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1492
The Discovery of America by Columbus
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The Settlement of Jamestown
"In 1607, 104 English men and boys arrived in North America to start a settlement. On May 13 they picked Jamestown, Virginia for their settlement, which was named after their King, James I. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America." Source: https://www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/a-short-history-of-jamestown.htm -
The French and Indian War
The British Colonies and the French both wanted to expand their colonies to the Appalachian Mountains (Ohio territory was the name then). Native Americans did the help the French, but Britain won. Ended in 1763 -
Boston Tea Party
"A group of Massachusetts colonists disguised as Mohawk Indians board three British tea ships moored in Boston Harbor and dump 342 chests of tea into the water. Now known as the “Boston Tea Party,” the midnight raid was a protest of the Tea Act of 1773." Source: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/sons-of-liberty-dump-british-tea -
The Battle of Lexington and Concord
"While the colonists lost many minutemen, the Battles of Lexington and Concord were considered a major military victory and displayed to the British and King George III that unjust behavior would not be tolerated in America. The battles also constituted the first military conflicts of the American Revolution." Source: https://www.bostonteapartyship.com/lexington-and-concord -
The Declaration of Independence
A document declaring the Colonies freedom from Britain. It was finished the second of July, but not approved until the Fourth of July. -
The Battle of Yorktown
Considered to be the last major battle of the U.S. Revolutionary War. It ended October 19 the same year it started. -
The Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention was to "address the problems of the weak central government that existed under the Articles of Confederation." Source: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1784-1800/convention-and-ratification -
The invention of the cotton gin
While the machine was 1793 and granted in March of 1794, it wasn't validated until 1807. It was created by Eli Whitney. It sped up the process of removing seeds from the fiber, which led to greatly change the production of cotton. (Source: http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/cotton-gin-and-eli-whitney ) -
The Alien and Sedition Acts
"A series of laws known collectively as the Alien and Sedition Acts were passed by the Federalist Congress in 1798 and signed into law by President Adams. These laws included new powers to deport foreigners as well as making it harder for new immigrants to vote." Source: http://www.ushistory.org/us/19e.asp -
The Louisiana Purchase
"The Americans thought that Napoleon might withdraw the offer at any time, preventing the United States from acquiring New Orleans, so they agreed and signed the Louisiana Purchase Treaty on April 30, 1803." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Purchase -
The War of 1812
"The United States declared war on Britain in 1812. It did so because Britain refused to stop seizing American ships that traded with France—Britain's enemy in Europe." Source: https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/madison-declares-war-britain-1812/1702038.html
The war ended on March 23, 1815 -
The Missouri Compromise
"Congress passed a bill granting Missouri statehood as a slave state under the condition that slavery was to be forever prohibited in the rest of the Louisiana Purchase north of the 36th parallel." Source: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/congress-passes-the-missouri-compromise -
Andrew Jackson’s Election
"The United States presidential election of 1828 was the 11th quadrennial presidential election, held from Friday, October 31, to Tuesday, December 2, 1828. It featured a re-match between incumbent President John Quincy Adams, and Andrew Jackson." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election,_1828 -
The invention of the telegraph
"American painter and inventor who, independent of similar efforts in Europe, developed an electric telegraph (1832–35). In 1838 he developed the Morse Code." Source: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Samuel-F-B-Morse -
The Panic of 1837
A financial crisis in the United States where wages were low, many people were left unemployed, and negativity was everywhere. It ended around the mid-1840. -
The Trail of Tears
"In 1838 and 1839, as part of Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, the Cherokee nation was forced to give up its lands east of the Mississippi River and to migrate to an area in present-day Oklahoma. The Cherokee people called this journey the "Trail of Tears," because of its devastating effects. Over 4,000 out of 15,000 of the Cherokees died." Source: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4h1567.html -
The Mexican-American War
An "armed conflict between the United States of America and the United Mexico States from 1846-1848." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican%E2%80%93American_War -
The Compromise of 1850
"Senator Henry Clay introduced a series of resolutions on January 29, 1850, in an attempt to seek a compromise and avert a crisis between North and South. As part of the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was amended and the slave trade in Washington, D.C., was abolished." Source: https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Compromise1850.html -
The Firing on Fort Sumter
"Confederate leaders ordered an attack. Just before sunrise on April 12, 1861, a shell exploded above Fort Sumter. It was the first shot fired in the American Civil War." Source: https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/first-shot-civil-war-fort-sumter/2441338.html -
The Emancipation Proclamation
"A presidential proclamation and executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863. It changed the federal legal status of more than 3 million enslaved people in the designated areas of the South from slave to free." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emancipation_Proclamation -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
After a battle, Robert E. Lee surrendered to the Union Army, currently under Ulysses Grant. "This event triggered a series of surrenders across the South, signaling the end of the war."
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Appomattox_Court_House -
Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination
"Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, while attending the play Our American Cousin at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., as the American Civil War was drawing to a close." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Abraham_Lincoln -
Andrew Johnson’s Impeachment
"On February 24, 1868 three days after Johnson's dismissal of Stanton, the House of Representatives voted 126 to 47 in favor of a resolution to impeach the President for high crimes and misdemeanors..." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impeachment_of_Andrew_Johnson -
13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
"The 13th (1865), 14th (1868), and 15th Amendments (1870) were the first amendments made to the U.S. constitution in 60 years. Known collectively as the Civil War Amendments, they were designed to ensure the equality for recently emancipated slaves." Source: https://www.boundless.com/political-science/textbooks/boundless-political-science-textbook/civil-rights-5/slavery-and-civil-rights-39/the-civil-war-amendments-222-11225/ -
The Organization of Standard Oil Trust
" The Standard Oil trust streamlined production and logistics, lowered costs, and undercut competitors." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_Oil -
Invention of the Telephone
Alexander Bell made his first call on March 10, 1876 -
Invention of the Electric Light
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Homestead Strike
"An industrial lockout and strike which began on June 30, 1892, culminating in a battle between strikers and private security agents on July 6, 1892." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Strike -
The Pullman Strike
"The Pullman Strike was a nationwide railroad strike in the United States on May 11, 1894, and a turning point for US labor law...The strike and boycott shut down much of the nation's freight and passenger traffic west of Detroit, Michigan. The conflict began in Pullman, Chicago, on May 11 when nearly 4,000 factory employees of the Pullman Company began a wildcat strike in response to recent reductions in wages." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullman_Strike -
The Spanish-American War
"United States declared war on Spain following the sinking of the Battleship Maine." Ended in August that same year. Source: https://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/intro.html -
Theodore Roosevelt becomes president
"The presidency of Theodore Roosevelt began on September 14, 1901, when he became the 26th President of the United States upon the assassination and death of President William McKinley, and ended on March 4, 1909." Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidency_of_Theodore_Roosevelt -
Invention of the Airplane