-
Period: to
American History Semester 1
Semester 1 timeline. 1800-1920. -
Capital moved to Washington, D.C.
The U. S. capital is moved from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C. -
Ohio outlaws Slavery
Ohio outlaws slavery. Slaves all around are released as free men and women in the state. -
Political Fights
James Callender makes the accusation that Thomas Jefferson has "for many years past kept, as his concubine, one of his own slaves," Sally Hemings.In 1798, Jefferson had helped pay for the publication of Callender's pamphlet The Prospect Before Us, which claimed to expose John Adams as a monarchist. However, when Jefferson, now president, fails to reward Callender with the office of postmaster in Richmond, Virginia, Callender turns on him. -
Louisiana Purchase
Louisiana Purchase January 18. Jefferson asks Congress for funds for an expedition to explore the Mississippi River and beyond in search of a route to the Pacific. Meriwether Lewis, Jefferson's private secretary, begins planning the expedition, which forms late in 1803 -
Napoleon Bonaparte sells Louisiana Territory
Robert Livingston, ambassador to France, and James Monroe, special envoy, conclude a treaty of cession in Paris in which the United States purchases from France the whole of the Louisiana territory for fifteen million dollars. The territory, approximately 800,000 square miles comprising the Mississippi River Valley and most of the present-day Midwest, almost doubles the size of the United States. -
Lewis & Clark depart
The expedition led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark departs, moving up the Missouri River. -
Vice President Shootout
Alexander Hamilton dies after being shot the previous day by Vice President Aaron Burr in a duel at Weehawken, New Jersey. -
Aaron Burr conspiracy
Jefferson receives further information from a variety of sources in Pennsylvania and New York, including Generals William Eaton and James Wilkinson, that Aaron Burr is organizing a military expedition against Spanish possessions for the purpose of separating western territories from the United States. -
Aaron Burr Caught & Escaped
Aaron Burr is captured near New Orleans. He escapes but is recaptured and imprisoned. In April, Burr is charged with treason and tried in Richmond in a federal circuit court presided over by John Marshall.* Burr is acquitted. Later, with other charges pending, Burr escapes to England. -
Tempers High With British
The British warship Leopard attacks the American ship Chesapeake off the Virginia coast because its captain refused to allow the British to board and search for deserters. Three American seamen are killed and eighteen wounded as the British force a boarding and remove four alleged deserters. -
War Against Great Britain
James Madison (the current president) urges Congress to mobilize the country's defenses. In June 1812 he asked for and received a declaration of war against Great Britain. -
British Burn Capitol Building
British burn Capitol buildings in Washington including the White House. -
Treaty of Ghent
A treaty is signed between Britain and America that stopped the war and also removed British and American demands. -
Napoleon defeated
Napoleon finally, defeated at Waterloo. -
British "oops"
Unaware that peace had been concluded, British forces mounted a major attack on New Orleans, only to meet with defeat at the hands of future U.S. president Andrew Jackson’s army -
Georgia Prohibits Manumission
Georgia prohibits Manumission (freeing of slaves by their owner) -
Alabama Admitted as Slave State
Alabama admitted as slave state, bringing the number of slave states and free states to equal numbers -
Missouri Compromise
Missouri is added as a slave state. -
Maine Obtains Statehood
Maine enters statehood as a free state. -
Missouri Compromise Cont..
