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The Transcontinental Railroad
The Transcontinental Railroad was completed on May 10, 1969 when the final golden spike was hammered in place at Promontory Summit completeing the lines that connected the East and West coasts together. The completion of a coast-to-coast rail line was crucial in the expanding of the US. It allowed trade to flourish, and people looking to start a new life could more easily "go west." The Transcontinental Railroad helped to create the transportation web needed to fuel the indutrial revolution. -
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US History 1877- 2011
This timespan will show ideas, events, etc., starting in 1877 to 2011. I will be showing examples of what we learn by writing sentences as well as placing images. -
The Great Upheaval
The Great Upheaval started on July 16, 1877 when the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company ordered a 10% pay cut, the second pay cut in less than eight months causin workers in Martinsburg, West Virginia to go on strike until their wages were restored to them. Federal troops were finally sent in to stop the upheaval, but not before the strike spread throughout the US. The Great Upheaval allowed workers to get what they want and to avoid future pay cuts because of employers fear of uprisings. -
Imperialism
From the start, America has been trying to expand out its boundaries, a method known as imperialism. Imperialism is the policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, or of acquiring and holding colonies and dependencies. As the US used both force and negotiation, it was able to expand its rule over the Western Hemisphere and oust any European influence. To learn more about US imperialialism you can visit http://www.smplanet.com/teaching/imperialism/. -
Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris was signed on December 10, 1898 by the US and Spain in Paris to end the Spanish-American War that had been going on for six months. The two countries came to the agreement that the Philippines would be given to the US for the price of $20 million. The islands of Guam and Puerto Rico were given to America, and the Spanish gave up control of Cuba. -
The Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance had a huge cultural influence on American history. It was a time when African Amerians moved to the North in hopss of making a better life for themselves, and escape racial prejudice in the Deep South. It was a time when jazz was created, bring both white Americans and blacks together to celebrate and dance to the music of the time. It was a great step forawrd in racial tolerence across the country. -
U.S. Enters World War I
The United States entered World War I after having intercepted the telegram from Germany to Mexico telling them to attack America. The US was angry and decided to become involved. After Russia dropped out of the war, the Allied forces received the much needed help from the inexperienced American soldiers. Without them the Allied forces may not have been able to stop the Central Powers. -
League of Nations
The League of Nations was established on January 10, 1920 in hopes of creating a governing body to keep peace in the world after the destruction of World War I. United States President Woodrow Wilson came up with the idea, but the United State as well as two other powerful countries did not join the League, causing it to collapse in 1945 and layed the blue print for the United Nations being established. -
The Great Depression
The Great Depression began after the Great Stock Market Crash of 1929 which caused the stock prices to dramatically fall. The investors of Wall Street panicked and soon began selling off all of their stocks, leaving some stocks to be worth abolutely nothing. There was also a run on the banks causing thousands of banks to shut down, and lose people's entire fortunes. The Great Depression lasted until the mid-1930's and was a dark time for many people who struggled to find jobs. -
Isolationism
Starting in the 1930's the United States entered into a policy of isolationism due to the weariness of American citizens of being involved in European conflicts after the first World War. Isolationism is a national policy of abstaining from political or economic relations with other countries. By using this as the US foreign policy during the 1930's during the Hoover Administration the US turned its head to the starting of World War II. To learn more about this vistit http://www.ushistory.org/us -
Communism
Communism is a system of social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a totalitarian state dominated by a single and self-perpetuating political party. The Soviet Union was a communist, or "Red" country, and also one of the world powers. The US is strongly opposed to the idea of communism, which led to the Cold War. To learn more visit http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/Communism.html. -
U.S. Enters World War II
The United States entered World War II after the attacks from the Japanese on Pearl Harbor. Sparked with outrage, the US decided to join the cause of the Allies to fight against Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime in Germany. Combined with Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the other Allied forces, the United States joined the war and forced Germany's surrender in May of 1945. -
The Cold War
The Cold War was a war between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted 45 years. No direct military battles were ever fought, instead a number of proxy wars were fought. The people living in the time of the Cold War were in constant fear of nuclear attacks from the opposing country. Throughout America there was a "withc hunt" for people previously involved in communisim. Finally after the US increased economic and military pressure, the communist U.S.S.R. fell apart. -
Civil Rights Movement
The Civil Rights Movement was a key part in our nations history as it gave African Americans and other minorities equal rights. After the ruling in the Supreme Court to integrate schools, it became a fuel source for people across the country to start taking action against racism. Fueled by great leaders such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., the Civil Rights Movement accomplished giants leaps in equality for all. -
Feminism
Feminism is the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men. During the 1950's women were the stereotypcial housewives, and for the most part did not hold any high power jobs and earned much less than men. Inspired by the book "The Feminie Mystique" that questioned the gender roles of society. Women fought for equal pay, equal jobs, rights to abortion, as well as many other things to make them equal to men in society. -
The Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a harsh battle frought between US backed South Vietnam, against communist backed North Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh and his communist party rose to power, which caused the US to intervene to try and stop the spread of communism. Over 3 million people died, including 58,000 American soliders. It was a bitter battle that had many Americans furious, and caused President Nixon to withdraw US troops. In 1975 North Vietnam seized the South, signifying the end of the war. -
Globalization
Globalization is the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets. As the world and technology has developed, people are able to connect faster than ever with people around the world. This allows people absorb lifestyles, pop culture, etc., of different countries around the world. To learn more visit http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1357503/cultural-globalization -
Creation of the World Wide Web
The World Wide Web was created by Tim Berners-Lee, a software engineer at CERN, a physics laboratory. The orginial purpose of the Web was to provide scientists an easier way to share their data and results with other scientists around the world. As the web developed, it became open to the public and has become one of the most influential forms of communication today. -
Operation Desert Storm
Operation Desert Storm was put into place by President George Bush after the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein ordered his army into Kuwait. The United States had provided Iraq with weapons during its war with Iran giving it the world's 4th largest army, and Kuwait supplied the US with oil. Fearing that that Iraq would attack neighboring Saudi Arabia where much of the US oil comes from, the US put troops in Saudi Arabia and then attacked the Iraqi troops to free Kuwait. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
On December 26th of 1991, the Soviet Union split into 15 different countries. The power of the U.S.S.R. was undermined after the Baltic states of Estonia, Lithuania, and Lativia, demanded independence. After gaining their independence, other countries followed suit, undermining any power the Soviet Union had left. With no choice and no leader, the Soviet Union disintergrated. The United States celebrated the end of the Cold War, and also the fall of communism. -
Creation of the European Union
The European Union as we know today was created on November 1, 1993. It currently has 28 memeber states, speaking 24 different languages. Seventeen of these member nations utilize the euro, which allows for easier trade, etc., between the different nations. Though the euro has become weakened and some member nations have been threatened with the possibility of going bankrupt, the European Nation remains strong and even won the Noble Peace Prize in 2012.
