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History of United States
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Native American Migration
This was the date set by the U.S. government that ordered all Native Americans onto reservations that were in multiple areas across the western United States. President Grant later extended the date, but the entire issue helped fuel the Great Sioux War of 1876. -
The Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition
This was a great moment in American history because it highlighted the United States' hundred-year birthday. It was held at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition (Exposition) which was on roughly 265 acres of land. Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison with their inventions along with other major innovations, showed the other countries and colonies there that the United States was an equal and starting to surpass European innovation. -
Irish Terrorists
Irish terrorists were a thing back in 1877. Part of a group known as the Molly Maguires, which operated in Liverpool and Eastern United States (mostly Pennsylvania), these terrorists were mainly Irish miners and workers who were dissatisfied with their working conditions. They are mainly known for their string of violent attacks in the coal mines fields and were disbanded when eleven leaders were hung for the murders of several police and mine officials. -
Another Step Towards Woman Rights
Women are one step closer to receiving all the political privileges male citizens in the United States have, with Rutherford B. Hayes signing a new bill. The bill issued that woman attorneys had the right to practice law at the Supreme Court. The first woman to do so was Belva Lockwood in 1880. -
Lawyer Kills President
Lawyer Charles J. Guiteau shoots President James A. Garfield, at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad station. He would die two months later on September 19, 1881, from an infection and was succeeded by Vice President Chester Arthur. -
Haymaker's Riot
A bomb goes off at Haymarket Square, Chicago, Illinois, at a strike that started at the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company for eight-hour workdays. The strike was part of a national strike that had started three days prior, for national eight-hour workdays. By the end of the conflict, seven police officers died and another 60 wounded, casualties among the laborers were similar to that of the police. The event caused Knights of Labor (the largest union in the U.S.)to be disbanded shortly after. -
Battle of Wounded Knee
In what would become the last major battle between the U.S. Army and Native Americans, the Battle of Wounded Knee happened in South Dakota. Twenty-nine soldiers died in the conflict along with hundreds of Native American men, women, and children. -
Segregation is legal or is it?
The U.S. Supreme Court rules that segregation is perfectly legal and constitutional as long as both races have equal access to everything, known as the 'separate but equal' doctrine. This is in the Plessy vs Fergusson case and did not actually work itself out like that in real life leading the Civil Rights Movement almost 50 years later. -
Spanish-American War Starts
Since February, tensions have been high between the U.S. and Spain, over issues in the Caribbean and Latin America region. Since the U.S. battleship Maine exploded in Havana Harbor, Americans have pushed ever closer to war. Finally, the U.S. declares war on Spain and the conflict officially begins. -
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1900-1920
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Deadliest Natural Disaster in U.S. History
It was hard to precipitate a hurricane during the early 1900s, and that made them very deadly. The Galveston, Texas hurricane struck with 135 mph winds and killed roughly 8,000 people. To date, it is the deadliest natural disaster in U.S. history, and on today's hurricane scale (Saffir-Simpson scale) it would have been a Category 4 hurricane. -
25th President Assassinated
William McKinley, the twenty-fifth president of the United States, is shot after giving a speech at the Pan-American Exposition. He dies a week later, with Vice President Theodore Roosevelt being sworn into office September 14, 1901 -
Movie Theater Grand Opening
The first movie theater, called the Electric Theater, opens up in Los Angeles, California. Owned and started by William Tally, it would eventually be demolished in 1998. -
U.S. Foreign Policy
After the Columbian government refused to accept the deal proposed by the U.S. Government over the Panama canal, with U.S. support (and influence) Panama declares its independence from Columbia. Theodore Roosevelt recognizes the Panama government three days later and a deal on a canal is made on November 18th with Panama, beginning the construction of the Panama canal. -
First Manned Flight
Wilber and Orville Wright create the first airplane, and it achieves the first heavier-than-air sustained and manned flight. They fly it over the Kill Devil Hills in North Carolina. The plane first flew 120 feet for twelve seconds and later that day 852 feet for 59 seconds. -
San Francisco Earthquake
A massive earthquake in San Francisco, California, occurs, causing major devastation. Lasting two days April 18-19th it was estimated to be a 7.9 on the Richter Scale. What could be considered partly worse than the actual earthquake itself was the aftershocks and the deadly fire that ensued. Although 478 deaths were reported future estimates show closer to 3,000 deaths. The earthquake damaged relatively $350-400 million dollars in infrastructure and property. -
Great White Fleet
President Theodore Roosevelt believed in having a 'big stick' or in other words, a strong military buildup. He pushed for the building of new battleships (of which the U.S. had relatively few at the time) and then had 16 battleships circumnavigate the globe to show the world the United States' power. The warships were also used to help in President Roosevelt's foreign policy objectives. -