Prohibited slavery in the remainder of the Louisiana Purchase north of 36°30'N lat. -
New York Slave Rights
New York gives free blacks the right to vote -
Mexico Becomes a Republic
Mexico becomes a republic and outlaws slavery -
Erie Canal
The canal is completed, New York ascends commercially. -
Thomas Jefferson Death
Thomas Jefferson dies shortly after 12 noon, on the 50th anniversary of the declaration of independence. -
John Adams
Aged 90, dies in Massachusetts a few hours after Thomas Jefferson. On the 50th anniversary of the declaration of independence. -
Thomas Jefferson Open Letter
Jefferson writes an open letter that persuades americans to break the chains of goverment and self govern themselves -
New York outlaws Slavery
Slavery is outlawed in the entire state of New York. -
Andrew Jackson Elected
Andrew Jackson is elected as President of the United States. -
Georgia Prohibits Slave Education
Georgia prohibits anyone from educating a slave for any reason. -
Underground Railroad
The underground railroad is established to help transport slaves up north. -
Nat Turner Leads a Revolt
Nat Turner, a Baptist slave preacher, leads a revolt in Southampton County, Virginia, killing at least 57 whites. In turn, Alabama makes it illegal for Blacks to preach. -
Oberlin College Founded
The oberlin college is founded in ohio and admitted blacks, by 1860 1/3rd of students were black. -
Andrew Jackson Reelected
Andrew Jackson vetoes charter for 2nd U.S. Bank and reelected President. -
Andrew Jackson Second Term
Andrew Jackson is sworn in for his second term as President of the United States. -
First Attack on a President
In Alexandria, Virginia, the first public physical attack on an american president, with Andrew Jackson struck by a disgruntled Robert B. Randolph, who was dismissed from the navy by Jackson for embezzlement. Though the assailant was immediately apprehended, Jackson decided not to press charges. -
Andrew Jackson Censured
Andrew Jackson is censured by the Congress of the United States (expressed extreme disapproval) it was expunged in 1837. -
Attempted Assassination
An assassination is attempted against President Andrew Jackson in the United States Capitol (the first assassination attempt against a president of the united states) -
Texas Independece
Texas declares independence from Mexico. -
Martin Van Buren
Martin Van Buren is elected as President -
Whig Party
Whig Party holds its first national convention, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. -
Antarctica Claimed
Antarctica is claimed for the United States when Captain Charles Wilkes circumnavigates the continent and claims Wilkes Land for the nation. -
Van Buren Defeated For Reelection
President Martin Van Buren is defeated for reelection by William Henry Harrison. Harrison, a Whig, receives 234 Electoral College votes to 60 and also wins the popular vote contest. -
Amistad
The Supreme Court of the U.S. states that in the case of the slave ship Amistad that the Africans who had wrested control of the ship had been bound into slavery illegally. -
Shortest Presidential Term
President William Henry Harrison, sworn into office only one month before on March 4, dies of pneumonia. His tenure of one month is the shortest in history and his death in office the first for a president of the United States. He is succeeded by Vice President John Tyler. -
Hawaii's Independence Recognized
The Kingdom of Hawaii is officially recognized by European nations as an independent nation. This date signifies Hawaiian Independence Day. -
James K. Polk Elected
Democrat James K. Polk defeats Henry Clay for president with 170 Electoral College votes to 105 for Clay. -
Texas Annexed
The Congress of Texas votes for annexation to the United States of America with the majority of voters in Texas approving a constitution on October 13. These actions followed the signing of a bill by President Tyler on March 1, authorizing the United States to annex the Republic of Texas and led to the United States adding the Republic of Texas into the Union as the 28th state on December 29. -
War Declared Against Mexico
The first conflict of the Mexican War occurs north of the Rio Grande River at Palo Alto, Texas when United States troops under the command of Major General Zachary Taylor rout a larger Mexican force. Zachary had been ordered by President Polk to seize disputed Texas land settled by Mexicans. War is declared by the United States against Mexico on May 13, backed by southerners while northern Whigs were in opposition. Ten days later, Mexico declares war back. -
War With Mexico Ends
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican War with Mexico relinquishing its rights to Texas above the Rio Grande River and ceding New Mexico and California to the United States. The United States also gained claims to Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and part of Colorado. In exchange, the United States assumed $3 million in American claims and paid Mexico $15 million. The treaty is ratified one month later on March 10 by the U.S. Senate. Mexico would ratify the treaty on May 19. -
Zachary Taylor Elected
