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The Missouri Compromise
Missouri would join the US as a slave state in the event that Maine joined the US as a free state. By this time, the north consisted of no slaves as slavery was banned. In later years, Missouri would be the only exception to the ruling of free states north of the latitude 36°30' in the Kansas-Nebraska Act. -
Texas annexed by the US
Texas had been a part of Mexico prior to 1836, when it declared itself independent. Leading up to its independence, american settlers moved into the terrioty with slaves. Being that Mexico banned slavery, they attempted to enforce its law, but was met with resistance. Some settlers wished to become a part of the US, while some wished to remain independent. Regardless, the US offered to annex Texas and later obtained their it in 1846, with border being the Rio Grande, after some conflict. -
Period: to
U.S. History 1846-1930
Chapter 1: 1846-61
Chapter 2: 1861-77
Chapter 3: 1846-1930 -
The Mexican-American War
Beginning in the Texas territorial region acquired by the U.S., Mexico and the U.S. had increasing tensions after the purchase. Mexico was angry for losing Texas, and conflict continued as rebellions would break out in the California territory. President James K. Polk would continue to provoke Mexico by prodding the with offers to buy Mexican land for millions of dollars. Mexico would refused, and so Polk resorted to battle, sending troops to occupy and almost takeover the Mexican Capital. -
US - Mexican War
After high tension from the annexation of Texas, Mexico still feared that the US would continue to try conquering the rest of the South-West. Both US politicians and James K. Polk contributed to the cause of the war. Politicians did not appeal to or consider the reasons why Mexico disliked relations with the US between land agreements. Polk, being a heavy supporter of Manifest Destiny, he would push troops in Mexico full force, until finally Mexico City was occupied, spelling Mexico's defeat. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo end US-Mexican War
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo gave the US much in the way of new territory ownership to reflect its victory. The Upper portion of California, and New Mexico became a part of the US, and Texas' new border was set at the Rio Grande. Mexico was reduced to half its original size and the USA would pay Mexico $15 million for its new land and deemed it The Mexican Cession. -
Compromise of 1850
This Consisted of four separate parts.
- California would join as a free state.
- New Mexico/Utah would US states, but with no real slave status.
- The Slave Trade would be abolished in Washington, D.C.
- And the Fugitive Slave Act would be passed. -
The Fugitive Slave Act
In short, the act would criminalize anyone interfering with a slave owner's right to own a slave and restricted a fugitive slave's legal right to fair trial. Officers who did not arrest a fugitive slave was fined, while those who did were awarded. Slave owners were able to simly deem a slave a fugitive ordered for arrest. Many African-Americans were arrested and became slaves as they could not be held to fair trial. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin, written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, was about the harsh conditions and true horror that slaves had to endure and experience. It became the first glimpse for many into finding out how slaves were truly treated and sparked an uprising against pro-slavers. It sold 300,000 copies the first year in the US, and 1.5million in Great Britain. -
The Gadsden Purchase
The Gadsden Purchase was signed by James Gadsden, the US ambassador to Mexico, in order to acquire the land extending from southern Arizona to South-Western new Mexico. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
Along the 36 and 30 degree line parallel of latitude, this act would apply the ruling of popular sovereignty in order to be a division between free and slave states, those north of it being free, vice versa. Stephen Douglas advocated the bill as he supported popular sovereignty. -
Formation of the Republican Party
The Northern Whigs, Democrats, and the Free soil Parties all came together and defined slavery as a major issue for politics, affecting governments and their policies across the nation. Soon enough the three would come to unite as the Republican Party, advocating the abolition of slavery. -
Dred Scott
Dred Scott was a slave who lived both in free and slave states. Seeking to obtain a US citizenship, Scott went to court. His case reach the Supreme Court, who announced their verdict that Scott "had no right to be a US citizen", "was bound by the laws of the slave state he left", and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional for limiting slavery in certain parts of the US. -
Treaty of Tianjin
This was a set of documents signed at Tianjin, with China, to end the first phase of the Second Opium War and opened up opportunity for foreign trade and ports. -
Raid on Harpers Ferry
A group of 22 men led by John Brown, an abolitionist who took part in bleeding kansas, invaded the town of Harpers Ferry, Virginia on October 16th, 1859. They attacked a munitions vault in order to seize the control of weapons and create an uprising. The local militia regained the citt and Brown was captured and sentenced to death. -
Election of 1860
The election of 1860 was resulted in the 16th president of the US, Abraham Lincoln, who was a surprise winner of both the Republican nominee and the presidential election. The main contestants of the election involved Lincoln, the Democratic nominee Stephen Douglas, former Vice president John C. Breckinridge, and ex-whig John Bell. -