16th Amendment
The 16th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was approved. It allows the Federal government (treasury) to impose income taxes on all U.S. citizens. Who doesn't like paying more taxes? Well besides little man upside down. -
Officially Neutral
The United States is affirmed by Woodrow Wilson that it will stay completely neutral in the conflict happening in Europe that soon escalates into World War I. The conflict started after Archduke Ferdinand and his wife Sophie of Austro-Hungary were assassinated by a Serbian anarchist, with Austro-Hungary declaring war on Serbia for failing to comply with agreements made after the assassinations. -
U.S. Neutrality is Over - No More Alcohol
The U.S. declares war on Germany, on April 6, 1917, four days after the request for war is given by President Woodrow Wilson. The United States officially enters World War I. The first soldiers actually arrive on the scene in Europe on June 26. On December 18, the 18th amendment is passed, banning all consumption and selling of alcohol unless for "medical reasons". -
Spanish Flu (Influenza)
While it may not have caused an economic and social shutdown across the world or such an enormous deal internationally and politically, ironically the Spanish flu currently has a claim to more deaths than COVID-19. With Spanish flu claiming over twenty million lives worldwide, COVID-19 has claimed 6.12 million lives. The Spanish flu spread widely as a result of WWI, with troops from the U.S. carrying the disease (though called the Spanish flu) and transferring it to troops in Europe. -
WWI Over - Treaty of Versailles Signed
The world comes to rest from war with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, thus ending World War I. The treaty can be argued as unfair as Germany is basically limited only to the necessities for a nation to survive. This treaty partly fuels the next great war, World War II. -
League of Nations
Justice Leagu--I mean League of Nations is formed following the events of World War I. It is first imagined by President Woodrow Wilson, ironically, however, the U.S. Senate votes to keep the U.S. out of the league. -
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1921-1941
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Start of Time
Time Magazine, now one of the most famous and iconic magazines around the world, was published for the first time in New York City by two friends and business partners. At its heyday, Time magazine sold roughly twenty million copies each week, now it's closer to two million. -
Scopes Trial or Monkey Trial
A test to see how evolution would be received in a public school, John T. Scopes is convicted of teaching Charles Darwin's theory of evolution at a high school in Dayton, Tennessee. This was against Tennessee law, and Scopes was charged a $100 fine. -
Mount Rushmore Project
The starting of one of the most iconic landmarks in the United States, Mount Rushmore undergoes the beginning of a fourteen-year transformation under the sculptor Gutzon Borglum. The four presidents being chiseled are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. -
End of Prosperity
The 1920s were known as an age of prosperity and fun, but a lot of the financial practices used created a false sense of security. When the stock market crashed, people panicked sparking one of the most devastating depressions in U.S. history with losses estimated at around $50 billion. -
Bad Move
President Herbert Hoover was unpopular during the Great Depression, mainly because of his fixed view that the economy would bounce back and the fact that some of his plans to help it just made things worse. An example would be his Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act which was an increase in rates for trades, thus effectively stopping all world trade which made the depression worse and helped end his presidential career. Like I said, not a popular president. -
FDR
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a cousin of the famous Theodore Roosevelt, won the presidential election by a landslide, 472 electoral votes to Hoover's 59. It was the beginning of FDR's four terms in office, where he would lead the nation out of the Great Depression and through World War II. -
Social Security
Congress passes the Social Security Act as part of the New Deal and it is signed into law by President Roosevelt. In two years payouts would begin, as well as workers contributing to the system as well. Interesting to note that most of the Presidents in the United States would be considered past retirement age. -
Hindenburg Down
The massive German airship, known as the Hindenburg, burst into flames while mooring in Lakehurst, New Jersey. The ship is 804 feet long, the largest airship in the world yet is consumed in under a minute by the fire. The fire kills thirty-six people. -
A-Bomb and Neutrality
President Roosevelt is notified about the atomic bomb, starting the Manhattan Project, by Albert Einstein, a Jewish physicist who escaped Nazi Germany as a fugitive six years prior. Roughly a month later President Roosevelt declares the U.S. neutral from the European conflict that started once Hitler invades Poland, and quickly escalated into World War II. -
Pearl Harbor
A complete shock to Americans, Pearl Harbor, the U.S. naval base in Hawaii is attacked by Japanese fighter planes launching a surprise attack. The attack not only destroyed the U.S. Pacific Fleet docked there (with the loss or damage of twenty-one naval ships), but killed over 1,177 sailors and marines. The next day the U.S. officially enters WWII by declaring war on Japan and three days later declares war on Germany and Italy in response to their declaration of war against the U.S.