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William McKinley is shot by an assassin. Eight days later, he dies of the wound. -
The same day as William McKinley's death, Theodore Roosevelt is inaugurated as the twenty-sixth President of the United States. -
President Theodore Roosevelt presents his Roosevelt Corollary, an addition to the Monroe Doctrine which claims the United States' responsibility to intervene in conflicts in the Americas. -
Upton Sinclair publishes his book The Jungle, which exposes the horrors of the meat-packing industry. It is instrumental in inspiring calls for reform in the workplace. -
Henry Ford produces the first Model T, beginning the automotive industry. -
William Howard Taft is inaugurated as the twenty-seventh President of the United States. -
A fire catches in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, killing more than one hundred workers, many of whom are women. -
Woodrow Wilson is Inaugurated as the twenty-eighth President of the United States. -
Marcus Garvey founds the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), intended to empower blacks and garner support for the "Back to Africa" movement. -
The Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie are assassinated in Sarajevo, causing the Austro-Hungarian Empire to declare war on Serbia. World War I begins. -
The British luxury liner Lusitania, holding both British and American passengers, is sunk by a German U-Boat. Despite warnings of the attack from Germany and the fact that the ship was carrying weapons at the time, the United States is angered at the attack. -
The Zimmermann Telegram, in which Germany promises to return American territory to Mexico in exchange for assistance in the war, is published in America, causing outrage throughout the nation. -
Faced with German threats and Allied calls for assistance, the United States declares war on Germany and enters World War I. -
President Woodrow Wilson founds the Committee on Public Information (CPI) in order to spread wartime propaganda. -
Wilson passes the Selective Service Act, a draft for all male citizens age 21 to 30, and later 18-45. Unlike the Civil War draft, drafted soldiers cannot purchase an exemption. -
The Espionage Act, which limits dissent against World War I and other acts of insubordination, is passed. -
President Woodrow Wilson presents his Fourteen Points, a list of postwar principles of peace. In it, he mentions his plan for the League of Nations. -
The Sedition Act, which, like the Espionage Act, prevents antiwar language and the spreading of false information, is passed. -
World War I ends with an Allied victory on what is to be known as Armistice Day, or later Veterans Day. -
The Eighteenth Amendment, which prohibits alcohol, is ratified. -
Wilson's League of Nations is founded, however, the United States chooses neither to enter the League nor accept the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. -
The Sacco and Vanzetti Case, in which two Italian Communists are accused of committing murder, begins. Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti will eventually be executed for their crime. The case is assumed by many to be a result of the anti-Communist "Red Scare." -
The Nineteenth Amendment, which guarantees the right of both sexes to vote, is adopted.