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Period: to
Colonial Era
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Founding of Jamestown
*Definition
- Jamestown was the first English colony in the New World. It was established in Virginia. The colony was sponsered by the Virginia Company of London, who hoped to profit from what the colony had to offer.
*Significance
- The founding of Jamestown led to many encounters and experiences that played key roles in shaping the culture of the United States today.
*Details
- King George I
- Powhatan Indians
- Pocahontas
- John Rolfe
- John Smith -
Founding of the Virginia House of Burgesses
*Definition
- The House of Burgesses was founded by the Virginia Company to encourage further colonization of North America and to improve conditions for the current residents of Virginia.
*Significance
- It was the first legislative assembly of elected representatives in North America.
*Details
- 1st meeting held in Jamestown, VA
- A "burgess" is a political official or representative -
Massachusetts Bay Founding
*Definition
- Puritan Englishmen founded Massachusetts bay in search of religious freedom.
*Significance
- The colonists in this area were not only religious, but many of them were also educated and wealthy. This combination of traits found in men and women made Massachusetts one of the more unique and influential colonies.
*Details
- Massachusetts Bay Company
- Blue Laws
- Congregational Church
- Bible Commonwealth
- Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford
- John Winthrop -
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
*Definition
- The Fundamental Orders describe the initial Connecticut government, defining its structure and powers.
*Significance
- The Fundamental Orders contains many principals that were later applied in the Constitution of the United States.
*Details
- Established greater voting rights
- Made more men eligible for elected positions -
Maryland Act of Toleration
*Definition
- The Maryland Toleration Act was the second law passed that required religious tolerance in the British North American colonies and created the first legal limitations on hate speech in the world.
*Significance
- Many say that the Act helped inspire future legal protections for freedom of religion in the United States.
*Details
- Sentenced to death anyone who denied the divinity of Jesus.
- Influenced the first amendment to the US Constitution, Freedom of Religion. -
Halfway Covenant
*Definition
- The Halfway Covenant said that the children of existing church members could admit to baptism, but not full communion.
*Significance
- This weakend the distinction between the "elect" and the others, diluting the "spiritual purity" of the original settler's so godly community and ideas. The Halfway Covenant also made it more difficult to maintain the importance of religious devotion of the upcoming generation.
*Details
- Puritans
- partiality
-conversion/baptism -
King Phillip's War
*Definition
- King Phillip's War was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of New England against the colonists and their Native American allies.
*Significance
- The war crippled New England. Twelve towns were destroyed and many people were killed, and the colony's economy was all but ruined.
*Details
- First Indian War
- Metacomet's War
- Native Americans allied with colonists
- Native Americans allied with colonists -
Bacon's Rebellion
*Definition
- Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion by Virginia settlelers against the rule of governer William Berkley. The rebellion was led by Nathaniel Bacon, hence the name Bacon's Rebellion.
*Significance
- The rebellion resulted to reduction of texes, unification of different nations and race, and gave the freemen their rights back.
*Details
- slavery
- racial hostility -
Leisler's Rebellion
*Definition
- Jacob Leisler led an uprising and seized control of the southern part of the New York colony.
*Significance
- Leisler was convicted of treason and executed by the British, but the event divided the colony from that point forward.
*Details
- Martyr
- Followed a pattern of previous rebellions -
Salem Witchcraft Trials
*Definition
- The Salem Witchcraft Trials were a series of people accusing women, children, and even a dog of being witches. These accusations were made to explain strange happenings in Massachusetts.
*Significance
- The Salem Witchcraft trials demonstraded the importance of the separation of church and state.
*Details
- ergot poisoning
- Abigail Williams
- Ann Putnam
- 20 people were killed
- Tituba
- Bridget Bishop
- Samuel Parris
- George Borrows -
First Great Awakening
*Definition
- The First Great Awakening was a religious movement in the 18th century. People challenged the "old-time" religion, and the religious leaders split into basically two groups: old lights and new lights. The old lights group was made up of old Puritan preachers, whereas the new lights group was made up of young, energetic preachers.
*Significance
- Two lasting effects of the First Great Awakening were rebellion and colleges.
