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Invention Of Telegraph.
The telegraph was invented in 1844 by Samuel Morse. It was controlled by the Western Union Telegraph Company. They transmitted messages using Morse Code. The telegraph could soon link from the U.S. to Europe. -
Homestead Act.
The Homestead Act was passed in 1862. It gave 160 acres of free land to people who were then willing to compensate. The settler had to farm, bringing in crops, and live there for a minimum of five years. -
End of the Civil War.
The American Civil War took place from 1861-1865. This happened after President Abraham Lincoln was elected President in 1860. Eleven states from down south declared independence from the United States and formed their own called Confederate States of America. (The Confederacy).Those people fought against the Union (The North) because of disagreements with slavery...which is how it started. -
Transcontinental Railroad.
The transcontinental Railroad was finished May 10, 1869. The Union Pacific Railroad started in Omaha, Nebraska. The Central Pacific Railroad started in Sacramento, California. The Promontory Point is where the two join in Utah. Times zones came from transcontinental railroads to help regulate time better. Two main people: former slaves and immigrants. The Chinese were banned from U.S. because people felt they were taking their (railroad) jobs. -
Boss Tweed Jailed.
William M. Tweed, also known as Boss Tweed (Democrat), was a city Boss in New York City in the 1860s and 1870s. He was the leader of the Political Machine. Tweed and city officials controlled the Police, Courts, and some newspapers. They gathered millions of dollars in illegal payments from companies. Tweed and city officials-- Tweed Ring-- was exposed by Thomas Nast in a cartoon. This is how Tweed was sentenced and put in jail. -
Telephone Is Invented.
The telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876. He founded the Bell Telephone Company a year later. By 1890, he sold thousands of telephones soon to be common in homes. -
Battle of Little Bighorn.
George Custer led an expedition in 1874 to see if there really was gold in the Black Hills of the Dakotas. The Sioux then protested against them because the government promised there wouldn't be any whites, or trespassers on the Sioux's sacred land. The Army later attacked the Native Americans in 1876, but Native Americans won. -
End of Reconstruction.
Reconstruction took place from 1865-1877 after the Civil War. This basically tried to put everything back together. President Lincoln and Johnson followed the Redeemer plan. This way forgave the former confederacy. However, Congress followed the Radical plan, which punished the confederacy. The Radical plan was followed and causes the former confeds. to be more angry. -
Chinese Exclusion Act.
In 1882, Congress passed this act. It was the first law to limit immigrations. It prohibited Chinese workers from entering the U.S. for ten years. Then congress extended this law in 1892 and again in 1902. -
Time Zones are Created.
Time Zones were created because of the Transcontinental Railroad. It's purpose was to regulate time better. They weren't standard for everyone until 1918 when Congress passed the Standard Time Act. -
Pendleton Act is Passed.
Vice President Chester A. Arthur tried to end the Spoils Systems. The spoils systems, patronage, rewarded political supporters with jobs and favors. Congress passed the Pendleton Act in 1883. It established the Civil Service Commission to set up sompetitive examinations for federal jobs. The people had to demonstrate their abilities. By 1900, the commission controlled the hiring of many federal employess. -
Dawes Act.
Government wants Native Americans to claim their property with one piece of land rather than being nomadic. The Dawes Act proposed to break up the reservations. The government divided them up. -
Sherman Anti-Trust Act is passed.
The Sherman Anti-Trust Act was passed in 1890. This made monopolies illegal. It also forced Standard Oil to break up in 1911. It dealt with small companies. -
Battle of Wounded Knee.
Wounded Knee is a creek in Southwestern South Dakota. The army gathered to collect the weapons from the Indian tribe members so they could move them to a reservation. A gun shot was fired which cause the U.S. to start shooting and killed large numbers of Native Americans. More than 200 were killed and only 25 soldiers. Wounded Knee was the end of conflict between whites and Native Americans. -
Ellis Island Opens.
Ellis Island is in New York City. It opened in 1892 and closed in 1954. Immigrants/ lower class passengers took longer with inspection before they could enter. approx. 3-5 hours. Literacy tests were required for every immigrant in 1921 if they made it through that far; 2/3 of them took a ferryboat to New Jersey and 1/3 went to Manhattan, NYC. Ellis Island was the #1 immigration station in the U.S. in the late 1800s. -
Model T invented.
Henry Ford introduced the Model T in 1908. During the next 18 years, 15 million Model T's were sold. The less expensive way to manufacture cars is the assembly line. (Henry Ford also came up with this). Mass production of goods decreased manufacturing costs.