsin. -
John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry was an 1859 effort by abolitionist John Brown to initiate an armed slave revolt in Southern states by taking over a United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. It has been called the dress rehearsal for the Civil War.
(Oct 16, 1859 – Oct 18, 1859) -
Lincoln as President
Abraham Lincoln was elected as 16th President of the United States in 1860. His inauguration was on March 4th, 1861, -
Secession of 11 States and Formation of Union of Confederacy
The Confederate States of America was a collection of 11 states that seceded from the United States in 1860 following the election of President Abraham Lincoln. Led by Jefferson Davis and existing from 1861 to 1865, the Confederacy struggled for legitimacy and was never recognized as a sovereign nation. -
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The Civil War
The war began when the Confederates bombarded Union soldiers at Fort Sumter, South Carolina. The war ended in Spring, 1865. Robert E. Lee surrendered the last major Confederate army to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse. The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The Civil War began primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people. Biggest battle: Gettysburg. -
Compensated Emancipation Act of 1862
An Act for the Release of certain Persons held to Service or Labor within the District of Columbia, known colloquially as the Compensated Emancipation Act, was a law that ended slavery in the District of Columbia, providing slave owners partial compensation for releasing their slaves. Although not written by him, the act was signed by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln on April 16, 1862. April 16 is now celebrated in the city as Emancipation Day. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation, or Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln effective January 1, 1863. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation 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." -
New York City Draft Riots
The New York City draft riots, known at the time as Draft Week, were violent disturbances in Lower Manhattan, widely regarded as the culmination of white working-class discontent with new laws passed by Congress that year to draft men to fight in the ongoing American Civil War. Death(s): 119–120
(Jul 11, 1863 – Jul 16, 1863) -
West Virginia Admitted to Union as a Free State
West Virginia Admitted as the 35th State in the Union. "Mountaineers Are Always Free" is the state motto of West Virginia. The phrase reflects the history and identity of the state and indicates how West Virginia became the 35th state in the Union on June 20, 1863. -
Reconstruction Plan and Repeal of the Fugitive Slave Act
Lincoln's blueprint for Reconstruction included the Ten-Percent Plan, which specified that a southern state could be readmitted into the Union once 10 percent of its voters (from the voter rolls for the election of 1860) swore an oath of allegiance to the Union. In June 1864, Congress repealed the Fugitive Slave Act. The Civil War ended a year later, in spring 1865. -
Assassination of President Lincoln
On the evening of April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth, a famous actor and Confederate sympathizer, assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. -
Ratification of 13th Amendment
Passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified on December 6, 1865, the 13th amendment abolished slavery in the United States. -
The 14th Amendment
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. The Fourteenth Amendment granted citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans and slaves who had been emancipated after the American Civil War, including them under the umbrella phrase “all persons born or naturalized in the United States.” -
Standard Oil Co.
Standard Oil Company is incorporated by John D. Rockefeller. -
The 15th Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the federal government and each state from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude". It was ratified on February 3, 1870, as the third and last of the Reconstruction Amendments. -
Hiram Rhodes Revels
The first African-American to be sworn into office in the United States Congress, Hiram Rhodes Revels. -
Cable Car Improvements
Andrew Smith Hallidie patents an improvement in endless wire and ropeways for cable cars. -
Metropolitan Museum of Art
In New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art opens. -
Yellowstone National Park
The world's first national park is established when President Grant signs legislation enabling the establishment of Yellowstone National Park in the states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. -
The Amnesty Act of 1872
Civil rights are restored to citizens of the South, except for five hundred Confederate leaders, with the passage of the Amnesty Act of 1872 and its signing by President Ulysses S. Grant. -
Beginning of an Economic Depression
An economic depression begins when the New York stock market crashed, setting off a financial panic that caused bank failures. The impact of the depression would continue for five years. -
The Women's Crusade of 1873-74
The Women's Crusade of 1873-74 is started when women in Fredonia, New York march against retail liquor dealers, leading to the creation of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. In 1917, this movement would culminate in the 18th Amendment, prohibiting the sale of liquor in the United States, a ban that would last for sixteen years. -
The Greenback Party
The U.S. Greenback Party is organized as a political organization by farmers who had been hurt financially in the Panic of 1873. -
The Civil Rights Act
The Civil Rights Act, giving equal rights to blacks in jury duty and accommodation, is passed by the United States Congress. It would be overturned in 1883 by the U.S. Supreme Court.