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Alaska was sold to the United States for 7.2 million dollars by secretary of state William H. Seward. It wasn't until January 3, 1959 that Alaska actually became a state. Citizens believed this purchase was a bad idea because they thought Alaska was just a huge piece of ice, but later realized it is good for oil and military.
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The Transcontinental Railroad linked the East of the United States to the West. The railroad took 6 years to build and it was mainly by hand. Before this railroad was built it would have cost people 1,000 dollars and 5 to 6 months to get from one side of the country to the other.
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The telephone became a great way to communicate with people in different areas. Alexander Graham Bell was a teacher for the hearing impaired when he was asked if he wanted to join a group of inventors who were working on the telegraph. On March 7, 1876 Bell received his first patron on the device and then 3 days later made his first successful call.
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Ellis Island is a station for immigrants located in New York. Throughout it's time over 12 million immigrants came through Ellis Island into the United States. Ellis Island was open from 1892 to 1954.
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The Triangle Shirtwaist fire was obviously a horrible experience because it killed 146 workers and injured several more, but good came from it. After this fire factory owners were no longer allowed to lock their workers in the factories and every window was required to have a fire escape. It caused several safety standards to sweep through New York then moved throughout other states.
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Before the Tenement Act of 1901 houses were dangerous and large amounts of people were forced to stay in small rooms with no windows, bathrooms, or lighting. The Tenement Act required installation of lighting, better ventilation, and indoor bathrooms. More and more tenement houses kept popping up because of the amount of immigration going on at the time.
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In the book "The Jungle" Upton Sinclair exposed all the horrific tactics of meat packing factories. In his book he talked about the rotting, disease, and poor conditions of meat factories. After the public started reading his book it caused an uproar and lead to rules, regulations, and federal food safety laws.
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NAACP stands for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This group is Americas oldest and largest organization. The NAACP today is focused on inequality in jobs, education, health care, justice system, and voting rights.
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The Panama Canal covers a 50 mile stretch. The canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific ocean. It was opened in 1914 by Americans but then turned over to Panama in 1999.
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Women have only had the right to vote for almost 100 years. They fought decades in what is known as suffrage. The 19th amendment is the amendment that gave women the right to vote.
