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Start of Civil War
The civil war started with an event called the Attack on Fort Sumter, on April 12, 1861. 7 states had seceded from the union while South Carolina was first. In this conflict, the union had men occupying Fort sumpter, on SC grounds, creating tension between Lincoln’s union and the newly seceded SC. Lincoln ends up supporting the men in fort sumpter forcing confederates to attack and force them out of the fort. Although none had died through the skirmish, the war had begun. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was a head on, 3 day clash between the union army, led by General Meade, and the confederate army, led by General Lee. This battle clearly reigns supreme when it comes to overall death and destruction over all the battles the occurred in the war, with a total casualty count over an astounding 50,000. There were two battles standing out the most, one on the second day called Little round top, and the other on the last day called Pickett’s Charge. Ends with union win. -
13th Amendment
On January 31, 1865 the 13th amendment was officially passed and approved by the House of Representatives. This specific amendment banned and abolished the act of the slavery within the United States of America, this act could be regulated and enforced by congress. This amendment also includes the term involuntary servitude and how that as well as slavery would not be permissible except as a punishment for crime. -
End of Civil War
The civil war ended at the Appomattox court house on April 9, 1865. General Lee was forced to come to terms and meet General Grant to put an end to the war and surrender to Grants superior forces. Through the hatred between both sides during the course of the war Grant gave Lee very generous and forgiving terms, allowing all the confederate men to keep their belongings and taking none as prisoners. -
14th Amendment
The 14 amendment was passed by the senate on June 8, 1866 but officially ratified on July 9, 1868. This amendment was granted to guarantee citizenship rights to all people born and naturalized in the United States. This gave blacks and former slaves absolute citizenship rights as well as the ability to have equal protection under the laws. -
The Transcontinental Railroad Connects
On May 10 of 1869 the CPR and UPR finally meet and fully connects the transcontinental railroad. This was a long lasting Job taking over 6 years to complete, and despite the bad weather and setbacks that took place during construction, the two tracks finally met in the middle at Promontory point Utah. Right as the Job was being finished, the two presidents of each railroad decided to drive the final last two golden spikes into the ground. -
15th Amendment
The 15th amendment was ratified on February 3, 1870 through congress after the war and as an act of and during reconstruction. This amendment gave all African American men the right to vote. Congress had the direct power to enforce this act through legislation, yet some in the south still aimed to defy the constitutional laws and discriminate against blacks. Woman were still not able and given right to vote. -
Invention of Barbed Wire
On November 28, 1874 Joseph Glidden patented one of his more famous inventions barbed wire. Barbed wire was a type of wire lined fence with double strand spurs periodically twisted down the wire and throughout the fence, this type of fencing was a major replacement to the previous wood fences, as it was much easier to attain due to the scarcity of wood on these vast plains. This type of fencing was more more effective in keeping cattle contained. -
Brooklyn Bridge Completed
On May 24, 1883 the Brooklyn bridge was finally completed, designed by none other than John Roebling. John was the main designer of the bridge and the one who formulated the plan of building it, his son Washington Roebling later became the chief engineer, and lastly Johns Wife Emily Roebling finished off the project and was the first one to walk across the bridge. This bridge when completed was the longest suspension bridge in the world and was a sign of americas ingenuity excellence. -
Ida B. Wells Train Confrontation
On September 15, 1883 Ida B. Wells experienced one of the more life changing events in her life, just from one single confrontation on a train. On this day Ida had planned to board a particular train riding first class as that is what her ticket covered, but instead of going about her day she was told by the other white folk in the first class to go back to the colored section. As she refused, this incident became the major spark to start her career as a civil rights activist. -
France Gifts America Statue or Liberty
On July 4, 1884 France officially gifts the Statue of Liberty to America and presents it to the U.S ambassador remembering the friendship between France and the United States. And as it is gifted to the U.S. it becomes Frances gift commemorating the 100 year anniversary of the American Revolution. The statue was officially named “the Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World,” and was designed by Frederic Bartholdi. -
