US History Timeline

  • Proclamation of 1763

    Proclamation of 1763
    This act prohibits colonists from settling across west of the Appalachian Mountains. The British did this so that they had greater control over the colonies. This made the colonies unhappy, but the act didn't stop them they didn’t care and continued moving west.
  • Sugar Act of 1764

    Sugar Act of 1764
    This act made the colonists pay duties whenever they got imports from the motherland. The British passed this act because they needed to pay off their war expenses. This made the colonists unhappy because they didn't want to pay the price.This also lead them to smuggling items.
  • Currency Act of 1764

    Currency Act of 1764
    The Currency act banned the use of paper currency and required the imports to be paid in gold or silver. The British did this because they had a scarce supply of paper money and it costs a lot to make it. The colonist were unhappy and protested, but this didn't change the British's minds
  • Quartering Act of 1765

    Quartering Act of 1765
    This prohibited British soldiers from being stationed in private homes of the colonists. The colonists and the British soldiers usually didn't have a good relationship, so the British crown decided that they should stay in barracks instead. This made the colonists even more angry because it was a sign that they were not going to take the troops out of the colonies. This lead the colonies to attack the British soldiers.
  • Stamp Act 1765

    Stamp Act 1765
    This act taxed all official papers and official documents because the British needed money to pay for war expenses.
    The colonists were angry with the British and with more taxes on more things. The only thing the colonists did about this was completely ignore the taxes.
  • Declaratory Act of 1766

    Declaratory Act of 1766
    This act meant that parliament ruled the colonies. The British did this for more power over the colonies so that they can tax them even more. When the colonists heard they were outraged because now with parliament in control they knew more acts were coming.
  • Townshend Revenue Act of 1767

    Townshend Revenue Act of 1767
    This act put duties on paper, paint, lead, tea, and glass because the were manufactured goods that had to be imported from the motherland. This meant that these items had double tax on them. The colonist were angry that more everyday items were being taken away from them, so they started smuggling these goods.
  • The Boston Massacre of 1770

    The Boston Massacre of 1770
    Hugh White was standing at his post when colonists came up and started to attack him. They threw snowballs and ice and called names. The bells in town rang to get all the colonists out of their houses. When the violence escalated supposedly a soldier heard the word fire. This set the whole massacre off. After the fact Preston asked why they shot at the colonists because he didn't say anything.
  • Tea Act of 1773

    Tea Act of 1773
    This act gave the East India Company rights to export tea directly to colonies without paying taxes. They did this to punish the colonist for burning the ships with tea on them. The colonist were again infuriated because they didn’t like taxes or the East India Company.
  • The Boston Tea Party 1773

    The Boston Tea Party 1773
    The frustrated and angry colonists dumped 342 crates of tea into the Boston harbor. They were angry about some of their fellow colonists being killed during the Boston Massacre. They dressed up as Native Americans and had a very organized way of dumping this tea. This lead to the intolerable acts.
  • Intolerable Acts 1774

    Intolerable Acts 1774
    This act imposed hardship on the colonies with more taxing
    to further punish Boston for destroying the tea imports. The colonists thought this was a direct attack on liberty and it made them furious. This was the final straw that lead to rebellion.
  • Lexington & Concord

    Lexington & Concord
    The Battle of Lexington and Concord took place on April 19th in 1775. This colonist heard that the British were going after their ammunition, so they decided to defend it. They didn't want the British to further take over; they needed to make their acts of rebellion heard. The colonist ended up winning which increased their confidence. The Americans had 98 people killed, hurt, or captured. The British had 300 people killed, hurt, or captured. This made tensions even higher.
  • The Battle of Bunker Hill

    The Battle of Bunker Hill
    The Battle of Bunker Hill occurred on June 17, 1775. This battle was a response to British' plans to claim the hills and attack the colonists. When the colonists found out they went to claim the hill and make a fort on it; they were preparing for battle in the early morning. They hadn't finished building their fort when the British attacked. This gave them a disadvantage, and they ultimately lost. Although the colonists lost this battle, the British had many killed and injured soldiers.
  • Declaration of Independence

