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Massacre at Mystic
During the Pequot War, when Connecticut colonists under Captain John Mason and their Narragansett and Mohegan allies set fire to the Pequot Fort near the Mystic River. -
The Scalp Act
Governor Robert Morris enacted the Scalp Act. Anyone who brought in a male scalp above age of 12 would be given 150 pieces of eight, ($150), for females above age of 12 or males under the age of 12, they would be paid $130. The act turned all the tribes against the Pennsylvania legislature. -
The Boston Tea Party
Was an American political and mercantile protest against tax on Tea and other things by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts. -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
Kicked off the American Revolutionary War (1775-83). -
The Battles of Lexington and Concord
kicked off the American Revolutionary War (1775-83). Tensions had been building for many years between residents of the 13 American colonies and the British authorities, particularly in Massachusetts. -
The Declaration of Independence is Signed
Congress members signed the declaration. Not every man who had been present on July 4 signed the declaration on August 2. -
The Winter at Valley Forge
General George Washington moved the Continental Army to their winter quarters at Valley Forge. -
The Winter at Valley Forge
commander of the Continental Army George Washington, the future first president of the United States, leads his beleaguered troops into winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. -
Benedict Arnold turns traitor
he entered into secret negotiations with the British, agreeing to turn over the U.S. post at West Point in return for money and a command in the British army. The plot was discovered, but Arnold escaped to British lines. His name has since become synonymous with the word “traitor.” -
The Battle of Cowpens
near the town of Cowpens, South Carolina, between U.S. forces under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan and British forces under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton, as part of the campaign in the Carolinas. -
Article of Confederation are Ratified
Maryland delegates signed the ratification of the Articles of Confederation. -
The Battle of Yorktown
Was the final battle of the American Revolution. -
The 3/5ths Compromise
It was part of a provision of the original Constitution that dealt with how to allot seats in the House of Representatives and dole out taxes based on population. -
The Constitution is Ratified
The Constitution became the official framework of the government of the United States of America when New Hampshire became the ninth of 13 states to ratify it. -
13th Amendment
It abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. The amendment was passed by Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified by the required 27 of the then 36 states on December 6, 1865, and proclaimed on December 18. -
Presidential Inauguration of George Washington
The first inauguration of George Washington as the first president of the United States. -
Washington’s Farewell Address
is a letter written by American President George Washington as a valedictory to "friends and the fellow-citizens" after 20 years of public service to the United States. He wrote it near the end of his second term of presidency. -
The Death of George Washington
George Washington pasts away. -
Election Day, 1800
It was held from October 31 to December 3, 1800. In what is sometimes referred to as the "Revolution of 1800", Vice President Thomas Jefferson of the Democratic-Republican Party defeated incumbent President John Adams of the Federalist Party. -
Marbury vs. Madison
was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case that established the principle of judicial review in the United States, meaning that American courts have the power to strike down laws and statutes that they find to violate the Constitution of the United States. -
Slave Trade Ends in the United States
federal law that provided that no new slaves were permitted to be imported into the United States. It took effect on January 1, 1808, the earliest date permitted by the United States Constitution. -
Battle of Tippecanoe
victory of a seasoned U.S. expeditionary force under Major General William Henry Harrison over Shawnee Indians led by Tecumseh's brother Laulewasikau (Tenskwatawa), known as the Prophet. ... The U.S. victory broke Tecumseh's power and ended the threat of an Indian confederation. -
The USS Constitution defeats the HMS Guerriere
approximately 400 miles southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It took place shortly after war had broken out, exactly one month after the first engagement between British and American forces. -
The Battle of Baltimore
was a sea/land battle fought between British invaders and American defenders in the War of 1812. American forces repulsed sea and land invasions off the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland, and killed the commander of the invading British forces. -
The Battle of New Orleans
between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles southeast of the French Quarter of New Orleans, in the current suburb of Chalmette, Louisiana. -
The Missouri Compromise
was United States federal legislation that stopped northern attempts to forever prohibit slavery's expansion by admitting Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state in -
The Election of Andrew Jackson
It featured a rematch of the 1824 election, as President John Quincy Adams of the National Republican Party faced Andrew Jackson of the Democratic Party. ... Jackson's victory over Adams marked the start of Democratic dominance in federal politics. -
Indian Removal Act
The law authorized the president to negotiate with southern Native American tribes for their removal to federal territory west of the Mississippi River in exchange for white settlement of their ancestral lands. -
Nat Turner Rebellion
Was a rebellion of enslaved Virginians that took place in Southampton County, Virginia, in August 1831, led by Nat Turner. The rebels killed between 55 and 65 people, at least 51 of whom were white. -
