American History 1955-1975

By livnatppmmp
  • 55

    Rosa Parks

    Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus. This became a rallying point and sparked a new era in the Civil Rights Movement.
  • 61

    Just give me some Space

    Yuri Gagarin becomes the first man to be launched into orbit, putting the Soviet Union ahead in the space race.
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    Bus Boycott

    Civil rights supporters boycott buses in the town of Montgomery, Alabama, in reaction to Rosa Parks stand against segregation.
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    The Vietnam War

    America is involved the Vietnam War. This war caused some of the greatest losses of American lives. It was a civil war fought between the Communist North and American-backed South.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1957

    Congress passes the 1957 Civil Rights Act. Unfortunately, this act was compromised to almost nothing and had little impact.

  • ARPA Seal

    The ARPA, the precursor to DARPA, is created under President Eisenhower.

  • Trading Cuba

    The United States imposes a trade embargo on Cuba for increased ties with Communist Russia.

  • John F. Kennedy

    John F. Kennedy is elected 35th President of the United States.

  • Cut the Cuban

    Diplomatic relations with Cuba are severed.

  • Bay of Pigs

    The CIA launches an attempted coup of Cuban leader, Fidel Castro. The invasion fails and strains Cuban-American relations even farther.

  • James Meredith

    James Meredith becomes the first African-American to attend a university in the United States.

  • Missile Island

    American spyplanes spot missle launch sites on Cuba, built in response to American missile sites in Turkey. After talks with Russia, the missiles are removed 14 days later.

  • Lyndon B. Johnson

    Lyndon B. Johnson becomes 36th President of The United States after John F. Kennedy is assassinated.

  • King of the Cell

    Martin Luther King Jr. is jailed for his civil rights work. During his imprisonment, King pens "Letters from a Birmingham Jail".

  • The March on Washington

    Martin Luther King Jr and other civil rights activists stage a protest march in Washington, DC.

  • Kennedy down

    President John F Kennedy is assassinated during a parade in Texas.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1964

    Congress passes a second Civil Rights Act. This Act had more impact than the previous.

  • Voting Rights Act of 1965

    The Voting Rights Act of 1965 strikes down voter discrimination on the basis of gender and race.

  • Woodstock

    The Woodstock Festival is held in New York. It becomes one of the most iconic cultural festivals of the century.

  • Roe v Wade

    The Supreme Court case of Roe v Wade recognizes abortion as a constitutional right to privacy, setting a precedent against similar abortion laws.

  • Black Panthers

    The Black Panthers, a militant civil rights group, are formed.

  • What a Riot

    The city of Detroit in Michigan is rocked by riots due to cuts in employment and industry.

  • King Tet

    The Tet Offensive, a military movement by North Vietnamese forces, pushes against American/South Vietnamese forces. Although the north made no headway, this offensive showed that North Vietnam was not as defeated as portrayed. It also served to increase American opposition to the war.

  • The King is Dead

    Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated while visiting a sanitation workers strike in Memphis.

  • Richard Nixon

    Richard Nixon is elected the 37th President of the United States.

  • One Small Step

    The United States puts a man on the , effectively ending the Space Race.

  • Earth Day

    The first Earth Day is celebrated.

  • Watergate

    Five men are arrested for breaking into the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate Complex. Over the next several years, investigations would put increased pressure on President Nixon, leading to his resignation.

  • Wounded Knee

    The city of Wounded Knee is occupied by advocates for Native American civil rights.

  • Paris Peace Accords

    North and South Vietnamese leaders meet in Paris to sign a peace treaty, ending the Vietnam War. However, North Vietnamese forces overran South Vietnam in 1975, uniting the country under Communist rule.

  • Pass the SALT

    The Antiballisitc Missile (ABM) treaty and the Strategic Arms Limitations Trey (SALT I) are signed by the United States and the Soviet Union, reducing Cold War Tensions between the two.

  • Gerald Ford

    Gerald Ford becomes the 38th President of the United States, following the resignation of Richard Nixon from office.