Timeline Project

  • Jamestown, VA

    Jamestown, VA

    First permanent settlement
  • House of Burgesses

    House of Burgesses

    First colonial legislature
  • proclamation of 1763

    proclamation of 1763

    restricted western settlement
  • Sugar act

    Sugar act

    tax on imported goods that was seen as right violation
  • Stamp act

    Stamp act

    tax on documents and goods led to widespread protests
  • Expansion of suffrage strengthened party competition

    Expansion of suffrage strengthened party competition

  • Marbury v. Madison

    Marbury v. Madison

    established judicial review
  • McCulloch v. Maryland

    McCulloch v. Maryland

    upheld implied powers
  • Gibbons v. Ogden

    Gibbons v. Ogden

    interpreted commerce clause broadly
  • Jacksonian Democrats built a mass political movement

    Jacksonian Democrats built a mass political movement

  • Republican Party rose opposing spread of slavery

    Republican Party rose opposing spread of slavery

  • Party machines and patronage dominated local politics

    Party machines and patronage dominated local politics

  • 13th Amendment

    13th Amendment

    Abolished slavery
  • 14th Amendment

    14th Amendment

    Recognized African Americans as citizens
    Required states to follow due process
  • 15th Amendment

    15th Amendment

    Voting regardless of race
  • Chinese Exclusion Act

    Chinese Exclusion Act

    Banned criminals + people from specific countries
  • ICC

    ICC

    regulated railroads
  • Plessy v. Ferguson

    Plessy v. Ferguson

    Segregation legal if facilities were “equal.”
  • Meyer v. Nebraska

    Meyer v. Nebraska

    Protected privacy in family life and education
  • Pierce v. Society of Sisters

    Pierce v. Society of Sisters

    Protected privacy in family life and education
  • New Deal

    New Deal

    job creation, economic recovery
  • New Deal realignment unified Democrats around Roosevelt’s policies

    New Deal realignment unified Democrats around Roosevelt’s policies

  • Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act

    Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act

  • 22nd Amendment

    22nd Amendment

    limits a president to two elected terms
  • Boynton v. Virginia

    Boynton v. Virginia

    banned interstate bus segregation
  • Great Society

    Great Society

    social programs like Medicare and Head Start
  • Civil rights and cultural issues led to Southern party shifts

    Civil rights and cultural issues led to Southern party shifts

  • Civil Rights Act

    Civil Rights Act

    used Commerce Clause to prohibit racial discrimination in businesses tied to interstate commerce
  • Voting Rights Act

    Voting Rights Act

    blocked discriminatory state laws
  • Griswold v. Connecticut

    Griswold v. Connecticut

    Protected privacy in medical decisions (birth control)
  • Freedom of Information Act

    Freedom of Information Act

    provides citizens access to government records
  • Katz v. United States

    Katz v. United States

    Protected privacy in communications, even in public areas
    Introduced the idea of a “reasonable expectation of privacy”
  • Lemon v. Kurtzman

    Lemon v. Kurtzman

    Gov’t can’t give money to fund religious schools
  • Eisenstadt v. Baird

    Eisenstadt v. Baird

    Protected privacy in medical decisions (birth control)
  • Privacy Act

    Privacy Act

    limits government sharing of personal data
  • Buckley v. Valeo

    Buckley v. Valeo

    Supreme Court allows donation limits to avoid corruption
  • Government in the Sunshine Act

    Government in the Sunshine Act

    Mandates that many government meetings be open to the public.
  • Edwards v. Aguillard

    Edwards v. Aguillard

    Public schools can’t promote religious beliefs
  • Government Performance and Results Act

    Government Performance and Results Act

    Requires agencies to describe goals and identify methods to evaluate performance.
  • Driver’s Privacy Protection Act

    Driver’s Privacy Protection Act

    stops states from selling driver info
  • Welfare Reform

    Welfare Reform

    Gave states more control over welfare (public assistance programs)
  • HIPAA

    HIPAA

    protects medical records
  • Honest Leadership Act

    Honest Leadership Act

    Restrictions on gifts/travel
  • DC v Heller

    DC v Heller

    D.C. handgun ban ruled unconstitutional.
  • Citizens United v. FEC

    Citizens United v. FEC

    Speech, including ads, can be donated without limits
  • USA Freedom Act

    USA Freedom Act

    put limits on data collection by the government
  • Carpenter v. United States

    Carpenter v. United States

    Government needs a warrant to access cell phone location
    Cyberbullying can be punished as a crime, even if it happens “in private”
    Privacy debates now include AI, facial recognition, and social media tracking
  • Kennedy v. Bremerton School District

    Kennedy v. Bremerton School District

    Schools can’t compel prayer, but people can pray privately
  • Groff v. DeJoy

    Groff v. DeJoy

    USPS driver protected from working on Sundays
  • Anderson v. United States

    Anderson v. United States

    Government needs a warrant to access cell phone location
    Cyberbullying can be punished as a crime, even if it happens “in private”
    Privacy debates now include AI, facial recognition, and social media tracking