Zachary Taylor, hero of the Mexican War, defeats Lewis Cass in the presidential election of 1848. Whig Taylor garners 163 Electoral College votes to 127 for the Democratic candidate. This was the first U.S. election held on the same date in every state. -
Census Up
The United States census of 1850 counts 23,191,876 population, a 35.9% increase from a decade before. Over three million people now live in its most populous state, New York. -
Millard Fillmore Elected
Millard Fillmore is sworn into office as the 13th President of the United States after the death of Zachary Taylor the day before. His policies on the topic of slavery did not appease expansionists or slave-holders. -
California Annexed
The Compromise of 1850, pushed by Senator Henry Clay, admits California as the 31st state, without slavery, and adds Utah and New Mexico as territories with no decision on the topic. The Fugitive Slave Law is strengthened under the Compromise, which also ended the slave trade in the District of Columbia. -
Franklin Pierce Elected
Franklin Pierce, a Democrat, wins a convincing victory for President, defeating Whig Winfield Scott by a tally of 254 to 42 electoral votes. He also garners the majority in the popular vote. His four years as President, which began March 4, 1853, would cause dismay among Democrats, who would fail to nominate him for office again in 1856. -
Ironclad Ship
John Ericsson, designer of the ironclad Monitor one decade later, tests his ship powered by a caloric, hot air, engine in New York Harbor, but the experiment fails due to lack of power. -
James Buchanan Elected
James Buchanan is sworn into office as the 15th President of the United States. His tenure as President would be marred by the question of slavery and a compromise stance that would neither alleviate nor eradicate the intractable question from American society. -
Dred Scott Case
The United States Supreme Court rules in the Dred Scott decision, 6-3, that a slave did not become free when transported into a free state. It also ruled that slavery could not be banned by the U.S. Congress in a territory, and that blacks were not eligible to be awarded citizenship. -
Dred Scott Dies
Dred Scott, the American slave who precipitated the decision by the Supreme Court on the topic of slavery, dies. -
Oregon Admitted
Oregon is admitted to the Union as the 33rd state -
John Brown Attack
The United States Armory at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers at Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia) is seized by twenty-one men under the leadership of abolitionist John Brown. This act to cause an uprising of slaves in the surrounding territories fails when federal troops on October 18, under the command of Colonel Robert E. Lee, kill several of the raiders and capture John Brown. -
Lincoln Elected President
Abraham Lincoln is elected as President of the United States. -
Lincoln Inaugurated
Lincoln is inaugurated as president. -
South Secedes
All states that are a part of the "Confederate State" secedes from the union completely. -
Lincoln Enacts Conscription
Conscription is enacted by Lincoln allowing the government to select individuals or whole groups to fight in the army. -
General Lee Surrenders
Lincoln successfully gets the opposing general of the confederate states General Lee to surrender. -
Lincoln Re-Elected
Lincoln is re-elected as president. -
Lincoln Assassination
Lincoln is shot in the back of the head in a theater. He would die the day after. Leaving a memorable and maybe slightly blurred version of Martyrdom. -
Grant Elected as President
Grant Elected as President of the United States due to the previous president being impeached. -
Southern States Re-Admitted
Southern states are all finally re-admitted to the union. -
President Johnson Impeached
President Johnson is impeached and acquitted. -
Standard Oil
Standard Oil Company is incorporated by John D. Rockefeller. -
Hiram Revels
First African-American to be sworn into office in the United States Congress, Hiram Rhodes Revels. -
15th Amendment Ratified
15th Amendment Ratified, giving Blacks but not women the right to vote. -
KKK Members Convicted
KKK members tried and convicted by federal courts in Mississippi. Grant suspends habeas corpus and declared martial law in 9 So. Carolina counties. Many Blacks elected to political office. -
Jim Crow Laws
Jim crow laws are enacted in Tennessee that allow the "equal but not the same" rules to apply. -
Start of Reservations
The United States government ordered all Native Americans onto a system of reservations throughout the western lands of the United States. -
Battle of Little Big Horn
The Battle of Little Big Horn occurs when Lt. Colonel George Custer and his 7th U.S. Cavalry engage the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians on the bluffs above the Little Big Horn River. All 264 members of the 7th Cavalry and Custer perish in the battle, the most complete rout in American military history. -
Washington Monument Sponsored
Legislation is approved for the federal government to complete the privately sponsored, until that time, Washington Monument with an appropriation of $2 million. -
