1980-2001 Timeline

  • Mt Saint Helen Erupts

    Mount St. Helens became the largest and most destructive volcanic eruption in U.S. history. By the end of its cycle of fire and fury, 57 people had died.
  • Ronald Reagan Becomes President

    Ronald Wilson Reagan was an American politician who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989 and became a highly influential voice of modern conservatism. Prior to his presidency, he was a Hollywood actor and union leader before serving as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 to 1975.
  • Iran Releases Hostages

    The 52 American hostages, seized from the US Embassy in Tehran in November 1979, were finally released on 20 January 1981.
  • MTV

    MTV: Music Television goes on the air for the first time ever, with the words (spoken by one of MTV’s creators, John Lack): “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll.”
  • First Female in Supreme Court

    Sandra Day O'Conner Joins US Supreme Court
  • Beirut Barracks Bombing

    Two truck bombs struck buildings in Beirut, Lebanon, housing American and French service members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon (MNF), a peacekeeping operation during the Lebanese Civil War. The attack killed 307 people: 241 U.S.
  • Mini-Vans

    The Dodge Caravan and the Plymoth voager are released to the public as 1984 models.
  • Nintendo

    The Nintendo Entertainment System (abbreviated as NES) is an 8-bit video game console, which released in North America in 1985.
  • Crash of the Challenger

    Challenger Explosion CNN VideoOn Jan. 28, 1986 the space shuttle Challenger exploded during lift off, killing all on board.
  • FOX

    First major network to host nightly programming. FOX is still around today.
  • Tax Reform Act of 1986

    Simplified the tax code and broaden the tax base. It was referred to as "Reagan tax cuts".
  • "Tear Down This Wall"

    A line from a speech made by U.S. President Ronald Reagan in West Berlin on Friday, June 12, 1987, calling for the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open up the barrier which had divided West and East Berlin since 1961.
  • Nuclear Forces Treaty

    Agreement between US and USSR. Limits ground intermediate range nuclear weapons
  • George H.W Bush Becomes President

    George Herbert Walker Bush was an American politician and businessman who served as the 41st president of the United States from 1989 to 1993.
  • Don't ask Dont Tell Act

    Act which prohibits homsexual people from serving in the US armed forces.
  • OKC Bombing

    The Oklahoma City Bombing was an attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. 168 people were killed including 19 children under the age of 6. It was the worst tragedy on US soil before 9/11.
  • Lweinsky Scandal

    Scandal that alleged that Bill Clinton had sexual contact with White House intern Monica Lewinsky.
  • Columbine Massacre

    Fourth deadliest school shooting in US history. 15 peoeple killed total including the shooters.
  • 9/11 Terrorist Attacks

    four airplanes were hijacked and two destroyed the twin towers in NYC, one crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth was crashed in a field in PA after the passengers on board took over the aircraft.