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Oct 12, 1492
Discovery of the "New World"
Spain funds explorers Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci to explore the Americas. -
Aug 13, 1521
The Spanish Conquest
Spanish Conquistador Cortes seizes the Aztecs and Pizarro seizes the Incas, giving Spain control over much of the Western Hemisphere. -
Jan 1, 1550
Slave Trade
Slave Trade Documentary The Atlantic slave trade occurred between 1550 and 1870 and uprooted almost 11 million Africans from their homeland and forced them into slavery. Hundreds of thousands of young Africans died any millions more endured the brutal life of slavery in the Americas. -
English Migration to America
Due to harsh weather and poverty in England, many poor English families migrated to America in search of a fresh start. -
Massachusetts Bay Colony
English Puritans, lead by John Winthrop, set up colonies through New England in persuit of religious freedom. -
The Enlightenment
The publication of Isaac Newton’s Principia Mathematica in 1637 is the approximate beginning of the Enlightenment period in America. The philosophers of the Enlightenment focused on scientific reasoning to study life as opposed the previous religious beliefs. Famous philosophers such as Sir Isaac Newton, John Locke, Benjamin Franklin led other Enlightenment thinkers to emphasize the power of human reason to understand the world around them. -
Metacom's Rebellion
A large federation of Native American tribes rebelled against the Whites who were seizing their land; more than half of New England's towns were ransacked by the Indians. -
Bacon's Rebellion
An uprising of poor white farmers led by Nathanial Bacon which ultimately resulted in the murder of 30 Indians and strengthened the racial tension between the North and South. -
William Penn's Treaty with the Indians
As a Quaker, William Penn refused to forcibly seize Indian lands. Instead, he negotiated to purchase the land from them without using any force. (Picture by Benjamin West portrays William Penn's meeting with the Lenni-Lanapes) -
The Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials began in 1692 when several young girls experienced seizures and accused neighbors of bewitching them. Massachusetts Bay authorities eventually arrested 175 people for the crime of witchcraft and executed nineteen of them. The Salem Witch Trials are significant because it represents the extreme religious and spiritual beliefs prior to the Enlightenment movement which suggested natural causes of death, not witchcraft. -
Stono's Rebellion
Stono’s Rebellion was a slave rebellion that occurred in South Carolina in 1739. This rebellion prompted South Caroline legislature to pass the Negro Act of 1740 which restricted slave assembly and education. Stono’s Rebellion is significant because as a reaction to this uprising, slave owners became fearful of more uprisings and therefore treated their slaves much more harshly. -
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War resulted because of an ongoing battle between the French and English over colonial territory. The date marks the day that French troops seized Washington and his me which prompted the British to demand war. The War ended in a British victory against the French leaving the English to control most of the North American frontier. -
Pontiac's Rebellion
Pontiac led a coordinated Indian uprising against British troops who built forts in Indian lands. During Pontiac’s rebellion, Indian forces successfully seized nearly every British military expedition, surrounded the fort at Detroit, and killed or captured more than 2,000 British settlers. -
Proclamation of 1763
The Proclamation of 1763 was written as a peace settlement after Pontiac and his Indian forces killed or captured nearly 2,000 settlers. This Proclamation was issued by the British and stated that white settlements were prohibited west of the Appalachians which was the land that Pontiac was defending. This Proclamation did not settle discrepancies for long as the colonists ignored this Proclamation and continued moving westward. -
The Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was imposed by the British Parliament in 1765 and would specifically effect the American colonies. This act would require stamps on all court documents, newspapers, land titles, playing cards, contracts, and any other printed items. This Act along with others passed by the British was significant because it fueled the fire that led to the American Revolution. -
The Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was not as much as massacre as it was a street fight. Although 5 colonists were killed by British soldiers, Radical Whigs were convinced this was a British conspiracy against liberty and labeled this skirmish a massacre. The Boston Massacre was ironically significant because it promoted the American patriotism and the hatred for Britain although it was more of a conspiracy than an attack. -
Declaration of Independence
Jefferson wished to justify independence and republicanism to Americans and so he wrote a series of “self-evident” truths which included that “all men are created equal” and that they possess the “unalienable rights” of “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness”. This document is important in American history because it established the defining political values of the new nation that we still uphold today. -
Articles of Confederation
The Confederation Congress could declare war, make treaties, and borrow and print money. The Articles of Confederation’s major weakness was that it lacked the ability to tax the states or the people. The Articles of Confederation is significant because it represents the first time the union recognized its need for a centralized government. -
Treaty of Paris
In the Treaty of Paris, Great Britain formally recognized America as an independent union. In this treaty, Britain retained Canada but gave up its claims to lands south of the Great Lakes and east of the Mississippi River. The Treaty of Paris is significant because British finally recognized America’s independence and consequently ended the Revolutionary War. -