Abraham Licoln Elected as president
In their prior political race, Lincoln and Douglas would run for a position in the Senate. Despite a victory for Douglas, Lincoln was the Republican nominee for the election and would later win 39% of the popular vote, enough to win the election despite a battle with Stephen Douglas in the North. -
S-Carolina Secedes from the USA
South Carolina was the initial start of southern secession from the United States. The south grew worried at the election results despite Lincoln not causing any true threat to them; however, S. Carolina would react in a strong way, in order to 'preserve' its wish to slavery, and seceded, with 80% favor in state legislation. -
Bleeding Kansas
Beginning in 1854, Bleeding Kansas or Bloody Kansas was a conflict that resulted in a minor civil conflict between pro and anti-slave citizens. People would continuously cross the border into Kansas in order to vote and gain control of the state. People who would travel into the state, both from the North and through the East border of Missouri, were known as Border Ruffians. Over 200 people were killed. -
Lincoln's Inauguration
Lincoln was inaugurated at the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. in which he became the 16th president of the United States for a four year term. He also was the first president to appear with a full grown beard. -
Southern Secession from the USA
South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina all seceded into the Confederacy by 1861, appointing Jefferson Davis as the president of the Confederate States of America. -
Four more states join the CSA
Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina would be accepted into the Confederacy after the start of the Civil War (after the Battle at Fort Sumter). These became the northern-most states of the C.S.A. -
CSA takes Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC was essentially the place that the Civil War began, as the Confederacy initially fired the first and last shots, completely demolishing the fort, hearing the Union surrender. -
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis, a former soldier, and democratic member of the House and Senate, was a slave owner who was elected the president of the Confederate States of America. Until the end of the Civil War, Jefferson Davis was charged with treason and imprisoned, but eventually released. -
The Trent Affair
A Union frigate, during the Civil War, captured 2 confederate diplomats illegally from a neutral British ship in an incident. This caused much inrest for the U.K. and could have caused war between the U.S. and the U.K. -
British Intervention
During the Civil War, the Confederacy was often seeking foreign support, mainly by way of both France and Britain. This involved the attempt to gain support during the Trent affair. The CSA would even attempt to claim that both those countries needed the CSA as it was a heavy supplier of cotton; however, not wanting conflict or involvement in the war, as well as disliking slavery, both countries did not aid the south. -
Washington D.C. abolishes slavery
Slave owners in Washington D.C. were paid to free their slaves at the ruling of the Compensated Emancipation Act, signed by Lincoln. This was a major step in ruling in full national emancipation. -
The Homestead Act
Signed by Abraham Lincoln, settlers were set to pay a small filing fee and required to complete a five year residency in orser to be gieven 160 acres of public land. This was made to help encourage western expansion and migration. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Despite wishing to sinply keep the Union together, Lincoln began to see the necessary consequences of issuing the emancipation proclamation in southern rebel states. It also issued that any state to return to the US befote jan 1, 1863 could continue slavery, while any captured areas past jan 1, would be set free from slavery. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was a major turning point victory for the Union army, that enabled the Union into being given the victory in the war, as the south was unable to win past this point. This was also
the largest Civil War Battle. -
Wade-Davis Bill
Set to replace the initial proposal of the 10% plan, the Wade-Davis Bill was more harsh, as it required a 50% of white males in the south to take an oath in order to be re-admitted into the Union. -
Atlanta falls to Sherman
During this time during the War, Sherman's troops were set to seize southern railroads and supplies to cut off supply lines leading to Atlanta. His troops were also ordered to completely destroy and ravish the city. -
Lincoln re-elected
Lincoln was the elected nominee for the "National Union Party", in order to appeal to war democrats. He won a clear victory in the electoral college 212 votes to 21. After his win, however, he needed to revert immediatly back to assisting in the Union for reconstruction. -
Sherman's March to the Sea
General Sherman appointed his troops to march across Georgia, ravishing the land of the southern state, to destroy railroads and homes and buildings, until reaching the atlantic ocean. -
CSA Capitol falls
Union General Ulysses Grant managed to fully capture Petersburg and Richmond, the Capital of the CSA. By this point, remaining Confederate soldiers were set to evacuate and abandon the city while setting fire to much of their last supplies. -
Lee surrenders at Appomattox
