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Jan 1, 1492
Columbus Discovers North America
Columbus discovers the new world. But in fact, he never actually set foot on North America itself, Just small islands nearby. But he did lead the way for others to actually colonize the new world. -
Period: Jan 1, 1492 to
Timeline
The range fo dates for the US History A Timeline -
Jamestown was First Settled
Jamestown was the main English settlement in the new world, and was the capitol of Virginia until 1699, when the capitol was moved to Williamsburg. This colony was a huge part of England's expansion of America. -
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War ran from 1754 until 1763, and was a pivotal starting point for the American Revolution, including where George Washington first served as a soldier. -
The Boston Tea Party
The Boston tea party was an occassion where multiple members of the Boston citizenry, in order to complain about the unfair tax on tea, dressed up as indians, and attacked a ship burdened town with tea. They harmed no-one, but dumped the entire cargo of tea overboard, ruining it. -
The Battle of Lexington and Concord
This was the battle that began the American Revolution, with the American troops performing guerrilla attacks against the British army, who was marching on the cities of Lexington and Concord. This was known as "The Shot Heard Round the World." -
The Declaration of Independence was Signed
This was a deciding moment for the American Revolution, and is celebrated today as Independence Day, but the signing of this document did not bring the war to a close immediately, as is thought by some. There were still more battles to be fought before the war was ended. -
The Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown was the decisive battle that ended the Revolutionary War. After a month long siege, general Cornwallis surrendered to general George Washington, which cost the British a good portion of their army, and the war ended soon after. -
The First Constitutional Convention
The convention was called to create a system of laws to govern America, with checks and balances in place so that no one party would have too much power, where the people made the choice of who their president was, and where all had certain freedoms. -
The Cotton Gin was Invented
The Cotton Gin was an invention created by Eli Whitney that greatly sped up the refinement of cotton, meaning that textiles could be created much faster, and led into the industrial revolution. -
The Alien and Sedition acts were passed
The Alien and Sedition acts were four bills passed that gave the ability to have power to deport illegal immegrants and make it harder for foreigners to obtain jobs. These were the result of the French Revolution, and all the people coming into America from other nations. -
The Lousiana Purchase was made
The Lousiana Purchase was a deal struck between the American and French governments, giving America 827,000 square miles of land, which led to many settlers going west to find somewhere to settle down without too many neighbors around, and greatly helped settle America. -
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a war between America and Great Britain, due to Americans feeling like England was once again attempting to inhibit them, regardless of the fact that England had no real hold upon the New World, including impressing over 6,000 Americans into the British Navy. -
The Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was a law passed declaring Missouri a slave state, and Maine a free state. This was to keep the balance between the free states and the slave states, in an attempt to prevent the distance from becoming too great, and a war to break out. -
Andrew Jackson Elected President
Andrew Jackson wasn't the best president, but he was the one the country needed at the time. He was tough and wasn't afraid to use force to do what needed to be done. He was a driving force in civilizing the west, driving out indians and making it a considerably safer place. -
The Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was caused when the financial policies that Andrew Jackson had started began to erode the economy, leading to prices and wages going down, while the unemployment rate went up.This put the nation in a very bad state, and it took a while for the economy to become balanced again. -
The Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was an event that took place during Andrew Jacksons indian removal policy, forcing native americans to walk to Oklahoma, with so much suffering left in their wake that it is called the trail of tears. -
The Telegraph was Invented.
The telegraph was invented by Samuel Morse and helped make the world a smaller place altogether, eventually leading up to the telephone being invented. It was a much faster method of communication than previous methods, by signaling or riding on horseback with written messages. -
The Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War was the first war that America had ever fought on foreign soil. It began after the Annexation of Texas by America, although the Mexicans thought of Texas as theirs. This led to increasing conflict, especially after the battle of the Alamo, and hostilities spread into war. -
The Compromise of 1850
The compromise of 1850 was a series of resolutions and amendments to the constitution brought about by Senator Henry Clay, attempting to halt the rising hostilities between the north and the south, including abolishing the slave trade in Washington D.C. and amending the fugitive slave act. -
The Battle of Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the firt battle fo the civil war, sparking a fully fledged war between the north and the south. This battle only lasted one day before the fort was surrendered, but it led to the bloodiest war our country has ever known. -
The Emancipation Proclamation
The emancipation Proclamation was a document written by Abraham Lincoln in the third year of the civil war stating that "that all persons held as slaves are, and henceforward shall be free." This abolished slavery in the US, and ushered in a new age where all were equal. It still took a while for most people to recognize black people has being the same as them. -
The Battle of the Appomattox Courthouse
The Battle of the Appomattox Courthouse was the final battle of the Civil War, even though the slaves had already been freed, the North and the South continued to fight for another two years, until this battle, where Robert E. Lee's Confederate army surrendered to general Ulysses S. Grant's Union army. -
Abraham Lincoln Assassinated
The Civil War had not even fully ended when Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth while attending a play with his family. He snuck into his presidential booth while his bodyguards were away and fired at point-blank range, mortally wounding that great man. This event was felt throughout all in the nation at the time. -
The 13th 14th and 15th Amendments Ratified
The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments made slavery or any form of involuntary servitude illegal unless as punishment decided by a court of law. This was icing on the cake for ending slavery, and meant that if anyone was being treated in this fashion could complain to a court of law and be taken care of. -
Andrew Johnson is Impeached
Andrew Johnson was the 17th president of the united states and had taken up the position after Lincoln's assassination. The US was still fractured after the civil war, and Johnson had replaced the current secretary of war with Ulysses S. Grant, the famous civil war general, which the house of representatives deemed against the "tenure of office act." This was the first time a US president had been impeached. -
Standard Oil Trust Organized
Standard Oil was the oil company then, buying out other companies and undercutting their prices, stopping at nothing to stay on top. This was stopped when the US supreme court ruled that Standard Oil was an illegal monopoly and it was split up into 33 smaller companies, but not before making John D. Rockefeller, the founder, a very rich man. -
The Pullman and Homestead strikes
These strikes were a result of a failed attempt to unionize the steelworkers at the homestead steelworks, and workers at the pullman company making railroad cars, both parties suffering reductions in wages, and having a strike in result. Both strikes eventually had to be stopped by the US Government, and the strikes meant that other workers knew another option if their wages were reduced, keeping employers paying their employees sufficient wages. -
The Spanish-American War
The Spanish-American war was brought about by Cubans revolting against Spanish rule, and journalists writing stories and anti-Spain propaganda. This invigorated the American populace to action against Spain, until the president at the time, William McKinley was forced to go to war. Eventually a compromise was reached, and the war was ended. -
Theodore Roosevelt Elected President
Theodore Roosevelt was one of the best presidents this country had, from his childhood of asthma, which he eventually overcame with a strenous lifestyle, to his myriad spread of interests, and his cowboyish personality made him a favorite in the hearts of the American populace. -
Telephone, Electric Light, and Airplane Invented
These technologies ushered in what we would call the modern age, leading to jets, neon lights, and cell phones, these were the starting point, and brought about many more inventions as well, meaning greater comfort and ease for the average citizen. At first these inventions were only used by a few, but eventually the majority of Americans had or had used these.
