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Founding of Jamestown
In 1607, the English decided to try another attempt at creating a permanent colony in the Americas. The people of Jamestown faced many struggles and it was estimated that over half of them died in a time known as the starving time. However, they were saved by tobacco, a cash crop during the time, and made large profits. After tobacco was introduced to the colony, the profits increased and the colony thrived. It was good for England because they were able to create their first permanent colony. -
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was a document that was an early form of the government of the Pilgrims. It was an agreement for the people who signed the document to follow the rules and regulations of the Plymouth Colony. It was known for generally being successful and kept the Pilgrims following a single type of government for many years. It established unity throughout the colony and connected the Pilgrims to God. However, it was replaced by the Massachusetts Bay Colony Charter in 1628. -
Bacon's Rebellion
Bacon's Rebellion was a Virginia revolt led by Nathaniel Bacon against the government's failure to protect the settlers from Native American attacks. Class divisions rose as the wealthier landowners were looked up to, and the poorer farmers felt ignored. The rebellion died down with the death of Bacon but clearly pointed to serious fissures in the society of the colony. This change moved labor systems toward slavery and moved away from indentured servitude to maintain control over the workforce. -
George Whitefield Emergence
George Whitfield was an English minister who preached during the Great Awakening to further the Methodist movement. The First Great Awakening was a religious revival that was famous throughout the colonies and Great Britain. George Whitfield preached to many people to try and spread his Methodist ideologies and rose to fame by delivering sermons to thousands of people. Many people thought of him as persuasive and followed him due to his reasonable sermons and tones. -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act was one of the first acts enacted after the Seven Years War. It was passed by the British to reduce the debts that Great Britain had gained through the Seven Years' War. It replaced the weak Molasses Act and angered colonists because it violated their perception of freedom. The Sugar Act was also created to try and stop the smuggling of sugar because of the loss of profits and it created local courts for cases involving sugar and inducted stronger punishments on smugglers. -
Stamp Act
The British passed the Stamp Act in 1795, which taxed legal documents and other types of papers. The Stamp Act was highly unpopular with the colonists because they felt they were being taxed without representation. It stood as a view to the colonists that the British did not care about the concept of representation. Due to the increased taxation, many printing and newspaper businesses went out of business. It increased the tensions between the British and the colonists and led to other ones. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre was an event that occurred in Boston on March 5, 1770. It started when a crowd of colonists began throwing stuff at British soldiers. This resulted in British soldiers firing at the crowd of soldiers and killing 5 American colonists. One of the famous people who died during this event was Crispus Attucks. It was significant because it increased the colonial resentment against the British for the taxes they were imposing. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party happened on December 16, 1773, as a protest against the Tea Act, which gave the British East India Company the right to sell and tax tea in the colonies. In response to taxation without representation, a group of colonists known as the Sons of Liberty disguised themselves as Native Americans and boarded British ships in Boston Harbor. They threw 342 chests of tea into the water because of the anger over the taxation which was a major cause for the American Revolution. -
Coercive/Intolerable Acts
The Coercive or Intolerable Acts were a series of acts created by the British Parliament in response to the Boston Tea Party. They closed the Boston Harbor with the Boston Port Bill, enforcing the Quartering Act, the Administration of Justice Bill, which allowed British officials to be tried elsewhere, and the Massachusetts Government Act, which made the governor of Massachusetts an appointed one. These acts were one of the main causes of the creation of the Olive Branch Petition. -
Declaration of Independence Passed
The Americans believed that they did not have representation in the British Parliament and were getting taxed without representation. They had lost all hopes of reconciliation after the Battles of Lexington and Concord and the failure of the Olive Branch Petition. The Second Continental Congress met, drafted, and signed the Declaration of Independence in which they declared America's independence. It was the first time the colonies had formally declared independence from the British. -
Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was one of the battles in the American Revolution and was known for being the turning point of the war. After a series of losses for the American side, the county was able to end John Burgoyne's attempt at controlling the Hudson River Valley. The battle was known as a turning point because Benjamin Franklin was able to convince the French to join the side of the Americans. This battle paved the way for future victories and eventually a victory for America. -
Articles of Confederation Ratified
After the end of the American Revolution, the country required a form of government that would hold it together. Delegates from 12 of the 13 states met and created the Articles of Confederation to create a bond between the states and was ratified by all of the states. The Articles of Confederation established a weak central government that gave most of the powers to the states. The articles led to a lot of issues eventually like Shay's Rebellion and were eventually replaced by the Constitution. -
Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown was essentially the last major battle of the American Revolution. It forecasted the end of the American Revolution and the creation of a new nation. The war had been going on for six years and both armies were exhausted. General Washington decided to make an attack on the British with the French at Yorktown where General Cornwallis's troops were stationed. Cornwallis surrendered to the Allied troops on October 19, 1781 and this battle led to peace negotiations. -
Treaty of Paris 1783
The Treaty of Paris was a document signed in France with representatives from the US and Great Britain that formally declared the end of the American Revolution. It was made after the surrender of General Cornwallis after the American victory at Yorktown and took two years to go into effect. The agreement recognized the independence of the United States and the British territories around the United States would become part of the country. -
Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia to fix the problems of the Articles of Confederation after the events at Shay's Rebellion. Delegates from 12 states gathered to form a new government. The result was the U.S. Constitution, which created a system with checks and balances. Key compromises included the Great Compromise, which split Congress into 2 parts, and the 3/5 Compromise on slavery. The Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787, but faced issues in getting support. -
Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights, added to the U.S. Constitution in 1791, was created to address concerns about the new government becoming too powerful. Many Anti-Federalists were worried that the Constitution didn’t do enough to protect individual freedoms. To ease these fears, the first ten amendments were added to guarantee basic rights and limit the power of the federal government. This helped gain the support needed for the Constitution to be ratified and put into action. -
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion was a protest in the 1790s against a tax on whiskey instated by the U.S. government. Farmers, especially those of western Pennsylvania, were quite indignant due to the tax making it more difficult to sell their grain which turned into whiskey. Protestors fought against the tax in 1794, but President George Washington sent in federal troops to suppress the rebellion. This demonstration showed how the nation could easily be divided by the Articles of Confederation. -
Invention of the Cotton Gin
The Cotton Gin was a machine invented by Eli Whitney to produce cotton faster. It made the labor-intensive process of removing seeds from cotton easier and more efficient. The invention led to a rise in cotton and textile production throughout the country. It improved the economy of the United States and made cotton one of the main exports. However, it was controversial because it increased slavery rates throughout the South exponentially due to the need for increased labor. -
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase, completed in 1803, was a landmark deal in which the United States acquired over 800,000 square miles of land from France for $15 million, effectively doubling the size of the country. President Thomas Jefferson saw it as an opportunity to secure land for future growth and strengthen the nation. While the Constitution didn’t directly authorize such a purchase, Jefferson justified it as a necessary step for the nation's long-term expansion and prosperity. -
Marbury v. Madison
The Marbury v. Madison case was one of those important Supreme Court cases that established the rule of judicial review, enabling courts to declare laws unconstitutional. The case arose when William Marbury, a man selected as a judge by John Adams, sued James Madison for not providing him with his official papers. Chief Justice John Marshall's ruling was that Marbury was entitled to the position, but his file was unconstitutional and contributed to the development of the judicial branch. -
Lewis and Clark Expedition
After acquiring the land from the Louisiana Purchase, Thomas Jefferson had to charter the land and figure out what the new land had to offer. He sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark with a crew of men to explore the new land. Lewis and Clark went with Sacagawea, a Native American, and were able to gather and record information about the land and rivers. They were also able to persuade many Native American tribes to become trading partners with the United States. -
Embargo Act
The Embargo Act was signed by Thomas Jefferson in resistance to the British impressment of ships and the growing European conflict that eventually led to the War of 1812. The act closed all U.S. ports to Great Britain and other European countries and essentially stopped U.S. trade with Europe. The act caused lots of economic issues and caused economic hardships. The act was eventually replaced with the Non-Intercourse Act which did not address the tensions between Great Britain and France. -
Treaty of Ghent
After two years of war, the United States and Great Britain were searching for a way to end the war due to the stalemate that had been occurring with no clear winner. The Treaty of Ghent was a peace treaty created to end the War of 1812. The treaty restored the boundaries of the United States set before the war and released all the prisoners who had been captured from the war and the impressions that had occurred before and took a while to come back to the country and end the war. -
Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans was a landmark event during the War of 1812. It occurred after the Treaty of Ghent was signed and was in the fading days of the war. The battle prevented the British forces from taking control over the port in New Orleans and was an important American victory. It made General Andrew Jackson a national hero and allowed the United States to keep an equal hold with the British troops. -
Panic of 1819
The Panic of 1819 was the first major economic crisis that threatened the United States. It occurred after the Era of Good Feelings ended and trading came to a halt in many parts of the country. Many banks closed and the prices for crops dropped severely which led to hardships for many families. Unemployment also became a big issue during this time and caused the closure of many companies. The economic depression was eventually relieved through government debt relief. -
