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Slaves from Africa land in Virginia.
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The importation of slaves from other countries is stopped by Congress.
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The first shots at Ft. Sumter in Charleston, SC spark the Civil War
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President Abraham Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation which frees the slaves.
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The Confederates surrender to the Union and the North and South are once again united. The South begins reconstruction of buildings and lives.
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The earliest collection of songs from the slaves are published into books.
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Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag", soon to be one of his most famous works, is published and will impact the sound of blues.
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The first African American music is recorded by Victor Records called "Camp Meeting Shouts".
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W.C. Handy is at a train station in Missouri. He sees a man playing on a guitar with a knife.
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W.C. Handy records his song "Memphis Blues" and it's published into sheet music.
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The United States enters the war.
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Mammie Smith has her song "Crazy Blues" recorded by Okeh Records and makes her record debut.
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In Atlanta, Georgia, Ralph Peer makes the record debut of folk blues and this later becomes country music.
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Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey perform the blues for audiences and these become classic blues.
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New recording equipment is introduced and is used.
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The Stock Market crashes leading to the Great Depression and cripples the record industry.
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The electric guitar is first recorded and played by Eddie Durham which will be used to transform the sound of blues.
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After the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the US enters the war against the Axis Powers.
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Muddy Waters makes his first Chicago recordings, beginning his tenure as the dominant figure in the Chicago blues and a key link between the Mississippi Delta and the urban styles.
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Jerry Wexler, an editor at Billboard magazine, substitutes the term "rhythm and blues" for the older "race" records
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B.B. King gets a major hit with his version of "Three O'Clock Blues"
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"That's All Right" is covered by Elvis Presley.
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Samuel Charters publishes The Country Blues, fueling the blues element of the folk music revival.
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Freedom Summer was the civil rights campaign to register black voters, which draws young whites to the Southern States.
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The crowd for B.B. King and Muddy Waters in New York City is mostly a white audience.
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Columbia Records releases Robert Johnson's recordings on CD and it goes gold by selling 400,000 albums in 6 months.
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Because of the 100th year anniversary of W.C. Handy's encounter with the stranger at the train station, Congress declares 2003 The Year of the Blues.
