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House of Burgesses
the first elected legislative assembly in the New World established in the Colony of Virginia. Over time, the name came to represent the entire official legislative body of the Colony of Virginia, and later, after the American Revolution, the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia.In Britain, the term "burgess" had referred to a Parliamentary representative, as of a borough. -
Pequot War
Conflict between an alliance of Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies, with American Indian allies (the Narragansett, and Mohegan Indians), against the Pequot Indians. This war saw the elimination of the Pequot in New England, and is exemplary of the Puritan use of genocide towards Native Americans. -
King Philip's War
A series of battles in New Hampshire between the colonists and the Wompanoags, led by Metacom, a chief also known as King Philip. The war was started when the Massachusetts government tried to assert court jurisdiction over the local Indians. The colonists won with the help of the Mohawks, and this victory opened up additional Indian lands for expansion. -
Bacon's Rebellion
Uprising of Virginia backcountry farmers and indentured servants led by planter Nathaniel Bacon. It was initially a response to Governor William Berkeley's refusal to protect backcountry settlers from Indian attacks, the rebellion eventually grew into a broader conflict between impoverished settlers and the planter elite -
Pueblo Revolt
The spanish came in and tried to force the people to convert to christianity. They arrest the pueblo holy men and some of them are put to death. As revenge, Pope (a pueblo man), leads a revolt against the spanish and kill 400 spaniards all together and 35 priests. The spanish are forced to leave the area. The significance is: when the spanish arrive 13 years later, they realize they cannot force the pueblo to christianity. For a time they lived in harmony with one another. -
Dominion of New England
The British government combined the colonies of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Connecticut into a single province headed by a royal governor (Andros). -
Stono Rebellion
The most serious slave rebellion in the the colonial period which occurred in South Carolina. About 100 African Americans rose up, got weapons and killed several whites then tried to escape to South Florida. The uprising was crushed and the participants executed. The main form of rebellion was running away, though there was no where to go. -
Articles of Confederation
The first American constitution that established the United States as a loose confederation of states under a weak national Congress, Which didn't grant the central government the power to regulate commerce or collect taxes; Articles were replaced by a more efficient Constitution in 1789 -
Land Ordinance of 1785
Legislation passed by congress authorizing surveys and the division of public lands in the western region of the country, A law that divided much of the United States into a system of townships to facilitate the sale of land to settlers. -
Shay's Rebellion
A rebellion led by debtor farmers in western Massachusetts, led by Revolutionary War Captain Daniel Shays, against Boston creditors. it began in 1786 and lasted half a year, threatening the economic interests of the business elite and contributing to the demise of the Articles of Confederation. -
Northwest Ordinance
This policy was created for administering the Northwestern Territories; it included a path to statehood and forbade the expansion of slavery into the territories. -
Great Compromise
Compromise made by Constitutional Convention in which states would have equal representation in one house of the legislature and representation based on population in the other house. -
Three- Fifths compromise
The agreement by which the number of each state's representatives in Congress would be based on a count of all the free people plus three-fifths of the slaves -
Marbury V. Madison
In this 1803 decision, the Supreme Court first asserted the power of judicial review by declaring an act of congress, the Judiciary Act of 1789, unconstitutional. -
Louisiana Purchase
The U.S. acquisition of the Louisiana territory from France in 1803 for $15 million. The purchase secured American control of the Mississippi river and doubled the size of the nation. -
Lewis and Clark Expedition
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark were commissioned by Jefferson to map and explore the Louisiana Purchase region. Beginning at St. Louis, Missouri. The expedition traveled up the Missouri River to the Great Divide, and then down the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean. It produced extensive maps of the area and recorded many scientific discoveries, greatly facilitating later settlement of the region and travel to the Pacific coast. -
Non-Intercourse Act
This law allowed Americans to trade with all nations except Britain and France -
War of 1812
