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Homestead Act of 1862
The Homestead Act of 1862 is signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln with the main goal of expanding the strength and progress of the nation into the Western half of its territory. The land was sold for dirt cheap ($30 for 160 acres) was just that, dirt cheap. The lack of rain made farming a tough process, so the once-promising offer turned into more of a hassle for the new settlers. Nonetheless, Americans expanded outward and eventually added in a network of railroads, creating hub cities. -
Sand Creek Massacre
This is one of the major known occurrences of white aggression towards the Native Americans and an accurate example of just how white men treated them throughout our history. In summary, a battalion of soldiers snuck into a village and murdered nearly (if not) all of the Native Americans present, including women and children. This sparked another slew of violence between the Natives and the white men, which continued to break promises of safety and autonomy over their reservations. -
Lincoln's death
Lincoln is gunned down by John Wilkes Booth -
13th Amendment is ratified
This amendment abolished slavery (except as punishment for a prisoner) -
14th Amendment is ratified
The 14th Amendment granted citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States,” which included former slaves recently freed. -
15th Amendment is ratified
15th amendment granted African American men the right to vote. -
Jay Cooke and Company closes its doors
Jay Cooke and Company, a large company which was heavily involved in railroads, officially shuts down. The closing sparked chaos, known as the Panic of 1873. This panic launched the United States into an economic depression that would last until 1879, which made an already struggling lower class face an even more difficult hand. -
Reconstruction ends
The Compromise of 1877 is agreed to, effectively ending the Era of Reconstruction. -
Dawes Severalty Act 1887
The Dawes Severalty Act is made effective, which allows for the government separation of Native American reservations, continuing the pattern of abuse by the white men. The main aim of this process was to "Kill the Indian, save the man"; basically, the goal was to end Native American culture and whitewash them into a more "civilized" society. -
The Pullman Strike begins
Railroad workers began a strike to combat the harsh treatment of their employers. It was a turning point in terms of United States labor laws, as workers were tired of having wages cut and living costs raised. It lasted until about two months and would bring the US economy to a near stands still as railroads were such a vital part of American business during the time period. -
Teddy Roosevelt rides down to Cuba
He makes a name for himself by resigning as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to lead the cavalry unit known as the Rough Riders that worked in Cuba during the Spanish-American War and does that all while looking cooler than you. -
The Spanish American War Ends
A "splendid little war" takes place between The Spanish Empire and the United States. The war is majorly one-sided and only lasts 113 days and results in little American casualties. Following the war, America places itself high up in the hierarchy of the world stage and gains the territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Phillipines. The war began on April 21, 1898. -
The Platt Amendment
The Platt Amendment is attached to the Army Appropriations bill of that year. The amendment states that the United States will grant Cuba its independence as long as certain conditions are met. The Cuban government was expected to not acquire debt, avoid foreign relations (especially those against American interests), and sign a permanent treaty with the United States. -
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt takes office
Teddy Roosevelt takes the office of President of the United States following the assassination of the former president, William McKinley. McKinley, who was murdered because of his coziness with large businesses, was propelled into the office thanks in part to the efforts of business owners like Carnegie and Rockefeller. -
President Woodrow Wilson is elected
Woodrow Wilson is elected in 1912 and takes office in 1913. He runs as a "man of the people" promising an increase of wages for American families, more favorable working conditions, and to take on the American banking system (similar to Roosevelt's war on trusts). He is later re-elected in 1916 running with the slogan of "he kept us out of war" -
The Ku Klux Klan reappears
"The Birth of a Nation" sparks a new fury of racism within the nation, claiming to be in the best interest of Americans ("Americanism"). Support for segregation increased, and at the Klan's height, it had an official membership counts reached 4 million. -
America enters World War I
The United States, despite electing a president who vowed to keep it out of the war, joins the multi-nation conflict after a perfect storm of events leads up to it, the most notable of which being the retraction of Russian forces (due to its revolution) and the Zimmerman telegraph, which was a direct threat to the safety of the United Sates and its people, which is not typically taken lightly. -
Russian Revolution
Vladimir Lenin and his Bolsheviks sparked a revolution and seized power. The revolution drew Russia away from WWI and would lead to the rise of the Communist Party and the formation of the Soviet Union, further going on to spark the United States' country-wide Red Scare and the eventual Cold War -
Wilson gives his Fourteen Points
In an address to Congress, President Woodrow Wilson issues his famous Fourteen Points aimed to achieve his desire for peace. The final of these points was the creation of the League of Nations (a precursor to the United Nations), but the League would ultimately fail, mainly due to the lack of support from the United States, since Congress would decline membership. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles, which formally ends the conflict of World War I, is signed in Paris. The document is signed by Germany and the Allied Nations, including the US, France, and Britain. The document places essentially all the fault for the war on Germany, the consequences of which would cripple the German economy (and eventually lead to a ripened nation for World War II). -
Prohibition begins
The 18th Amendment, which was passed about a year prior, goes into effect. It bans the sale, manufacturing, and transportation of alcohol, which was commonly blamed for many of the ailments of society in the time period. Knowing the American people, this didn't settle well. Bootlegging becomes extremely common and the era of Prohibition was one of the most party-hardy times in America's history. The commonplace of bootlegging also lead to a rise of organized crime. -
The Scopes Trial verdict
John Scopes faces a charge of breaking a Tennessee law that forbids teachings that go against the Bible's description of the creation of mankind, most notably evolution. Scopes intentionally set himself up for this charge as a means to tackle the validity of the law. On this date, the trial ends and Scopes is found guilty and charged a fine of $100, the minimum the law allows for. William Jennings Bryan also has his credibility destroyed throughout the process of this trial and he finally dies -
Charles Lindbergh flies like an eagle
Charles Lindbergh becomes the first (solo) person to fly across the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Paris, which took over 30 hours to complete. This new developing form of transportation would soon revolutionize the world in a similar way to the invention of trains, creating access to a wider network, as well as cheaper transportation and easier access to places, especially those overseas which could only be accessed by boat previously -
World War II begins
World War II officially begins with the invasion of Poland by Adolf Hitler and his band of Nazis. This action prompts Great Britain and France to declare war on Germany after months of tension in the region. The war would last 6 years and cause billions of dollars in damages across the world, most notably in Europe. Germany would re-arm themselves in the years prior and would sign secret alliances with Japan and Italy -
The attack on Pearl Harbor
"A date which will live in infamy" On this day, hundreds of Japanese bomber planes surprised attacked the United States military base at Pearl Harbor, killing thousands of American troops. As a direct response, the United States rallied in support of joining the war, and on the very next day, a formal declaration of war was passed within the United States Congress, which led to the Axis powers all responding which declarations of their own. -
Germany surrenders
On May 7, 1945, one week after Hitler took the cowards way out, Germany would surrender and cease fire. While this brought a conclusion to the war in Europe, Japan refused to surrender, instead choosing to fight until the bitter end (or until America dropped two bombs capable of killing over 100,000 people, whichever happened first) -
America drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima
At the conclusion of an arms race to determine who would be the first to develop nuclear bombs, America would prove successful and drop an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, vaporizing thousands of people. Due to the lack of surrender from the Japanese military, a second bomb would be dropped on Nagasaki three days later on August 9th, and this time, Japan would heed the warning and surrender on August 15th. -
Japan surrenders and ends the war
After dropping two bombs capable of killing over 100,000 people, Emperor Hirohito announced a Japanese surrender and on Sept. 2, Japan would formally surrender.