Monroe Doctrine Signed
The Monroe Doctrine was a document created by James Monroe after the War of 1812. It told other nations that the New World was no longer open for colonization and that the United States would not accept being involved in foreign affairs it had no part in. Monroe believed the New World should be considered independent and not a place where European powers could colonize sporadically. It helped establish the Era of Good Feelings, which held strong for years. -
Election of 1824 (Corrupt Bargain)
The Election of 1824 was one of the most controversial elections in the history of the United States. It started when neither Adams nor Andrew Jackson had a significant majority over the other candidates and led to Congress declaring the victor. Clay and Adams met secretly and eventually, Adams was elected president with Clay as his secretary of state. This election became known as a corrupt bargain because Adams was not elected through democracy and led to the questioning of democratic ideals. -
Indian Removal Act
Andrew Jackson passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830 to try and enforce the southwestern part of the country. Jackson wanted Native American troops to move to lands west of Mississippi to allow for the settling of the southwestern states. Many tribes moved peacefully to the territory, while other tribes like the Cherokee, resisted moving to the new territory and rebelled. However, Jackson went against legal action and forced these Native Americans to new lands through the Trail of Tears. -
Invention of the Reaper
The Reaper was a farming invention invented by Cyrus McCormick in 1831 and revolutionized farming. It helped with harvesting crops a lot easier and farmers were able to process more wheat with less labor. It increased the amount of crops produced by the United States and was the start of an era of new farming inventions. The reaper provided a basis on which the ideal of an agrarian society finally became true across the country and eventually became the main source of income for the South. -
Invention of the Telegraph
The telegraph was invented by Samuel Morse in 1837. The telegraph was an electrical communication device that sent messages by starting and stopping an electrical connection. The invention of this device was revolutionary because it was the first form of communication from large distances at rapid speeds. The telegraph used Morse Code, a language with beeps and clicks that could be translated into different languages. It helped to communicate during the Civil War and sent important messages. -
Schism of 1840
The Schism of 1840 occurred due to the issues that had arisen with women's leadership in the American Anti-Slavery Society. There were also changing ideas of slavery during the 1840s and the society had different ideas. The people in the society also had differing opinions on who would be nominated as independent political candidates. The Schism of 1840 led to increased sectional tension as even the anti-slavery groups had started to argue on the importance on ending slavery. -
Emergence of Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson became one of the central figures of transcendentalism by 1840. Transcendentalism was a belief that people could find salvation through nature and that all humans were inherently good. Emerson wrote essays to persuade people to look to nature and his most famous one was called Self-Reliance, an essay in which he explained that people should be themselves rather than confining to conformity. His essays encouraged many people to look at nature and themselves for salvation. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was a treaty that granted the United States a large portion of the southwestern part of the country and ended the Mexican-American War. It was important because it provided the United States with a significant amount of territory in an event that became known as the Mexican Cession. The treaty also recognized the annexation of Texas into the United States officially even though it had already become a state a couple of years before. -
Seneca Falls Convention
The Seneca Falls Convention was the first women's rights convention and many women and men showed up to discuss the importance of securing rights for women. Significant women like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Jane Hunt showed up to try and show the power that women had in the convention. The people at the convention wanted to secure voting rights for women as a priority. They also wanted to try and achieve equal rights as men which led to a Civil Rights movement. -
Movement of 49ers
The California Gold Rush was a major westward movement due to the discovery of gold throughout California. The 49ers were a large group of people who moved to California from different parts of the world. The population of California boomed during this time and California became a state by 1850. However, the 49ers took a large portion of the gold in California and the Gold Rush eventually died down. There were only a small number of people that actually became rich due to the Gold Rush. -
Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a compromise made to try and keep the sectional tensions in the country from increasing. Henry Clay declared that California would become a free state, the territories of Utah and New Mexico would have a territorial government, Washington DC would end the slave trade, and the Fugitive Slave Act. The compromise subsided tensions between the North and South for a few years. However, it did not last forever and tensions increased once again with the Kansas-Nebraska Act. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by Franklin Pierce and repealed the Missouri Compromise. It was known for giving the new territories of Kansas and Nebraska popular sovereignty even though they were northern states. There were a lot of protests in this area by anti-slavery activists which caused outrage among many people. It also caused a violent uprising called "Bleeding Kansas" and contributed to the rising tensions before the Civil War. -
Dred Scott v. Sandford