    Declaration of Independence
    The Declaration of Independence was when the colonists decided that they were not going to put up with British injuries any more. The British had taxed them, sent soldiers to live with them, and not let them have a voice or a say in any law making, and they were tired of it. In the document they stated their reasons and declared independence. This was the first step in the revolution.
  • Battle of Trenton

    Battle of Trenton
    George Washington led the American men against the British and the Germans to victory in the Battle of Trenton in New Jersey. He led his men across the Delaware River to Trenton to surprise the British on the day after Christmas. They aimed at their blocking section and captured and killed people in town. They won the war, and this willed them to keep fighting for freedom.
  • Battle of Saratoga

    Battle of Saratoga
    The battle of Saratoga was fought in the revolutionary war by the Americans, lead by Benedict Arnold and Horatio Gates, and the British lead by John Burgoyne. They fought in the New England region close to American land. There were two battles, and the British won the first battle and the Americans won the second battles. This gave them confidence, hope, and allies with Spain and France.
  • Valley Forge

    Valley Forge
    Nathanael Greene, Friedrich Von Steuben, George Washington were the American leaders who started this encampment. It was really cold and there was a food and water shortage. They had to lead the Americans to unite, and when they emerged they had a positive view point.
  • The Battle of Yorktown

    The Battle of Yorktown
    The French and the Americans are allies, and they are fighting against the British. George Washington was the leader of the Americans, and General Cornwallis was the leader of the British. The Americans won this battle, and it lead them to victory of the entire revolution. They won by surrounding them and cutting off their reinforcements. This showed that America was strong.
  • The Treaty of Paris

    The Treaty of Paris
    The Treaty of Paris was a document signed by the Americans and the British. It meant that the British had to respect the decision of revolution, and the American boundaries. There was peace between them, and the war had ended; the Americans won.
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    Westward Expansion

    Westward expansion was the time when the colonies became America and decided that they would start to expand their new country west. During this time period they gained The Louisiana Territory, The Oregon Territory, Mexican Cession Territory, and the territory from The Texas Annexation. Although they gained lots of new territory this created sectionalism and made internal conflict between the northern and southern states about salve and free states.
  • The 3/5 Compromise

    The 3/5 Compromise
    The 3/5 Compromise was a deal that the southern states' slaves' votes would count as 3/5 of a free person's vote. This benefited the southern states because they got more votes than the northern states, but they also got more taxes. This solved the slave and free state dispute for a couple of years but later it came back into play. This solved some sectionalism problems because it made both the north and the south happy about their votes and taxes.
  • The Whiskey Rebellion

    The Whiskey Rebellion
    The whiskey tax was a tax passed to help pay for the national debt. The people didn't like this so they decided to burn down a tax collectors house. They proceeded to try and harm other tax collectors as well. This forced Washington to use military force to put a stop to this violent protest.
  • States Rights (Amendment 10)

    States Rights (Amendment 10)
    Amendment 10 states that the rights of the federal government are stated in The Constitution and every other governing right belongs to the states. The south belived they should be able to make their own rules about slaves because there was nothing in the constitution about slaves, and all the new acts being passed by the U.S. took away the states' right to govern themselves. This was an example of sectionalism because the south wanted their own state rights and the ability to govern themselves.
  • XYZ Affair

    XYZ Affair
    After the French started attacking American ships again, President Adams decided to send three men over to make peace. The French prime minister sent three representatives none as X,Y, Z. The Americans were insulted.
  • Alien & Sedation Acts

    Alien & Sedation Acts
    These acts were passed so that any immigrants who could side with the French could be kicked out of the United States. The Alien Act stated that the president could imprison or deport anyone who was not a U.S. citizen. The sedation act was a law that said it was a crime to say or publish anything false about the government.
  • Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

    Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
    Democratic Republicans thought that the alien and sedation acts were an abuse of power by the federal government. Because states like Kentucky and Virginia were angry, congress let these acts expire after President Addams wasn't president anymore. This set a bad precedent because now the states are going to think they can do whatever they want.
  • Embargo Act