A war between the U.S. and Great Britain caused by American outrage over the impressment of American sailors by the British, the British seizure of American ships, and British aid to the Indians attacking the Americans on the western frontier.The Treaty of Ghent (December 1814) restored the status quo and required the U.S. to give back Florida. The war strengthened American nationalism and encouraged the growth of industry. -
Missouri Compromise
Allowed Missouri to enter the union as a slave state, Maine to enter the union as a free state, prohibited slavery north of latitude 36˚ 30' within the Louisiana Territory. -
Monroe Doctrine
A statement of foreign policy which proclaimed that Europe should not interfere in affairs within the United States or in the development of other countries in the Western Hemisphere. -
Mexican American War
This conflict started after US annexation of Texas. Mexico still considered Texas its own. The U.S. won the war, and obtained all land from Texas to California (minus the Gadsden Purchase) in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act (Bleeding Kansas)
Sen. Douglas wanted to divide the territory into the Nebraska Territory and the Kansas Territory; to gain support of the South, he decided slavery could be decided by popular sovereignty. This caused many Northerners and Southerners to go to the states to either support slavery or vote against it. -
Dred Scott v. Stanford
Dred Scott was a black slave who had lived with his master for five years in Illinois and Wisconsin territory. He sued for his freedom on the basis of his long residence in free territory. The Dred Scott court decision was handed down by the Supreme Court on March 6,1857. The Supreme Court ruled that Dred Scott was a black slave and not a citizen. Hence, he could not sue in a federal court. -
South Carolina Secession
Upon hearing of the news of Lincoln’s election, South Carolina secedes from the Union. This causes 10 other states to follow andsecede.These states would make up the new
Confederate States of America. -
Battle of Fort Sumter
The first shots fired in the Civil War took place in this battle.Located in South Carolina. Confederate army attacked the Union army at Fort Sumter after wanting them to leave the fort. They refused so the South attacked. The Union surrendered at this battle and left the fort. -
Battle of Gettysburg
This battle took place in southern Pennsylvania from July 1 to July 3, 1863. The battle is named after the town on the battlefield. Union General George G. Meade led an army of about 90,000 men to victory against General Robert E. Lee's Confederate army of about 75,000. Gettysburg is the war's most famous battle because of its large size, high cost in lives, location in a northern state, and for President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. -
Thirteenth Amendment
The Emancipation Proclamation was meant to free the slaves in the Confederate States, but the Confederate government did not recognize the Union President freeing their slaves.The Thirteenth Amendment, however, freed the slaves everywhere in the United States. Therefore, during reconstruction the rights of the African Americans were protected by the federal government. -
National Labor Union
The first labor union to ever be formed. The labor union attracted 600,000 members including the skilled, unskilled, and farmers. It pushed social reform, an eight-hour day, and arbitration of labor disputes. -
Transcontinental Railroad
This railroad was completed in 1869 at Promontory, Utah. It linked the eastern railroad system with California's railroad system, revolutionizing transportation in the west. -
Interstate Commerce Commission
This was created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887, which was signed into law by President Grover Cleveland. It was passed to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminate rate discrimination, and to regulate other aspects of common carriers. -
Interstate Commerce Act of 1887
This las banned rebates, pools, and required railroads to openly publish rates. It also forbade discrimination against shippers, and banned charging more for short haul than long one. This law basically set up the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). -
Gospel of Wealth
This was a book written by Andrew Carnegie, that justified the very rich. It describes Social Darwinism and the rich’s responsibility of philanthropy. Carnegie at one point was the second richest man alive. This is because during this time period many businesses were run by monopolies. -
Sherman Antitrust Act
The first law to limit monopolies in the United States. This law’s purpose was to create a fairer competition in the workforce and to limit any take-over's of departments of merchandise. Although this law was often overlooked because of its poor word choice, that often confused people on what the laws purpose was. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
A case in which the Supreme Court ruled that segregated, "equal but separate" public accommodations for blacks and whites did not violate the 14th amendment. This ruling made segregation legal. -