*Details
- Edwards
- Whitefield -
John Peter Zenger Trial
*Definition
- John Peter Zenger had charges pressed against im for writing unflattering things about William Crosby, the royal governer. Zenger was judged innocent.
*Significance
- The John Peter Zenger trial was where the freedom of speech and the freedom of press were first considered in a trial.
*Details
- libel
- Freedom of press
- Freedom of speech
- attormey general Richard Bradley -
Stono Rebellion
*Definition
- The Stono Rebellion was the largest slave uprising in the colonies before the American Revolution.
*Significance
- The Stono Rebellion inspired other slave rebellions. It also made life much harder for slaves. A harsher, more strict slave code was enforced, which banned earning money and education for slaves. -
Period: to
Revolutionary Era
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French and Indian War
*Definition
- Also known as the Seven Years War, the French and Indian War was a product of imperial struggle. It was a clash over colonial territory and wealth.
*Significance
- The French and Indian War played a great role in worsening the relationship between England and the colonies.
*Details
- The war was fought over the Ohio River Valley. -
Proclamation of 1763
*Definition
- The Proclamation of 1763 prohibited settlement in any area beyond the Appalachian Mountains.
*Significance
- This really angered the colonists because they had just worked and fought so hard for so many years for territory that, now, King George III will not let them settle on.
*Details
- Ohio River Valley -
March of Paxton Boys
*Definition
- The Paxton Boys marched toward Philadelphia with around 250 men to challenge the government for failing to protect them.
*Significance
- They were responsible for killing 20 Native Americans. This event is sometimes referred to the Conestoga Massecre.
*Details
- Benjamin Franklin
- Lazarus Stewart
- Iroquois -
Stamp Act
*Definition
- The Stamp Act was a direct tax imposed by Britain on the American colonies.
*Significance
- The colonists denounced the tax with "No Taxation without Representation", which helped lead to American Revolution.
*Details
- The tax had to be paid in British currency, not in colonial money
*Details
- Tax had to be paid in British currency, not in colonial money -
Boston Massacre
*Definition
- The Boston Massacre was an incident in which British Army soldiers killed five civilian men and injured six others.
*Significance
- The event is viewed as foreshadowing the American Revolution.
*Details
- Incident on King Street
- Paul Revere
- Thomas Hutchinson
- -
Boston Tea Party
*Definition
- The Boston Tea Party was a protest by the Sons of Liberty against the taxes imposed by the British on all the tea imported into the colonies.
*Significance
- The protest inspired other protests across the colonies, eventually leading to the American Revolution.
*Details
- Tea Act
- Boston Harbor
- Parliament responded with Intolerable Acts -
Lexington and Concord
*Definition
- At the battles of Lexington and Concord, the first shots of the American Revolution were fired.
*Significance
- The battles marked the beginning of the war between Britain and the colonies of North America.
*Details
- Minutemen militia
- Paul Revere
- Redcoats -
Olive Branch Petition
*Definition
- The Olive Branch Petition was adopted by the Continental Congress in an attempt to avoid a war between the Colonies and Great Britain.
*Significance
- The petition affirmed American loyalty to Great Britain.
*Details
- King George III
- Second Continental Congress
- John Dickinson -
Common Sense
*Definition
- Common Sense was written by Thomas Paine and it inspired the colonists to declare and fight for independence from Great Britain.
*Significance
- It explained the advantages of being independent and the need for independence.
*Details
- American Revolution
- Enlightenment Era -
Declaration of Independence
*Definition
- The Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies, then at war with Great Britain, regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire.
*Significance
- The Declaration of Independence would lead to the formation of the United States of America.
*Details
- John Adams
- Thomas Jefferson
- Independence Day -
Writing of the AOC
*Definition
- The Articles of Confederation, written by the Continental Congress, was the first constitution of the 13 original states.
*Significance
- The Articles provided domestic and international legitamacy for the United States.
*Details
- Ratification
- Benjamin Franklin
- 2nd Continental Congress -
Writing of the Constitution
*Definition
- The United States Constitution was written at the Constitutional Convention held in Philadelphia in 1787.
*Significance
- The Constitution set up our government framework that we still follow today.
*Details
- Anti-Federalists
- Virginia Plan
- New Jersey Plan