Edison Electric
The Edison Electric Company begins operation -
Einstein Born
Albert Einstein, who would later revolutionize modern Physics, is born in Germany. -
First Telephone Company
Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell form the Oriental Telephone Company. -
President James A. Garfield Assassinated
The 20th President of the United States, James A. Garfield, is shot by lawyer Charles J. Guiteau in the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad station in Washington, D.C. He would die two months later on September 19, 1881 from an infection and be succeeded in the presidency by Vice President Chester Arthur on September 20. -
Betrayal of Jesse James
Western outlaw Jesse James is shot to death by Robert Ford, a member of his own band, for a $5,000 reward. The Ford brothers had been recruited to rob the Platte City Bank, but opted to try to collect the reward for their infamous leader. -
Civil Rights Act "Unconstitutional"
The U.S. Supreme Court finds part of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional, allowing individuals and corporations to discriminate based on race. -
Fair Work Days
The Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions in the U.S.A. call for an eight-hour workday. -
Washington Monument Finished
The capstone of three thousand three hundred pounds is positioned atop the Washington Monument by the Corps of Engineers. The monument, five hundred and fifty-five feet tall and now completed after nearly thirty-seven years of work, would be dedicated in February of 1885 -
Arrival of the Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty arrives for the first time in New York harbor. -
First Presidential Marriage
President Grover Cleveland marries Francis Folsom in the White House Blue Room, the sole marriage of a president within the District of Columbia mansion during the history of the United States. -
Statue of Liberty Dedicated
The Statue of Liberty, known during its construction and erection as "Bartholdi's Light" or "Liberty Enlightening the World" is dedicated by President Grover Cleveland in New York Harbor. First shown in the United States at the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia ten years earlier, the huge sculpture by French artist Auguste Bartholdi provided the beacon to millions of immigrants and citizens who would pass its position in the decades to come. -
South Fork Dam Breaks
The deadliest flood in American history occurs in Johnstown, Pennsylvania when 2,200 people perish from the water of the South Fork Dam after heavy rains cause its destruction. -
Battle of Wounded Knee
occurs in the last major battle between United States troops and Indians. Hundreds of Indian men, women, and children are slain, along with twenty-nine soldiers. -
Carnegie Hall Opens It's Doors
Carnegie Hall, then known as Music Hall, opens its doors in New York with its first public performance under the guest conductor, Tchaikovsky. -
Ellis Island Opens
Ellis Island, in New York Harbor, opens as the main east coast immigration center, and would remain the initial debarkation point for European immigrants into the United States until its closure in 1954. -
Grover Cleveland Returns To Presidency
Grover Cleveland returns to the presidency with his victory in the presidential election over incumbent President Benjamin Harrison and People's Party candidate James Weaver. -
Hawaii Goverment Ovethrown
The United States Marines, under the direction of U.S. government minister John L. Stevens, but no authority from the U.S. Congress, intervene in the affairs of the independent Kingdom of Hawaii, which culminated in the overthrow of the government of Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani. -
"Separate But Equal"
Plessy versus Ferguson decision by the Supreme Court states that racial segregation is approved under the "separate but equal" doctrine. -
Hawaii Annexed
The United States annexes the independent republic of Hawaii. -
Tropical Land Acquired
The Peace Treaty ending the Spanish-American War is signed in Paris. The Spanish government agrees to grant independence to Cuba and cede Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to the United States -
Voting Machines
The United States Congress approves the use of voting machines in federal elections. -
Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier National Park is established in Washington State. -
Deadliest Texas Hurricane
The Galveston, Texas hurricane, with winds of 135 miles an hour, kills 8,000 people. It remains the most deadly natural disaster in American history. It was not named, during that era, and would have been a Category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale today. -
Theodore Roosevelt Elected VP
Theodore Roosevelt elected as vice president. -
President McKinley Assassinated
President William H. McKinley is shot at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York while shaking hands with fair visitors, following his speech at the event on President's Day the day before. Anarchist Leon Czolgosz is arrested for the crime. On September 14, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt is inaugurated as President upon the death of William McKinley from gunshot wounds sustained the week earlier. -
