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Period: Aug 1, 1492 to
US History
This timeline will incorporate the history of the U.S. Colonial America-1877. It will include significant events, peoples, ideas, and eras of the second half of the American history. Major political, social, economic, cultural, and military events may also be involved. -
Jul 31, 1500
African Slave Trade Regions
The slave trade that brought millions of men and women to North America unwillingly, also affected many areas of Africa. This map shows some of the regions involved in the African slave trade. Link:http://africanhistory.about.com/od/slavery/ss/Origins_Of_Slave_Trade.htm -
Aug 1, 1500
American Indian tribes
There are between 140 and 160 different American Indian tribes. There is no single Native American language. Since the end of the 15th century, the migration of Europeans to the Americas, and their importation of Africans as slaves, has led to centuries of conflict and adjustment between Old and New World societies. Link: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/19790/American-Indian-languages -
The Great Awakening
In the 1730s, a religious revival swept through the British American colonies. Jonathan Edwards, the Yale minister who refused to convert to the Church of England, became concerned that New Englanders were becoming far too concerned with worldly matters. Although the Great Awakening was a reaction against the Enlightenment, it was also a long term cause of the Revolution. Link:http://www.great-awakening.com/ -
Boston Massacre
On March 5, 1770, the inevitable happened. A mob of about 60 angry townspeople descended upon the guard at the Customs House. When reinforcements were called, the crowd became more unruly, hurling rocks and snowballs at the guard and reinforcements. In the heat of the confusing melee, the British fired without their Captain's command. Imperial bullets took the lives of five men, including Crispus Attucks, a former slave. Others were injured. Link:
http://www.bostonmassacre.net/ -
The American Revolution
The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies on the North American continent. The colonists overthrew British rule, and formed a Continental Army. Link:
http://www.americanrevolutionarywar.net/ -
The Declaration of Independence
Known as "the birthday of United States." But Why? On the one hand, the Declaration was a formal legal document that announced to the world the reasons that led the thirteen colonies to separate from the British Empire. Americans hoped to get financial or military support from other countries that were traditional enemies of the British. The ideal of full human equality has been a major legacy.
Link: http://americanhistory.about.com/od/declarationofindependence/a/declaration_sg.htm -
Economic crisis of the 1780's
The economic problems faced by the Congress deeply touched the lives of most Americans in the 1780s. The war had disrupted much of the American economy. When the fighting came to an end in 1781, the economy was in a shambles. Exports to Britain were restricted. This economic crisis was a grave threat to individuals, as well as to the stability and future of the young republic.
Link:
http://www.dailypaul.com/139246/the-1780s-americas-first-debt-crisis -
George Washington's farewell address
Washington departed the presidency and the nation's then capital city of Philadelphia in September 1796. The Farewell Address definitely embodies the core beliefs that Washington hoped would continue to guide the nation.
Link:
http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/farewell.html -
Samuel Slater & the rise of American industry
In 1790, Samuel Slater built the first factory in America, based on the secrets of textile manufacturing he brought from England. He built a cotton-spinning mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, soon run by water-power. Link:http://www.woonsocket.org/slaterhist.htm -
The Underground Railroad
Not content to wait for laws to change for slavery railroad activists helped individual fugitive slaves find the light of freedom. Slaves were moved from "station" to "station" by abolitionists. These "stations" were usually homes and churches...any safe place to rest and eat before continuing on the journey to freedom. Link:http://freedomcenter.org/underground-railroad/ -
The election of 1800
The election of 1800 between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson was an emotional and hard-fought campaign. As the first peaceful transition of political power between opposing parties in U.S. history, however, the election of 1800 had far-reaching significance. Jefferson appreciated the momentous change and his inaugural address called for reconciliation by declaring that, "We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists." Link:http://americanhistory.about.com/od/elections/p/election1800.htm -
The Election of 1824
The 1824 presidential election marked the final collapse of the Republican-Federalist political framework. For the first time no candidate ran as a Federalist, while five significant candidates competed as Democratic-Republicans. The winner in the all-important Electoral College was Andrew Jackson, the hero of the War of 1812, with ninety-nine votes. Link:http://history1800s.about.com/od/leaders/a/electionof1824.htm -
The Trail of Tears
Jackson, both as a military leader and as President, pursued a policy of removing Indian tribes from their ancestral lands. This relocation would make room for settlers. Nearly a quarter perished on the way, with the remainder left to seek survival in a completely foreign land. Link:http://ngeorgia.com/history/nghisttt.html -
The Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War was formally concluded by the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. The United States received the disputed Texan territory, as well as New Mexico territory and California. The Mexican government was paid $15 million. Link: http://www.lnstar.com/mall/texasinfo/mexicow.htm -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 settled the issue of slavery temporarily, but may have further divided the country along the lines of slave and free territory. Slavery was maintained in the nation's capital, but the slave trade was prohibited. Finally, and most controversially, a Fugitive Slave Law was passed, requiring northerners to return runaway slaves to their owners under penalty of law. Link: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2951.html -
The Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 may have been the single most significant event leading to the Civil War. The person behind the Kansas-Nebraska Act was Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois. The Kansas-Nebraska Act allowed each territory to decide the issue of slavery on the basis of popular sovereignty. Link: http://www.historyplace.com/lincoln/kansas.htm -
Free African Americans
Slaves became free in many different ways before slavery was abolished by war. Even with freedom, African Americans did not in any way have the same rights as whites. Link:http://cghs.dadeschools.net/slavery/free_blacks/free.blacks.south.htm -
The Assassination of President Lincoln
Lincoln decided to attend a British comedy, Our American Cousin, at Ford's Theater. In the middle of the play that night, Booth went into the entryway to the President's box. He fired the pistol six inches from Lincoln and slashed Rathbone's arm with his knife. Booth then jumped over the front of the President's box, caught his right leg in a flag and landed on the stage, breaking his leg.
Link: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/jb/civil/jb_civil_lincoln_1.html -
The Impeachment of President Johnson
The first two years of Congressional Reconstruction saw Southern states rewrite their Constitutions and the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment. The only thing that stood in the way was President Johnson himself. He was the very first President to be impeached, but congress felt that he was uncooperative and wanted him out.
Link:http://www.nps.gov/anjo/historyculture/impeachment.htm -
Reconstruction
The South rebuilt the world they lived in. Freed slaves could now vote, own land, ride with white on trains, and even eat with them in restaurants. The mpst shocking fact was that now African Americans were actually holding office, becoming sheriffs and judges. Although in wasn't near perfect because some whites really rejected the new ideas, I believe it was a huge first step in the right direction.
Link: http://www.westga.edu/~hgoodson/Reconstruction.htm