The Battle of Appomattox court house remained of the final battles before Confederate Genral, Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant at the Appomattox Court House. -
Lincoln Is Assassinated
At Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C., John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln in the head, killing him on the spot and leaving the Union in the hands of Andrew Johnson. -
President Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was appointed the Democratic Vice President under Abraham Lincoln, in order to leave the Union in the hands of a democratic leader he would prefer to choose. At the death of Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Johnson was inaugurated and sworn in to office as the 17th president of the US. -
The 13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment stated that Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." Essentially meaning that slavery was to be abolished from the United States and involuntary services amd work were to be banned unless ruled by crime prosecution. -
The 14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment would provide much better opportunites for those of whom wished to become a US citizen amd be able to naturalize themselves. All those born in or naturalized into the US would be granted the rights of a citizen. -
President Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant, the Commanding General of the United States army during the Civil War, became the 18th president, working hard to rid the remains of slavery, and to implement a strong congressional reconstruction. -
The 15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment granted each and every citizen of the United States the right as a citizen to vote and not be denied that right by any virtue, whether it be skin color, race, etc. -
The Great Sioux War
The Great Sioux War, was an ongoing conflict between the Lakota Sioux Indians and the Northern Cheyenne indians, with the US government taking native american land and forcing them far out west. -
President Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford B. Hayes became the 18th President of the US, as a Republican candidate by then end of the Reconstruction era after the Civil War. -
The Dawes Act
The Dawes Act allowed the US president to survey and take comfortable notice on Native American tribal land, to divide it for individual Native American allotments, to later divide up the land for future US use. -
Hawaii & The Philippines
At the Spanish-American War's end, the Treaty of Paris, signed in Paris, granted The philippines territory to the US as one of four places given to the US. Hawaiii was signed over by the House of Representatives, during the presidency of William McKinley, as annexed into the US. -
Spanish-American War
The Spanish-American War resulted as the means of the US getting back at Spain for "destroying the USS Maine", according to yellow journalism propaganda in order to find an excuse to occupy Cuba and take part in future Caribbean affairs. -
Acquisition of Cuba
One of the results if the Treaty of Paris, which ended the Spanish-American War, was the acquisition of Cuba nd other territories such as the Philippines and guam, to the US victors. -
The Philippine Organic Act
The Philippine Organic Act was a basic act to implement a stable mean of government and assembly for the Philippines to become more well equipped and admitted as a US territory. -
Monroe Corollary
The Roosevelt Corollary was made an addition to the Monroe Doctrine, which would reinstate the previous worries from the US to prevent European intervention in America and Latin American countries, with the addition made. This would bring on a very imperialistic foreign policy from the US with expamsionist leaders. -
Zimmerman Telegram
Germany, upon finding out about US involvement with the allies, would attempt to send out a telegram to Mexico, asking them to support Germany if the US was to join the allies in the war, by attacking the US, and possibly regaining its lost territories from the past; however, Britain intercepted the telegram amd decoded it, and informed the US of Germany's plan, leading to America's joining the allied powers in world war 1. -
President Wilson's points
Woodrow Wilson wanted to keep Peace kn the world for the most part, as well as to keep America free from conflict, and especially free from another world war. His 14 points outlined his aims to keep peace and his plans to do so, including the only successful point, creating a League of Nations. -
The Great War (EU)
At the assassination of Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary, war was declared on Serbia, with several allies among the different european powers coming to support a side after worry and tension at the potential of war growing. Russia and Germany would also declare war on each other. -
The US enters the first World War
The US attempted to remain neutral and out of the first world war, with president Woodrow Wilson wishing to maintain peace and protection for the US. Yet, as the US became more involved in supporting the allied powers to improve and provide support for their own economic wishes for the future, issues would arise when Germany grew zero-tolerance with the US at finding out their involvement with the allies. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles ultimately outlined the punishment set forth upon Germany as it was blamed for the outbreak of a world war. Germany lost many obtained territories, dealt with highly expensive reparations, a reduced army size, war guilt, and wasn't allowed into the League of Nations.