Panama Canal Signed In
With United States support after the Hay-Herran Treaty rejection by Columbia earlier in the year, Panama declares its independence from Columbia. The Panama government is recognized by President Theodore Roosevelt three days later and a canal treaty is signed on November 18, allowing the U.S. led construction of the canal. -
First Sustained Flight
Inventors Wilbur and Orville Wright succeed in the first sustained and manned plane flight, taking the heavier-than-air machine through the winds of Kill Devil Hill, North Carolina, and man into an age of flight. The plane, mechanically propelled with a petroleum engine, flew 120 feet in 12 seconds, and later the same day, flew 852 feet in 59 seconds. They would patent the Airplane three years later on May 22, 1906. -
Roosevelt Elected President
Theodore Roosevelt wins his first election for President after serving three years in the office due to the death of William McKinley. He defeats Democratic candidate Alton B. Parker, 336 to 140 in the Electoral College vote. -
Vegas Founded
The city of Las Vegas, Nevada is formed with the sale of one hundred and ten acres in the downtown area. -
Antiquities Act Passed
President Theodore Roosevelt grants protection to Indian ruins and authorizes presidents to designate lands with historic and scientific features as national monuments. This act, now known as the Antiquities Act, which would be utilized by Roosevelt to expand the National Parks system over his term was utilized for the first time on September 24, 1906 with the proclamation of Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming, an 865 foot volcanic column. -
Taft Elected President
William Howard Taft is elected President, 321 to 162 Electoral Votes, over Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan, who had twice before been defeated for the office by William McKinley in 1896 and 1900. -
Taft Continues National Park Designation
President William Howard Taft continues the designation of national monuments begun during the Roosevelt administration with the proclamation of Oregon Caves National Monument in southwest Oregon. On July 31, he continued the designations with the southwestern Utah lands known as Mukuntuweap that would become, ten years later, Zion National Park. -
Mount Katmai Eruption
Mount Katmai in southwest Alaska erupts in one of the largest recorded volcanic expulsions in the history of the world. It was designated Katmai National Monument in 1918 as protection against future eruptions. -
Woodrow Wilson Elected
In the first election of a Democratic candidate since 1892, Woodrow Wilson overcame a three way race for the presidency when former President Teddy Roosevelt donned the nomination of the Progressive Party to tackle the election against Wilson and incumbent President and Republican William Howard Taft. This split caused the election of Wilson, who garnered 435 Electoral College votes to 88 for Roosevelt and only 8 for Taft -
First Assembly Line
The first moving assembly line is introduced and adopted for mass production by the Ford Motor Company, allowing automobile construction time to decrease by almost 10 hours per vehicle. -
"Neutral" In WWI
President Woodrow Wilson announces that the United States will stay officially neutral in the European conflict that would become World War I. World War I hostilities had begun on June 28 when the Archduke of Austria and his wife, Franz Ferdinand and Sophie were killed by a Serb nationalist in Sarajevo. Hostilities would begin on July 28 when Austro-Hungary declared war on Serbia for failing to meet conditions set after the assassinations. -
Lusitania Sunk
The British ship Lusitania is sunk by a German U-boat submarine, causing 128 American passengers to be lost. Germany, although it warned of the pending crises to passengers, issued an apology to the United States and promised payments. -
America Enters WWI
Four days after receiving the request from President Woodrow Wilson, the United States Congress declares war on Germany and join the allies in World War I. -
Wilson Reelected
Woodrow Wilson won a second term as President with his election in the Electoral College, 277 to 254 over Republican candidate Charles E. Hughes. -
WWI Comes To A Close
Hostilities in World War I begin to end with the Austria-Hungary alliance for armistice with the allies on November 3. Armistice Day with Germany occurs when the Allies and the German nation sign an agreement in Compiegne, France. Woodrow Wilson would become the first U.S. President to travel to Europe while in office when he sails to attend the Paris Peace Conference on December 4. -
Prohibition Ratified
With the state of Nevada becoming the 36th state to ratify the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, prohibition becomes the law of the land. It would remain illegal to consume and sell alcoholic beverages in the United States until passage of the 21st Amendment, repealing the 18th, on December 5, 1933. -
WWI Done
The Treaty of Versailles is signed, ending World War I.