The Dred Scott case in 1857 was a landmark court case due to the sectional tensions during the time before the Civil War. It occurred when an enslaved man named Dred Scott in Illinois searched for his freedom due to being in a free state. The Taney Court declared that African Americans would not be given citizenship and could not enjoy the rights and privileges that whites had. It led to increased tensions between the South and abolitionists and was a major cause for the Civil War. -
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg was known as the turning point during the Civil War. George Meade and his army attacked the Confederate Forces around Gettysburg and was a grueling three-day battle, with over 50,000 combined casualties by the end. It became known as the bloodiest battle in US history and it ended the aspirations of the Confederacy to create an independent nation. Lincoln also delivered the Gettysburg Address to change the ideal of the war to end slavery. -
Homestead Act
The Homestead Act was passed by Abraham Lincoln in 1862 and provided American citizens with 160 acres of government land that they would be able to farm on. The agreement was that the people who lived on the land would improve the land and cultivate it along with paying a small registration fee. This act provided many Americans with places to farm and accelerated the development of the West. However, the act affected the lives of many Native Americans and led to increased tensions. -
Morrill Land Grant Act Signed
The Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862 provided grants of federal lands to create land-grant colleges. The act provided more people with the ability to get an education because the colleges there were expensive, Ivy League colleges that very few could afford and the conditions from the Civil War made it harder. However, these lands were often obtained from former Native American lands and contributed to the growing tension that many Native Americans experienced during the growth of the country. -
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam was a battle that occurred to try and halt the Confederate advancement into Maryland. This battle was against George McClellan's troops and Robert E. Lee's troops. It was the single bloodiest day of US military history and had over 22,000 casualties in a single battle. Lincoln claimed the battle as a victory even if there wasn't a clear winner and this gave him the victory he needed to deliver the Emancipation Proclamation and change the purpose of the American Revolution. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation, issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, announced the freedom of all slaves in Confederate states. It stated that states that joined in peace would be able to keep slavery while rebellious states would have to get rid of slavery. Its core features were that it formed an important change in American history, where the abolition of slavery under the 13th Amendment was introduced. -
Battle of Vicksburg
The Battle of Vicksburg was a key battle during the Civil War and weakened the Confederacy after a series of losses experienced by the Union like the Battle of Bull Run. General Ulysses. S. Grant commanded his army to complete the Anaconda Plan by taking control of the City of Vicksburg, the last major city required to take control of the Mississippi River. Grant's army decided to take control of the River and secured the opportunity for future Union victories. -
First Emergence of Ku Klux Klan
The first Ku Klux Klan started up immediately following the end of the Civil War in the South in 1865. A secret organization formed of Confederate soldiers, it was made to destroy Reconstruction and keep white supremacy. Many of the newly freed slaves experienced a lot of violence and problems arose. The rise of the Klan was fearful and discriminating. Even though it faded by the 1870s, it left a legacy in America. -
Reconstruction Amendments
The series of three important amendments was passed during the late 1860s. The first of these amendments was the 13th Amendment, which declared that slavery nor involuntary servitude should ever exist within the country. The next amendment was the 14th Amendment which gave every person who was born within the United States citizenship. The 15th Amendment granted the ability to vote to all male citizens of the country. These amendments helped form the concept of equality throughout the country. -
Freedmens Bureau Published
The Freedman's Bureau was one of the most important acts made during the Reconstruction movement for freed African Americans. It helped these freed people search for careers more easily and make more money. It also helped freedpeople establish new schools and enabled them to have the necessities they needed to live along with legal assistance for court cases. It was eventually removed due to the limitations of funding and the attitudes that many people had towards African Americans. -
Completion of Transcontinental Railroad
The Transcontinental Railroad, completed in 1869, connected the eastern and western halves of the United States, making travel and trade much easier and faster. The two companies completing the railroad were Union Pacific and Central Pacific, who finally met in Promontory, Utah, and finished it with a golden spike. This large engineering project grew the economy, increased settlements in the West, and allowed goods and people to be transported in days across the entire country. -
Crime of 1873
The Crime of 1873 was an act that stopped the United States from minting silver coins and put the nation on an exclusive gold standard. Many opponents, particularly farmers and miners, became furious since they wanted to expand the use of silver in money as a way of raising prices and lowering debt. This law eventually led to the free silver movement, which tried to return silver coins into circulation during the 1880s and 1890s. -
Civil Rights Act of 1875 Passed
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 ensured that African Americans would have equal public transportation and other facilities white Americans enjoyed. It was an important step in giving African Americans the same rights as white Americans as many people throughout the country violated civil rights against African Americans. It was eventually declared unconstitutional in the Civil Rights Cases. However, it provided many African Americans with a space to attain equality with society.