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The 3rd President
Thomas Jefferson is elected as the 3rd president of the United States in a vote of the House of Representatives after tying Aaron Burr, his Vice President, in the electoral college with 73 electors due to a flaw in the original vote for two system, which would be corrected in the 12th Amendment to the Constitution. -
Lousiana Purchase
President Thomas Jefferson doubles the size of the United States of America with his purchase of the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon's France, thus paving way for the western expansion that would mark the entire history of the 19th century from Missouri to the Pacific Coast. The price of the purchase included bonds of $11,250,000 and $3,750,000 in payments to United States citizens with claims against France. -
The Pacific
Members of the Lewis and Clark expedition upon sighting the Pacific Ocean on November 15, build Fort Clatsop, a log fort near the mouth of the Columbia River in present-day Oregon. They would spend the winter of 1805-1806 in the newly constructed fort. -
Abe Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, is born in a humble Hardin County, Kentucky log cabin to carpenter Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks. -
The White House is Burned
The White House is burned by British forces upon the occupation of Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812. This act, in retaliation for the destruction by U.S. troops of Canadian public buildings, causes President Madison to evacuate. The British advance would be halted by Maryland militia three weeks later on September 12. Another United States president, James Monroe, would have to wait three years before he could reoccupy the executive mansion. -
Peace Treaty
A peace treaty is signed between the British and American government at Ghent, bringing to an end the War of 1812. -
First Railroad
The first American railroad charter is granted by the state of New Jersey to John Stephens. -
Trail of Tears
The six year campaign known as the Trail of Tears begins when Washington Irving, Henry Levitt Ellsworth, and Captain Jesse Bean, at the Arkansas River, begin one of the first steps in the U.S. campaign to remove Indians from their homes on the east coast. -
Civil War
South Carolina responds to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President by being the first southern state to secede from the Union. This marks the beginning of the American Civil War. -
Eventual Surrender
General Robert E. Lee, as commander in chief of Confederate forces, surrenders his 27,000 man army to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the four years of Civil War conflict. Additional troops under southern command would continue to surrender until May 26. The McLean House is the location for the surrender at Appomattox Courthouse.