    Embargo Act
    The Embargo Act was the closing of American ports. They didn't allow American ships to bring in goods to other countries. This act was to tell the British and France to respect neutral trading rights by hurting their economy, but it ended up hurting the American economy more.
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    The Underground Railroad

    The Underground Railroad was a route underground that abolitionist such as Harriet Tubman ran to help slaves escape to the north where they could be free. This is an example of sectionalism because the north was helping the south's slaves leave without consent and this made the south made, but it set the slaves free.
  • War of 1812

    War of 1812
    The war of 1812 was fought by the United States against the British. The British were attacking American ships which lead to a decrease in economy and other problems. The Americans decided not to let the British bully them any more, so they choose to fight.
  • McCulloch v. Maryland

    McCulloch v. Maryland
    This was a case that was taken all the way up to the supreme court. The question was, does the constitution allow congress to create a National Bank, and if so does Maryland have the power to tax a local bank? The unanimous decision was ruled in favor of McCulloch the petitioner.
  • Compromise of 1820 (Missouri Compromise)

    Compromise of 1820 (Missouri Compromise)
    The Missouri Compromise was when Missouri was being brought into the south and they wanted to make it a slave state, but the north disagreed. This made them come up with a compromise and when Missouri was brought in as a slave state Main was brought in as a free state. This is an example of sectionalism because the north wanted to keep the balance of slave and non-slave states so they brought one of each into the U.S.
  • The Monroe Doctrine

    The Monroe Doctrine
    The Monroe Doctrine was to stop European countries from colonizing in the newly free Latin American countries. They did this so that the European countries wouldn't ultimately end up invading U.S. land. It stated that they would view any affairs with Americans as a hostile act.
  • Nat Turner's Rebellion

    Nat Turner's Rebellion
    Nat Turner was an enslaved man who lead a rebellion of enslaved people. His actions caused there to be a massacre of 200 black people, and the new enforcement of acts like enslaved people are forbidden from education, movement and assembly. Nat Turner's Rebellion was sectionalism because the enslaved people were rebelling against the south and the south's laws that involved slavery.
  • Harriet Tubman's Escape of Slavery

    Harriet Tubman's Escape of Slavery
    Harriet Tubman was born into slavery and then later in her life she escaped it. After she did she acted as an abolitionist and helped guided many enslaved people to freedom in the north. She did this for her friends and family even though she put her life at risk. Harriet Tubman and The Underground Railroad was a sectionalism issue because the south believed in slaves and the north didn't and Harriet Tubman wanted to help slaves escape from the south to the north.
  • Compromise of 1850

    Compromise of 1850
    The compromise of 1850 stated that California would be a free state. It also stated that Utah and New Mexico could vote on being a slave state or not. It also abolished slave trade in Washington, DC, and made the Fugitive Slave Act. This is nationalism because the federal government made this compromise so there was a balance between the north and the south.
  • Fugitive Slave Law

    Fugitive Slave Law
    The Fugitive Slave Law stated that any slave found trying to escape or any slave that has escaped anyone can capture them and when they were found they would be brought back to their owners. This law was passed during the compromise of 1850 so that there would remain a balance between the north and the south. This is nationalism because the federal government is trying to prevent conflict between the north and the south.
  • John Brown Raids Harper's Ferry

    John Brown Raids Harper's Ferry
    John Brown set out to Harper's Ferry with a group of his supporters to raid the ferry. When they started their raid they captured many prominent citizens and were in control of federal arsenal. He was aggressive towards government officials and people who own slaves because he was an abolitionist. This is an example of nationalism because he was an abolitionist who didn't want to have salves in the U.S.
  • Emancipation Proclamation

    Emancipation Proclamation
    The Emancipation Proclamation was an a statement made to the public by President Abraham Lincoln that said all slaves would be free. This was after three years in the civil war. This was nationalism because it put an end to the civil war, and it made the nation on the same page about slaves; no slaves would be allowed they are free.