-
Period: Jan 1, 1491 to
Early America and Conquest
-
Oct 12, 1492
Christopher Columbus Discovers the Americas
Christopher Columbus, financed by Spain, was one of the first Europeans to reach the Americas. By doing this he set off the period of European conquest and colonization of the New World. -
Mar 3, 1513
Juan Ponce de León lands in Florida
Juan Ponce de León, a Spanish explorer, mounted an expedition to Florida. He was searching for the fabled Fountain of Youth but ultimately died on the journey. -
Sep 8, 1565
Saint Augustine is Founded
Saint Augustine, Florida, was the first permanent European settlement in North America. It was founded by the Spanish and was intended to be a staging grounds for further exploration of what is now the South East United States. However, hostility from the natives made this difficult. -
Period: to
Colonial America
-
Jamestown Settlement
In 1607, the London Company established the first permanent English Colony in North America. It was located in what is now Virginia and was originally founded with the intent of discovering gold, but when that failed began producing tobacco for sale back in Europe. -
The House of Burgesses
The house of Burgesses was established in Virginia. This was one of the first examples of democracy in British North America. -
Plymouth Colony is Established
The colony at Plymouth, Massachusetts was founded by puritans from England. They were originally sailing for Virginia but got off course and landed on the North East. But they decided to settle there instead and wrote the famous mayflower compact. -
Period: to
Revolutionary Era
-
First Continental Congress
The very first Continental Congress was held in Philadelphia. Every colony with the exception of Georgia sent a delegate. It was the first official show of unity between the colonies. -
Declaration of Independence Signed
The Second Continental Congress officially signs the Declaration of Independence, making America its own nation. This also set off the American war for Independence which the Americans won -
Constitution Ratified
The Constitution was written and signed in 1787, but it did not become law until it was ratified by at least 9 of the states. New Jersey was the ninth state to ratify it and made the constitution the supreme law of the land -
Period: to
Rise of Mass Democracy
-
Louisiana Purchase
President Jefferson bought the Louisiana territory from France. Though this was controversial, Jefferson doubled the size of the US for the measly sum of $15 million. This allowed for the Lewis and Clark expedition and paved the way for American expansion -
Missouri Compromise
As a way to keep the number of slave and free states equal, Missouri was added to the union as a slave state while Maine was added as a free state. In addition, slavery was prohibited in all future states north of the 36°30' -
Indian Removal Act
President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, which made possible the forced removal of southern indians and relocated them to Oklahoma. This event also made Andrew Jackson more powerful and increased the power of the presidency -
Period: to
Civil War and Reconstruction
-
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska act officially repealed the Missouri Compromise and renewed tensions between North and South. The act made it possible for every new state to become slave or free based on popular vote. -
The Civil War
The Civil War was fought between the Northern and Southern States over the issues of State's rights and slavery. The North officially won the war when General Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox -
Period: to
Industrial Revolution and Rise of Capitalism
-
President Lincoln killed
President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. This occurred while Lincoln was at the theater and was the first time that a president had died of non-natural causes while in office -
Completion of the first Transcontinental Railroad
The completion of this railroad marked the first continuous route across the United States from ocean to ocean, it brought great economic and population boom to areas out west -
Jim Crow Laws Enacted
These laws mandated legal racial segregation of Black and White Americans in practically every setting, under the guise of "separate but equal" facilities. -
Plessy vs Ferguson
Plessy vs Ferguson was a supreme court case which established that racial segregation was legal. and paved the way for decades of segregation in the south -
Period: to
Progressive-WWI-1920's-Great Depression-WWII
-
World War I
The War started in 1914 and lasted until 1918 but the US didn't get involved until 1917. They tried to stay neutral for as long as possible but as tensions were reaching a breaking point the US intercepted the Zimmerman Note and they could longer ride the fence. The total US casualties numbered 320,518. When the war was over major cultural changes took place back at home with the Roaring Twenties. -
The Great Depression
The Depression was a massive economic collapse following a decade of wild spending that led to the Crash of an unbalanced Stock Market. The lack of money put thousands of Americans out of work but no one had the money to hire new workers to it was economic standstill. -
World War II
In the second World War the US again tried to remain neutral for as long as possible but after the Germans unrestricted submarine warfare attacking civilians and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor they were forced into the war. -
Period: to
Cold War
-
Bay of Pigs Invasion
This was an attempt made by the us government (CIA) to overthrow the communist government and Fidel Castro in Cuba. It ended up only strengthening Cuba's ties to the USSR and led to the Cuban Missile Crisis. -
Creation of the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was created by East Germany or the German Democratic Republic of Germany to divide East and West Germany, and to stop defection of citizens from East Germany into West Germany. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The crisis actually took place over a period of 13 days, the Soviets had put some nuclear war heads in Cuba which worried the US. The US responded by putting a naval blockade around Cuba leading to the 13 day standoff. In the end the Soviets agreed to remove the weapons if the US would remove their weapons in Turkey. -
Period: to
Present Modern America
-
Berlin Wall Falls
The wall fell following Reagan's challenge to the Soviets to take it down by '89 and numerous demonstrations on both sides of the wall and the Soviets practically going bankrupt they were left with no other options. -
Emergence of the World Wide Web
The Internet and computers became more widely available, user friendly and popular, and forever changed the way people shop, communicate, entertain and study and continue to develop. They link people across the whole world in new ways and helped create a global culture. There isn't an exact date when the internet became widely used but was a process -
9/11 Terrorist Attacks
The US and much of the World's sense of safety was forever changed following the destruction of the World Trade Centers, Pentagon and a thwarted attempt on Washington D.C. The US was pushed into the War in Iraq and Afghanistan as the war on terrorism at home and abroad began.