The Battle of the Alamo
was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar, killing most of the Texians and Tejanos inside. -
Trail of Tears
was part of a series of forced displacements of approximately 60,000 Native Americans between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government known as the Indian removal. -
Mexico loses California, New Mexico, and Arizona
ended the war between the United States and Mexico. By its terms, Mexico ceded 55 percent of its territory, including parts of present-day Arizona, California, New Mexico, Texas, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah, to the United States. -
The Fugitive Slave Act
The act required that slaves be returned to their owners, even if they were in a free state. The act also made the federal government responsible for finding, returning, and trying escaped slaves. -
Dred Scott Decision
Was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court in which the Court held that the United States Constitution was not meant to include American citizenship -
The Dead Rabbits Riot
Was a two-day civil disturbance in New York City evolving from what was originally a small-scale street fight between members of the Dead Rabbits and the Bowery Boys into a citywide gang war -
Abraham Lincoln Elected President
Nominee Abraham Lincoln -
South Carolina secedes from the United States
South Carolina became the first state to secede from the federal Union on December 20, 1860. ... The secession of South Carolina precipitated the outbreak of the American Civil War in Charleston Harbor on April 12, 1861. -
The First Battle of Bull Run
also known as the Battle of First Manassas, was the first major battle of the American Civil War. The battle was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, just north of the city of Manassas and about 30 miles west-southwest of Washington, D.C. -
Emancipation Proclamation
Was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on September 22, 1862, during the Civil War. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
marked the turning point of the Civil War. With more than 50,000 estimated casualties, the three-day engagement was the bloodiest single battle of the conflict. -
The Treaty at Appomattox Courthouse
near the town of Appomattox Court House, Virginia, and led to Confederate General Robert E. Lee's surrender of his Army of Northern Virginia to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. -
The Ku Klux Klan is Established
Was made to victimize newly freed slaves. -
14th Amendment
All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. -
John D. Rockefeller Creates Standard Oil
John D. established Standard Oil, which by the early 1880s controlled some 90 percent of U.S. refineries and pipelines. Critics accused Rockefeller of engaging in unethical practices, such as predatory pricing and colluding with railroads to eliminate his competitors in order to gain a monopoly in the industry. -
15th Amendment
Prohibits the federal government and each state from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." -
Alexander Graham Bell Patents the Telephone
9-year-old Alexander Graham Bell receives a patent for his revolutionary new invention: the telephone. The Scottish-born Bell worked in London with his father, Melville Bell, who developed Visible Speech, a written system used to teach speaking to the deaf. -
Battle of Little Bighorn
known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between -
Adolf Hitler Become Chancellor of Germany
Was appointed chancellor of Germany in 1933 following a series of electoral victories by the Nazi Party. He ruled absolutely until his death by suicide in April 1945. -
The Great Oklahoma Land Race
Was the first land run into the Unassigned Lands of former Indian Territory, which had earlier been assigned to the Creek and Seminole peoples. An estimated 50,000 people were lined up at the start, seeking to gain a piece of the available two million acres. -
Battle of Wounded Knee
also known as the Battle of Wounded Knee, was a massacre of nearly three hundred Lakota people by soldiers of the United States Army. -
Ellis Island Opens to Process Immigrants
Three large ships wait to land. Seven hundred immigrants passed through Ellis Island that day, and nearly 450,000 followed over the course of that first year. -
Plessy vs. Ferguson
Supreme Court decision that upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation under the “separate but equal” doctrine. ... As a result, restrictive Jim Crow legislation and separate public accommodations based on race became commonplace -
The sinking of the USS Maine
an explosion of unknown origin sank the battleship U.S.S. Maine in the Havana, Cuba harbor, killing 266 of the 354 crew members. The sinking of the Maine incited United States' passions against Spain, eventually leading to a naval blockade of Cuba and a declaration of war. -
The Wizard of Oz (Book) is Published
The Wizard of Oz (book) came out. -
J.P. Morgan Founds U.S. Steel
by financing the merger of Andrew Carnegie's Carnegie Steel Company with Elbert H. Gary's Federal Steel Company and William Henry -
Teddy Roosevelt Becomes President of the United States
Theodore Roosevelt became the 26th president of the U.S. -
Ida Tarbell Publishes Her Article About Standard Oil
Tarbell wrote a detailed exposé of Rockefeller's unethical tactics, sympathetically portraying the plight of Pennsylvania's independent oil workers. -
Ford Motor Company is Founded
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobiles and commercial vehicles under the Ford brand, and luxury cars under its Lincoln luxury brand. -
The 16th Amendment is Passed
16th amendment established Congress's right to impose a Federal income tax. ... At first, Congress placed a flat 3-percent tax on all incomes over $800 and later modified this principle to include a graduated tax. -
Angel Island Opens to Process Immigrants
In the late objections of Chinese community leaders, a hastily built immigration station was opened on the northeastern edge of Angel Island, ready to receive its first guests. -