Oklahoma Land Rush
The Oklahoma Land Rush took place on April 12, 1889 and involved a rush of white settlers to claim free land in Oklahoma. This land, previously owned my native Americans, was the last open land in the Oklahoma Indian territory and it was being given away virtually free by the government, all 2 million acres. As this free land was said to have been the last open land in America, it signified the end of the American frontier and officially closed it for good. -
Ellis Island Opens it’s Doors
On January 1, of 1892 Ellis Island opened its doors for the first time and begun its processing of immigrants. This federal immigration center opened so that immigrants could come in and be processed by the government and not individually by the states as previously done. Shortly after it’s opening, a 17 year old girl named Annie Moore became the first Immigrant to be registered at the immigration center and from this received a $10 gold coin to commemorate her experience. -
Plessy Deciding to Board White Only Section
On June 7, 1892 Homer Plessy deliberately decided to buy a train ticket and to board in the white only section. At first glance to us we see no problem, but as it turned out Plessy happened to be 1/8 black and decided to make that known as he was on board the train. Ultimately, Plessy did this to prove a point and in the end he ended up being arrested and later sued taking this conflict all the way up to the Supreme Court. -
Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court Ruling
On May 18, 1896 the Plessy v. Ferguson case had climbed its way all the way up to the Supreme Court and it had finally come time for a ruling that would face the issues at hand. The Supreme Court had made their ruling, it was a 7 to 1 majority ruling, with one Supreme Court Justice not participating, in favor of the separate but equal doctrine. And as a result of this, segregation stood as strong as ever, supported even by the Supreme Court, as long as both sides were “equal.” -
The Explosion of the U.S.S. Maine
On February 15, 1898 the beloved U.S.S. Maine ship exploded in Havana, Cuba harbor. Immediately due to the already held tension with Spain, Americans with no hesitation suspect Spain, and with a total of 260 American sailor's dead, America is ready for action. This event becomes one of the major sparks for the war, and leaves those back at home with the battle cry, “Remember the Maine.” -
Congress Declares War on Spain
On April 25, 1898 congress officially declared war on Spain. Through hearing all the battle cries from heart felt Americans and the sailors fellow comrades, and seeing all the emotion and need for Justice displayed by the Americans from influence of yellow journalism, congress was forced to take action. As congress declared war, they lead off their advances with commodore Dewey leading a naval squadron into attack in Manila bay against Spain. -
Battle of San Juan Hill
On July 1, 1898 the triumphant battle of San Juan Hill took place in Cuba. On this day, Theodore Roosevelt led a regiment known as the rough riders into a heroic victory at this battle. This battle was likely the most important land battle that took place during the war and was a significant victory for the U.S., it showed their outright dominance over Spain and their army and was one of the last battles to occur in this “splendid little war.” -John Hay -
The Spark of World War One
On June 28, 1914 Austria’s Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated. On this day at around 11:15 AM a Bosnian Serb named Gavrillo Princip decided it best to take a gun and murder archduke Franz Ferdinand and his Wife Sophie, duchess of Hohenburg. This event along is the major short term cause for the war and has proven itself to be the spark that ignited the flame built up by the MAIN causes of the war. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
On May 7, 1915 Germany torpedoed the Lusitania and sunk an passenger ship carrying both American and other British civilians. In Toto so there were around 1,200 passengers on board and out of that 128 Americans that were killed by the German attack. Germany had supposedly warned that if American ships were spotted making attempts at contacting British ships they would be sunk on sight, and in the end the ship had been carrying large stocks of ammunition. -
A knock on Wilsons Doorstep
On January 10, 1917 the National Women's Party began boldly picketing the White House. They started this movement in hope that if directly confronting and protesting at the presidents doorstep they along with their movement would get the recognition deserved and eventually get the response they strived for. They held up signs such as Kaiser Wilson, which pointed at how Wilson was making freedom a priority for what he was fighting for in war but not one in his home country. -
Ellis Islands Busiest day
On April 17, 1907 Ellis Island had its busiest day of processing and received a record breaking amount of immigrants. On this particular day a whopping 11,747 immigrants flowed into Ellis Island’s doors in hopes of being admitted into the U.S. and potentially living a better life. Throughout the year of 1907 around 1.3 million immigrants, mostly European, had come to the United States setting record that ended up not being broken until 1990. -
