-
Overview
When the London Company sent out its first expedition to begin colonizing Virginia on December 20, 1606, it was by no means the first European attempt to exploit North America. -
The English Establish a Foothold at Jamestown, 1606-1610
Would-be colonists arrived in Chesapeake Bay from England in April 1607. On board were 105 men, including 40 soldiers, 35 "gentlemen," and various artisans and laborers. -
Virginia's Early Relations with Native Americans
Those living in the area where Jamestown was settled must have had mixed feelings about the arrival of the English in 1607. One of their first reactions was hostility based on their previous experience with Spanish explorers along their coastline. -
Evolution of the Virginia Colony
Almost from the start, investors in the Virginia Company in England were unhappy with the accomplishments of their Jamestown colonists. They therefore sought a new charter, which the king granted in May 1609. -
Establishing the Georgia Colony
In the 1730s, England founded the last of its colonies in North America. The project was the brain child of James Oglethorpe, a former army officer. -
Period: to
The American Revolution
Until the end of the Seven Years' War in 1763, few colonists in British North America objected to their place in the British Empire. -
Period: to
British Reforms and Colonial Resistance
When the French and Indian War finally ended in 1763, no British subject on either side of the Atlantic could have foreseen the coming conflicts between the parent country and its North American colonies. -
Period: to
British Reforms and Colonial Resistance
Even after the repeal of the Stamp Act, many colonists still had grievances with British colonial policies. -
Period: to
The Colonies Move Toward Open Rebellion
After the Boston Massacre and the repeal of most of the Townshend Duties (the duty on tea remained in force), a period of relative quiet descended on the British North American colonies. Even so, the crises of the past decade had created incompatible mindsets on opposite sides of the Atlantic. -
First Shots of War
For some months, people in the colonies had been gathering arms and powder and had been training to fight the British, if necessary, at a moment's notice. -
Period: to
Revolutionary War: Northern Front
In the first eighteen months of armed conflict with the British (the conflict would not become a "war for independence" until July 4, 1776), Washington had begun to create an army and forced the British army in Boston to evacuate that city in March 1776. -
Policies and Problems of the Confederation Government
The Continental Congress appointed a committee to create a plan for a central government. The committee quickly wrote the Articles of Confederation, which created a loose alliance of the states. -
Period: to
Revolutionary War: The Turning Point
In 1777, the British were still in excellent position to quell the rebellion. Had it not been for a variety of mistakes, they probably could have won the war. -
Period: to
Revolutionary War: Southern Phase
The Continental victory at Saratoga in 1777 and the Treaty with the French in 1778 transformed the war, especially for the British. -
Period: to
Revolutionary War: Groping Toward Peace
The year 1781 was momentous for the American Revolution. -
Period: to
The New Nation
At the successful conclusion of the Revolutionary War with Great Britain in 1783, an American could look back and reflect on the truly revolutionary events that had occurred in the preceding three decades. -
The United States Constitution
55 men from twelve states met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. -
Pre-Civil War African-American Slavery
African Americans had been enslaved in what became the United States since early in the 17th century. -
Period: to
State expansion and reform
During this period, the small republic established by George Washington's generation became the largest democracy in the world. -
Period: to
Reformers and Crusaders
The reform efforts of the 1830s and 1840s are evidence of the belief held by many citizens that just as society is the creation of the people, so the improvement of society rests with the people. -
Period: to
Traveling on the Overland Trails
Americans living east of the Mississippi River began to hear about the Oregon country from missionaries. Beginning in 1843, wagon trains set out for Oregon each summer from settlements along the Missouri River. -
The South During the Civil War
Most of the fighting during the American Civil War took place on Southern soil. -
The North During the Civil War
The Civil War had fewer devastating effects on the North than the South simply because most of the combat of the Civil War occurred on Southern soil. -
Period: to
Civil War and Reconstruction
In 1861, the United States faced its greatest crisis to that time. -
African-American Soldiers During the Civil War
In 1862, President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation opened the door for African Americans to enlist in the Union Army. Although many had wanted to join the war effort earlier, they were prohibited from enlisting by a federal law dating back to 1792.