-
Spanish American War
Due to much media attention to the actions Spain was commiting in Cuba, many of which were exxagerated, and the sinking of the US ship, Maine, the United States declares war on Spain. The war only lasts 113 days, after which America is victorious. -
World War I
Franz Ferdinand, the archduke of Austria is assassinated, sparking World War I. The United States remains neutral in the war, only sending supplies to allied countries until April of 1917, when it was discovered that Germany was attempting to persuade Mexico away from alliances with America, causing the United States to enter the war. The war itself ended roughly a year later on November 11, 1918. -
The Great Depression
On this day, stock markets nationwide crashed, causing many businesses and banks to close, and many people to lose their jobs and life savings. By 1932, one in every four workers was unemployed, and little signs of improvement showed. -
The Holocaust
On this day, Adolf Hitler became chancellor of Germany. From this time until his death, Jews were subjected to extremely harsh persecution and treatments, eventually leading to the formation of ghettos and death camps, and the deaths of over 6 million Jews, of which 1,500,000 were children. This sadistic and cruel act was only the beggining of Hitler's planned "Final Solution" which died along with him, though this event will not be so easily forgotten. -
World War II
Led by a new leader by the name of Adolf Hitler, Germany allied itself with Japan, Italy, and temporarily Russia, forming the Axis and began to invade Europe, starting World War II. As with the last World War, the United States attempted to remain neutral in the conflict, but joined the war on Dec 8, 1941, one day after Japan bombs Pearl Harbor. The war ends several years later, in September 1945 with Japan's surrender, while Germany surrendered on May 7, and Italy surrendered two years earlier. -
The Cold War
The Soviet Union and United States were both weary of each other, their greatly different political philosophies causing the other to be more suspicious of each other. This caused great tension between the two, and a "nonviolent war" was started, where each side built up as many weapons as they could, in efforts to prevent an attack from the other side. -
Period: to
The 1950's
During this timespan, many events took place. The most prominent being that of the "Red Scare". Americans were more scared than ever of the threat of communism, and Senator Joseph McCarthy did little to help that fear, by accusing many well known indaviduals of being communist, with little evidence behind his claims. Besides this scare however, things such as television and rock and roll also became popular in the 1950's, as did many fast food establishments. -
The Korean War
Korea split into a north and south half, north being Communist, while the south was not. The north half invaded the south, supplied with equipment by the soviet union. The United Nations, with the United States at the front, came to South Korea's aid. This caused China, another communist country to aid North Korea, and the two forces reached a stalemate. Neither side won the war, and a line was set at the 38th parallel, dividing the country. -
Vietnam War
In a similar event to the Korean war, the United States sends troops to Vietnam in an effort to stop the spread of Communism. This war however was much more controversial, and met by many protests by US citizens, claiming this was a country in which America did not belong, and certainly should not sacrifice American lives fighting over. The losses finally were so great, that America withdrew on April 30, 1975, allowing communist forces to take over.