Battle of Belleau Wood
The Battle of Belleau Wood was the first large scale battle fought by the Americans once they had joined the war. This battle took place from June 1-26,1918 and first started off with the Germans attempting to push back French forces until successfully making it within 45 miles of Paris. As the battle continued, America sent troops in for the first time this war and with good success helped the French in holding the Germans back and taking their first victory of the war. -
End of World War One
On November 11, 1918 at 11:00 AM WW1 had officially come to an end. Earlier that morning an armistice document was signed by a battered and defeated Germany in a railroad car just outside of Compiégne, France to seal the deal and finally put an end to this devastating war. From this devastation an estimated 9 million soldiers were dead and another 21 million were wounded, not to mention the millions more that suffered from the deadly influenza outbreak at this time. -
18th Amendment
On the 16th of January, 1919 prohibition the 18th amendment was ratified. This amendment installed prohibition, basically making alcohol illegal to buy, make, and sell. Although, this did not include drink, so many stocked up as much alcohol as possible before the amendment went into action so they could ration it over time. -
Seneca Falls Convention
The first women's rights convention was held in Seneca falls from the 28th-29th of July in 1920. This convention at the Wesleyan chapel located in New York, marked the beginning of the roaring movement for women’s suffrage, fighting for civil, social and religious rights and freedom for all women. On the first day of the convention around 300 people showed up, all women as only permitted, and on the following day men and women together were able to come and support. -
Scopes Trial
The scopes trial was held on July 21, 1925 in Dayton Tennessee. The dispute in this trial was wether John Scopes should be aloud to teach Evolutionary theories in school opposed to the standard creation. Scopes eventually lost the trial but in the end was only fined 100 dollars and ended up having a positive long term effect for the cause in the future. -
Black Tuesday
The 29th of October, 1929 was known to be the day called Black Tuesday in which the stock market officially crashed. The crash happened over almost a week span but this day is remembered specifically in history for being the starting of this notorious crash leading into the Great Depression. As the market crashed, bank runs occurred where everyone panicked to get there money out of their local bank, but this only made things worse. -
Passage of the Smoot-Harley Tarif
On the 13 of March in 1930 the Smoot-Harley Tarif was officially passed and put into full effect. This act raised the tariffs on United States imports by up to 50%, this discouraged international trade heavily. Hoover, the president at this time, believed that passing this Act would help America build a stronger and self relying economy, but he was dead wrong as this helped plummet America further into the depression. -
Bonus March
On this day July 5, 1932 the bonus army pressed its March to its furthest extent up to the block steps of the Washington capitol. This March was taking place because many World War One veterans were requesting there bonus promised to them from WW1 early due to the struggle they faced during these hard times. The bonus army continued to protest and eventually hoover felt it necessary to act and forcibly squash this protest, killing 4 veterans in the process. -
Election of Franklin Delano Roosevelt
On March 4, 1933 Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected into office as the 32nd president of the United States. In this election, he faced off against the previous president Hoover, and beat him by a landslide, and as he came into office he was put up to the task that Hoover could not quite manage, bringing America out of the Depression. Although, FDR came in with hope and confidence and quickly installed his New Deal Plan, he offered Reform, Recovery, and Relief for Americans. -
21st Amendment
On the 5th of December in 1933 the 21st Amendment was passed. This amendment negated the 18th, and repealed the prohibition act making alcohol once again legal. This was due to the unexpected negative effects prohibition brought like the introduction to organized crime, and also simply because America as a whole was not willing to give the substance up. -
Invasion of Poland
On September 1st, 1939 Germany decided to invade Poland. Hitler had his goals set on regaining his lost territory and having complete control of those neighboring, and his first victim was Poland. This event is thought to have been the first offensive of the war and what kickstarted the bloody and thorough war to come. -
Pearl Harbor
