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Rise of Labor Unions
Labor unions fought for safer working conditions, better pay, and more reasonable working hours. The rise of the labor unions led to efforts in stopping child labor, health benefits for workers, and providing aid to workers that had been injured or retired. -
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Spanish American War
The Spanish American war, a conflict that ended Spanish colonial rule in the Americas, resulted in the United States acquiring Cuba, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. The United States won the war and emerged as a world power (from the acquisition of the new territories and new role in international politics). -
Child Labor Laws
Children during the Industrial Revolution often times worked long hours in dangerous and unsafe factories. Reformers and labor organizers fought to control child labor and improve working conditions, but the Great Depression was the final hump that swayed the American public opinion. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles, signed on the eleventh day of the eleventh month at the eleventh hour, put an end to World War I. Germany sought an armistice with the Allies after the military became too exhausted and turmoil on the homefront arose. -
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Roaring Twenties
An era of drastic social and political change, the nation's wealth doubled between 1920 and 1929. Also, along with the new, affluent America came the birth of mass culture, radios, home appliances, and ready to wear clothes. -
Formation of the League of Nations
The League of Nations was created to maintain peace on an international level. This goal was not met, however, because the United States, although it was recommended by Woodrow Wilson, would not join the League. -
Women's Suffrage
After fighting for the right to vote for nearly 100 years, women were finally able to go to the polls and cast their vote. This accomplishment in Women's Rights history helped women become equal members of American society, like they should have always been. -
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Great Depression
The Great Depression started on what became known as "Black Tuesday," after 16 million shares were traded after a wave of panic went through. Consumers stopped buying and spending, therefore causing less demand for companies, which eventually led to the layoff of workers and high unemployment. World War II helped the economy turn around again, with the creation of new jobs. -
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Isolationist Movement
After the Great Depression and major losses in World War I, isolationists encouraged America to stay out of foreign affairs and focus on issues on the homefront. The United States took the measures to stay out of those affairs, but proceeded to expand economically and protect interests in Latin America. -
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New Deal
After President Herbert Hoover did almost nothing to help America during the Great Depression, when FDR was elected, he immediately instituted new programs and organization that he hoped would provide jobs and help the economy. The New Deal forever changed the federal government's role in the United States economical affairs (a bigger role was created). -
Dropping of the Atomic Bomb
America dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The atomic bomb took out about 90 percent of the city and killed 80,000 people immediately. -
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Red Scare
(Late 1940's, early 1950's) As tension between Russia and the United States increased, people in the U.S. started to fear the spread of communism. There was concern that there were Soviet spies inside the United States government. -
Lend-Lease Act
The Lend-Lease Act was the lay-out of the means for providing United States military aid to foreign countries. The Lend-Lease Act allowed the United States to support war interests without being too involved in the actual war. -
Brown v. Board of Education
This landmark Supreme Court case overruled the age-old Plessy v. Ferguson ruling of “separate but equal.” Going along with the Civil Rights Movement, African Americans were now allowed to integrate public schools. -
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Civil Rights Movement
The Civil Rights Movement, unofficially started when Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat on that cold, December morning, was a landmark piece in American history. From the Birmingham Bus Boycott to the March on Washington, the Civil Rights Movement was a major historical event in American history. -
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Space Race
The Space Race was a time when Russia and the United States were locked in an intense conflict of arms. Each nation wanted to be more superior with the amount and advancement of their arms and technology. -
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Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a time period when the United States and Russia came very close to nuclear warfare. While Kennedy and his administration were planning Operation Mongoose, Soviet and Cuban leaders were planning to place nuclear missiles from the Soviets behind Cuban lines to prevent an invasion. -
Berlin Wall Falls
The Berlin Wall was one of the most well-known and powerful symbols of the Cold War. On November 9, the head of the East German Communist Party announced that the people of the GDR could cross the border whenever they wanted. People took to the occasion, bringing picks, axes, and other tools to help bring down the Berlin Wall. -
NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement)
On this day, President Bill Clinton signed the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement into law, hoping to encourage Canada and Mexico to move towards a bigger world-trade pact. NAFTA pretty much eliminated all restrictions between the three nations. -
Impeachment of President Bill Clinton
The House of Representatives, after a long debate, approved to impeach Clinton after he lied under an oath and obscured justice. Also, he was having an affair with Monica Lewinsky, an unpaid intern. -
9/11
On September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda hijackers carried out suicide missions on four United States planes. This event was a defining moment in American history, as well as the presidency of George W. Bush. Around 3,000 people were killed in these attacks.