The 17th Amendment is Passed
modified Article I, section 3, of the Constitution by allowing voters to cast direct votes for U.S. Senators. Prior to its passage, Senators were chosen by state legislatures. -
Sacco and Vanzetti arrested for armed robbery and murder
the garage owner's wife called police and warned the four men not to drive the car as it lacked current license plates. Later that evening, police arrested two of the men, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, on a streetcar in Brockton. -
KDKA goes on the air from Pittsburgh
with a broadcast of the returns of the Harding-Cox presidential election. The success of the KDKA broadcast and of the musical programs that were initiated thereafter motivated others to install -
1st Miss American Pageant
Margaret Gorman, winner of the 1921 “Inter-City Beauty” contest and the first Miss America. -
Teapot Dome Scandal
was a bribery scandal involving the administration of United States President Warren G. Harding from 1921 to 1923 -
1st Winter Olympics Held
the first Winter Olympics take off in style at Chamonix in the French Alps. -
J.Edgar Hoover Becomes Head of the FBI
Attorney General Harlan Fiske Stone appointed the 29-year-old Hoover acting director of the Bureau, and by the end of the year Mr. Hoover was named Director. As Director, Mr. Hoover put into effect a number of institutional changes to correct criticisms made of his predecessor's administration. -
The Great Gatsby published by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan. -
Mein Kampf is Published
On July 18, 1925, Volume One of Adolf Hitler's philosophical autobiography, Mein Kampf, is published. It was a blueprint of his agenda for a Third Reich and a clear exposition of the nightmare that will envelope Europe from 1939 to 1945. -
Scopes Monkey Trial
young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law. -
Charles Lindberg completes solo flight across the Atlantic
Charles A. Lindbergh completed the first solo, nonstop transatlantic flight in history, flying his Spirit of St. Louis from Long Island, New York, to Paris, France. -
The Jazz Singer debuts (1st movie with sound)
The Jazz Singer, the first commercially successful full-length feature film with sound, debuts at the Blue Mouse Theater at 1421 5th Avenue in Seattle. The movie uses Warner Brothers' Vitaphone sound-on-disc technology to reproduce the musical score and sporadic episodes of synchronized speech. -
St. Valentine's Day Massacre
murder of seven members and associates of Chicago's North Side Gang that occurred on Saint Valentine's Day. The men were gathered at a Lincoln Park garage on the morning of that feast day, February 14th. -
Stock Market Crash Begins Great Depression
Known as "Black Thursday," when the market opened 11% lower than the previous day's close. Institutions and financiers stepped in with bids above the market price to stem the panic, and the losses on that day were modest, with stocks bouncing back over the next two days. -
Black Tuesday (Stock Market Crash)
was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange collapsed. -
The Dust Bowl Begins
The Dust Bowl, also known as “the Dirty Thirties,” started in 1930 and lasted for about a decade, but its long-term economic impacts on the region lingered much longer. Severe drought hit the Midwest and Southern Great Plains in 1930. Massive dust storms began in 1931. -
The Adoption of the Star Spangled Banner as the National Anthem
The Senate passed the bill on March 3, 1931. President Herbert Hoover signed the bill on March 4, 1931, officially adopting "The Star-Spangled Banner" as the national anthem of the United States of America. -
The Empire State Building Opens
President Herbert Hoover officially dedicates New York City's Empire State Building, pressing a button from the White House that turns on the building's lights. -
Franklin Roosevelt is Elected President (1st Time)
In the 1932 presidential election, Roosevelt defeated Republican incumbent Herbert Hoover in one of the largest landslide victories in US history. -
CCC is Created
The CCC was part of his New Deal legislation, combating high unemployment during the Great Depression by putting hundreds of thousands of young men to work on environmental conservation projects. -
WPA is Created
It was part of his New Deal plan to lift the country out of the Great Depression by reforming the financial system and restoring the economy to pre-Depression levels. The unemployment rate in 1935 was at a staggering 20 percent. -
J.J. Braddock Wins Heavyweight Boxing Title
At Madison Square Garden Bowl, Braddock won the Heavyweight Championship of the World as the 10-to-1 underdog in what was called "the greatest fistic upset since the defeat of John L. Sullivan by Jim Corbett". -
Olympic Games in Berlin
The Berlin Games were the 10th occurrence of the modern Olympic Games. The 1936 Olympics were held in a tense, politically charged atmosphere. The Nazi Party had risen to power in 1933, two years after Berlin was awarded the Games, and its racist policies led to international debate about a boycott of the Games. -
Kristallnacht
Kristallnacht or the Night of Broken Glass, also called the November pogrom, was a pogrom against Jews carried out by the Nazi Party's Sturmabteilung paramilitary forces along with civilians throughout Nazi Germany on 9–10 November 1938. The German authorities looked on without intervening. -
Grapes of Wrath is Published
The Grapes of Wrath has captured the American imagination, pulling back the curtain on a way of life that most of us could scarcely imagine, and showing us the powerful ways that literature can touch society. -
Wizard of Oz Premiers in Movie Theaters
When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy (Judy Garland) and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of Oz. They follow the Yellow Brick Road toward the Emerald City to meet the Wizard, and en route they meet a Scarecrow (Ray Bolger) that needs a brain, a Tin Man. -
Germany Invades Poland
Germany invades Poland, initiating World War II in Europe. German forces broke through Polish defenses along the border and quickly advanced on Warsaw, the Polish capital. -
The Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England, was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force and the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy defended the United Kingdom against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe. -
The Four Freedoms Speech
In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freedoms that people "everywhere in the world" ought to enjoy: Freedom of speech. Freedom of worship. Freedom from want. -
The Bombing of Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, just before -
The Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. -
The Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad in Southern Russia. -
Operation Torch
Operation Torch was an Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. While the French colonies were formally aligned with Germany via Vichy France, the loyalties of the population were mixed. Reports indicated that they might support the Allies. -
Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Program
The Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program under the Civil Affairs and Military Government Sections of the Allied armies was established in 1943 to help protect cultural property in war areas during and after World War II. -
The Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk was a Second World War engagement between German and Soviet forces on the Eastern Front near Kursk in the Soviet Union, during July and August 1943. -
D-Day (June 6th, 1944)
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D-Day, it was the largest seaborne invasion in history. -
Battle of the Philippines
the largest aircraft carrier action in World War II, began on June 19, 1944. This battle was to counter the American invasion of Saipan. ... The Japanese lost two aircraft carriers Shokaku and Taiho, sunk by torpedoes from USS Cavalla (SS-244) and USS Albacore (SS-218), respectively. -
The Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was a major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II which took place from 16 December 1944 to 25 January 1945. -
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps and United States Navy landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. -
The Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army. -
The Death of FDR
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. -
The Death of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and then assuming the title of Führer und Reichskanzler in 1934. -
Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima
The United States detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict. -
Atomic Bombing Nagasaki
The United States detonated two nuclear weapons over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict. -
Newport Jazz Festival
The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. -
Nixon-Kennedy Debates (1st on Television)
Nixon and Kennedy Debates First debates to be on television. -
The Assassination of John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, often referred to by his initials as JFK or by the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination near the end of his third year in office. Kennedy was the youngest person to assume the presidency by election. -
The Beatles Appear for the first time on the Ed Sullivan Show
The Beatles' record-breaking first live appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, at Studio 50 in New York City. Seventy-three million people were reported to have watched the first show -
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, authorizing President Johnson to take any measures he believed were necessary to retaliate and to promote the maintenance of international peace and security in southeast Asia. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
During this period U.S. Air Force and Navy aircraft engaged in a bombing campaign designed to force Ho Chi Minh to abandon his ambition to take over South Vietnam. -
March on the Pentagon
The March on the Pentagon was a massive demonstration against the Vietnam War on October 21, 1967. The protest involved more than 100,000 attendees at a rally by the Lincoln Memorial. Later about 50,000 people marched across the city to The Pentagon and sparked a confrontation with paratroopers on guard. -
Mai Lai Massacre
The My Lai massacre was one of the most horrific incidents of violence committed against unarmed civilians during the Vietnam War. A company of American soldiers brutally killed most of the people—women, children and old men—in the village of My Lai on March 16, 1968. -
Riots at the Chicago Democratic Convention
Chicago, Illinois, U.S. The convention of 1968 was held during a year of riots, political turbulence, and mass civil unrest. The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in April of that year inflamed racial tensions to an unprecedented level. -
Woodstock
Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to simply as Woodstock, was a music festival held August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, 40 miles southwest of the town of Woodstock. -
The Beatles Break Up
But as far as the public knew, this was just a temporary state of affairs. That all changed on April 10, 1970, when an ambiguous Paul McCartney “self-interview” was seized upon by the international media as an official announcement of a Beatles breakup. -
Kent State Protest
The Kent State shootings, also known as the May 4 massacre and the Kent State massacre, were the killings of four and wounding of nine other unarmed Kent State University students by the Ohio National Guard on May 4, 1970 in Kent, Ohio, 40 mi south of Cleveland. -
Roe vs. Wade
Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113, was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States protects a pregnant woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. -
Chicago 8 Trial
A riot breaks out during the Democratic National Convention of 1968. A group of eight men are arrested and put on trial for conspiring to incite the riot, including Abbie Hoffman (Michael Lembeck), the noted political prankster.