On December 7, 1941, a day which will live in infamy as was quoted by FDR, the United States Naval Base Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese. This naval base was notably americas most prominent one, and for that reason Japan thought it be a devastating move if crippled. They aimed to establish their empire in the pacific while America was distracted but instead, awoken the beast that would later come back to viciously bite them. -
Battle of Stalingrad
On the 17th of July, 1942 Hitler and his German forces to decided to take the offensive and invade the Soviet Union. Hitler was aiming to wipe out the Stalingrad industrial center and in doing so breaking the pact him and Stalin had created. In the end Hitlers forces could not hold up against the frigid and piercing winter, although the soviets did not get off east losing 1 million men. -
D-Day
On the 6th day of the 6th month in 1944 the Allied powers planned their retaliating invasion on the Axis forces. This event, also known as “operation overlord,” involved the Allies while in the middle of attacking Italy, branched off and moved to regain control of German/Nazi occupied France. This was the Allie’s largest scale land-sea-air operation of the war, but even as they were met with heavy retaliation, they were able to come out victorious. -
Hitler’s Demise
On April 25, 1942 Adolf Hitler decided to take his own life, bringing his girlfriend with him. The Allie’s take Berlin, and now the Germans are now in full retreat as the Soviet union is in heavy pursuit of Germany and Hitler himself. And as Hitler knows his end is near, he marries his girlfriend on the 29th and on the next day he and his wife come to terms with fate and kill themselves. -
The 1st Atomic Bomb
On the 6th of August in 1945 the United States military, ordered by Truman, decided to drop the first ever strategic Atomic Bomb on Japan’s city Hiroshima. After apparent warnings given out by America of the bombs arrival, Japan refuses to back down and sadly met with the single most lethal weapon at that time. America felt that doing this would ensure the surrender of Japan and all in all save more lives compared to an all out invasion of Japan. -
Easter Parade
On the 19th of April, 1949 the event known as the Easter parade took place in Berlin. As Russia and the west installed their separate governments in Berlin, a split of Berlin came about causing east Berlin to be heavily isolated and oppressed. The west would deliver supplies and goods to the east to help them out in their time of trouble, and specifically on Easter they sent 1,398 planes with goods in one day. -
PRC Declared
On October 1, 1949 Mao Zedong declared the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). This change officially signified the falling of China to communism and represented the start to a new era of communism in China. When doing so they also formed a pact with also communist Russia, and as this happened the U.S. realized the lack of attention they we’re paying to Chinas political status, as they were overall seeking friendship with Asia. -
Start of Korean War
On the 25th of June in 1950 the Northern Koreans decide to invade South Korea. Since WWll Korea had been divided into two separate sections by the 38th parallel, but as the communist north moved in to invade they were declared the aggressor and we’re the starters of a prolonged gruesome war. In a way through this war either side of Korea was backed up by larger national powers and eventually used the pawn pieces to a much bigger struggle between communism and capitalism. -
Alaska Becomes a United State
On January 1, 1959 Alaska was officially admitted to be the 49th state of the United States of America. Although, back in 1867 on March 30th the land we today call Alaska was purchased from Russia for a total sum of 7.2 million dollars by the Secretary of State William H. Seward. This land had different valuable aspects and resources including fish, timber, oil, and gold, as there was later a gold rush 30 years later. -
Hawaii becomes 50th State
On August 21, 1959 Hawaii was officially deemed the 50th state of America. Previously Hawaii had been known as the kingdom of Hawaii and was ruled by a Monarchy system of power, but as America took interest in the land and its location as an island and midpoint, they eventually began to take steps towards acquiring the territory. Eventually in 1898 Hawaii was annexed as a U.S. territory and in this time it was temporarily governed by a man named Sanford B. Dole. -
First Man in Space
On April 14, 1961 the first man was officially launched into space. This task was a monumental feat in the space race and was completed by the Russians, done by a man by the name of Yuri Gagarin. This was a major step ahead for Russia in the space race and was one of their most prominent wins until America later caught back up and landed on the moon. -
End of Soviet Union
On the 26th of December, 1991 the Soviet Union as a whole finally dissolved, and was broken into fragments of countries in which it had initially had been. Following the fall of the Berlin Wall, and reuniting of Germany, the overall cause of a widespread communism hadn’t been going to well. And as Gorbachev saw this, he decided to let the Soviet Union follow suit and went on to resign his position and later let the Soviet Union dissolve.