Shay's Rebellion
Daniel Shay led a rebellion in Massachusetts to protest economic injustice. Shay, along with other farmers, were angry with the British Stamp Act and were unable to pay their debts. To protest the tax increases and property seizures, mobs of angry farmers attacked the Federal Springfield Armory. Shay’s Rebellion is significant because it proved that America needed a stronger central government that could create uniform policies and effectively protect property owners. -
The Constitution
The Constitution allowed voters to elect their national leader (which was first done with the election of George Washington) and mandated the first Supreme Court. -
The Second Great Awakening
A series of religious revivals which changed the lives of African Americans and women. Baptist and Methodist churches were recieving many converts during this time period, many of them being women seeking equality. -
The Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution lasted roughly 30 years and completely transformed the country's dominate source of income from farms and prive craftsmen to the factories. -
Louisiana Purchase
Napoleon Bonaparte of France sells America the entire territory of Louisiana for $15 million which nearly doubled the land owned by the United States. -
The Market Revolution
Beginning in the late 1810's, a massive system of canals and roads linked the North Eastern states, making transportation of goods faster and more efficiant. -
The War of 1812
Though America suffered in the beginning, Andrew Jackson led the America to victory; this restored natinal pride and inspired the writing of our natioal anthem, the Star Spangled Banner. -
Commonwealth System
State Legislatures granted supported road and canal companies and other private businesses that would promote the general welfare. Landowners were forced to sell their land if it stood in the way of the pavement of turnpikes or bridges. -
Gibbons v. Ogden
Gibbons v. Ogden was a monumental court case in which the Supreme Court granted Congress the ultimate national power of interstate commerce. -
Tariff of 1828
Passed by the United States Congress to protect industry in the northern United States. -
Election of 1828
Andrew Jackson for the Democratic praty and John Adams for the National Republic - significant because Jackson was elected based on popular vote for the first time in history. -
Trail of Tears
President Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act which forced thousands of Native people to abandon their homes in harsh conditions. -
Anti-Slavery Society
Founded by abolitionist men in Ohio; this society pushed to prove the inhumanity in slavery and demanded immediate freedom. -
Oneida Community
The Oneida Community was a utopian community that redefined sexual and gender role boundaries in the United States with it's followers believing in "complex marriage". -
Seneca Falls Convention
One of the first influential women's rights conventions that both men and women attended, all supporting the movement towards gender equality. -
Missouri Compromise
This Compromise, created by Henry Clay, allowed Maine to join the union as a free state while Missouri could join as a slave-owning state, maintaining the balance in Senate between the North and South. -
Confederates fire on Fort Sumter
The confederates fired upton the fort on April 12th in declaration of the War which caused the Union troops to surrender. -
Emancipation Proclimation
Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclimation in 1863 which rid the northern states of slavery. -
Battle of Gettysburg
General E. Lee marched his troops up North but were defeated by the Union in what ended up being one of the bloodyest battles of the Civil War. This battle was the last time that the Confederate Army invaded the North. -
Gettysburg Address
Discovery Cartoon Many opposed Lincoln for his decision to continue drafting soldiers for battle after when the Union had suffered nearly a quarter million casualties. Lincoln wrote and publicly gave the Gettysburg Address to regain the Union’s support in the war effort. -
Sherman's March to the Sea
Sherman left Atlanta in flames during his 300 miles march to the sea, destroying everything in their paths. When Sherman reached Savannah in December, the cities 10,000 defenders left without a fight. This led to the Confederates losing their will to fight. -
Robert E. Lee Surrenders
Four years and a couple days after the attack of fort Sumter, Lee surrenders at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. By May, all the Confederate Generals had stopped fighting and the army and government melted away. -
Civil Rights Act
This act declared that everyone born in the United States was considered a citizen of America regardless of that person’s race. People who denied these rights to former slaves were guilty of a misdemeanor a faced fines or imprisonment. This act was significant because it gave American born residents automatic citizenship regardless of skin color and made it punishable under the law to deny anyone these rights. -
Reconstruction Act
Johnson passes the reconstruction act of 1867 which divided the south into five military districts, each under the command of a Union general. It established requirements for readmission of the ex-Confederate states to the Union. -
Panic of 1873
The failure of the Jay Cooke bank, followed quickly by that of Henry Clews, set off a chain reaction of bank failures and temporarily closed the New York stock market. Factories began to lay off workers as the United States slipped into depression. With the depression, ambitious railroad building programs crashed across the South, leaving most states deep in debt and burdened with heavy taxes. -
Compromise of 1877
The Compromise of 1877 refers to an informal, unwritten deal that settled the disputed 1876 U.S. Presidential election and ended Congressional Reconstruction.
