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Period: to
1776 - 1860 Timeline
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Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence is the document that the Americans sent to the British declaring our independence. The things that the Declaration of Independence covers are things like natural rights, grievances, and rights being protected. -
Constitutional Convention
The constitutional convention of 1787 was held to discuss the problems with the weak central government. From this constitutional convention we got a federal government with more specialized powers. -
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was a document that President Jefferson signed. This document said that land west of the Mississippi River was ours. We bought this land from France. -
War of 1812
The war of 1812 was the United States against Great Britain. The cause of this war was a boarder conflict. Ultimately neither side won the war of 1812. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine was a message to Congress, which warned European powers not to interfere with the Western Hemisphere. This document also discussed how the United States would handle foreign relations with independent nations. -
Mexican-American War
One of the causes of this war was that both the United States and Mexico wanted Texas. This started because Mexican soldiers attacked U.S. soldiers while they were in Texas. -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was made of 5 different bills. These bills were, outlawing the slave trade, adding California to the union as a free state, defined new boundaries for the state of Texas, required citizens to help in apprehending runaway slaves, and made Utah and New Mexico territories that could decide popular sovereignty is they allowed slavery. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act replaced the Missouri Compromise. It created two new territories and it also allowed for popular sovereignty. This was also the main cause of a violent uprising known as "Bleeding Kansas." -
Dred Scott Decision
The Dred Scott decision states that slaves are not citizens of the United States of America, because of this they were not guaranteed protection from the federal government or any courts. This decision was made because a slave's (Dred Scott) owner died and gave him his freedom in his will. When he went to get his documentation of this the state of North Carolina did not allow this. -
Election of Abraham Lincoln
The election of Abraham Lincoln was one of the most important elections in history because of the issue of slavery and states' rights. Lincoln's main goal while he was running for president was to keep the Republican party united.