Election of 1896
William Jennings Bryan was the first populist presidential candidate. Jennings’s opponent, William McKinley, was supported by big businesses and trust owners. This election saw the rise of the populist party, -
World War 1
European war in which an alliance including Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, and the United States defeated the alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria. The war lasted for about four years. -
Zimmerman Telegram
A coded telegram dispatched by the Foreign Secretary of the German Empire. The telegram instructed the ambassador to approach the Mexican government with a proposal to form a military alliance against the United States. It was intercepted and decoded by the British and its contents hastened the entry of the United States into World War I. There is often speculation about whether the Zimmerman telegram was real or faked by the British, so the United States would join the war. -
Eighteenth Amendment
This amendment banned the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol. This period of time was known as prohibition On December 5, 1933, the ratification of the twenty-first amendment repealed the eighteenth amendment. -
Treaty of Versailles
This treaty was created to solve problems made by World War I. Germany was forced to accept the treaty. The treaty punished Germany and did nothing to stop the threat of future wars. The treaty is often blamed for blaming for causing World War 2. -
Nineteenth Amendment
This amendment gave everyone the right to vote, regardless of their gender. -
The Great Depression
A period of economic crisis in the U.S. One of the causes were people weren’t spending as much as they used to, which lead to factories overproducing. This crisis won't be resolved for another ten years. -
World War 2
A war fought between the Axis powers and the Allies. Although the Allies proved to be victorious. The war officially started when Germany invaded Poland, which led France and Britain to declare war on Germany. -
Brown v. Board of Education decision
This was the decision that allowed schools to become integrated. -
Sputnik blasts into space
The USSR launched it's first satellite. This frightened Americans because they had no idea how advanced the Soviet Union was. This prompted Eisenhower to support the National Defense Education Act . This was a program intended to produce more scientist and teachers of science. -
The Berlin Wall was constructed
The Berlin Wall was constructed to stop people fleeing from East Berlin to West Berlin. In response to this the USSR built the Berlin Wall overnight. -
The Cuban Missle Crisis
Shortly after Cuba turned into a communist nation the USSR tried to befriend Cuba. The USSR convinced Cuba to let the Soviet Union to place nuclear weapons there. After the U.S. found out about this information there was a 13 day period where a nuclear was likely to happen. Although the U.S and the Soviet Union met and came to a solution. -
The Civil Rights Act of 1964
This act outlawed any discrimination based on race, religion, sex, or national origin. -
Roe v. Wade decision was issued
This decision made it legal for women to decide if she could get a abortion. This was a big victory for women's rights. -
Wars Powers Act
The Wars Power Act limited the president's power to go to war. Before this the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution allowed the president to declare war without the Supreme Court's consent. -
Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars)
This plan called for orbiting battle satellites in space, that could fire laser beams to vaporize intercontinental missiles on liftoff. It was heavily pushed for funding by Ronald Reagan. -
Iran Contra Scandal
This scandal was uncovered after investigations, revealed that the US had been selling weapons to the anti-American government in Iran (to help secure the release of American hostages). They also had been using the profits from these sales to secretly & illegally finance the Contras in Nicaragua. Although President Reagan claimed to have been unaware this was going on. -
The Challenger Disaster
This NASA space shuttle exploded shortly after takeoff, killing all seven astronauts on board. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The wall between eastern and western Berlin was torn down. -
Persian Gulf War
After Iraq invaded Kuwait, the US invaded Iraq to liberate Kuwait. This led Iraq set to Kuwait's oil fields on fire, so the Americans couldn't gain the oil. The war would last for about a war. -
North America Free Trade Agreement
The North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) removed all tariffs on trade between America, Canada, and Mexico. -
September 11th Attacks
A series of coordinated suicide attacks by terrorists upon the United States on September 11, 2001. On that morning, terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and many others working in the buildings. They also crashed one of the planes into the Pentagon. While the fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania.
