-
Period: to
John Rolfe
Early English settler of North America Credited with the first successful cultivation of tobacco as an export crop in the Virginia colony and was Pocahontas' husband -
House of Burgesses
Est. 1619 by Virginia company in Jamestown, Virginia. The first legislative assembly of elected representatives in North America -
Mayflower Compact
First governing document of Plymouth Colony. Written by separatists fleeing from religious persecution in England. One of the first documents establishing local self-rule in the English colonies in the Americas -
Bacon's Rebellion
An armed rebellion in Jamestown, Virginia, originally protesting rule of Governor William Berkeley, later joined with other problems as well. It failed, but it was the first rebellion in American colonies in which discontented frontiersmen took part -
Period: to
Salem Withcri
A series of hearings and prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft occurring Salem and other villages in colonial Massachusetts. caused by religious superstitions and the resulting fear -
Zenger Case
His case set the precedence that truth is a defense to an accusation of libel -
Stono Rebellion
The largest slave uprising in the British mainland colonies prior to the America Revolution. The result was the Negro Act of 1740, restricting slave assembly, education, and movement, 10 year moratorium against importing slaves, and establish penalties against slaveholders’ harsh treatment of slaves -
Fort Necessity
In Pennsylvania. One of the first battles of the French and Indian War and Washington’s only military surrender. Contributed to escalating the conflicts into the global Seven Years’ War -
Albany Plan
A proposal by Ben Franklin to create a unified government for the thirteen colonies. An early attempt to form a union of the colonies under one government -
Boston Massacre
British army soldiers fired into a mob of people verbally abusing and harassing them and killed 3, 2 more dying later, and injured 6. Later used as propaganda against the British -
Coercive Acts
These acts punished Massachusetts for the Boston Tea Party by removing its self-government and giving that power to the king, closing off the port, and letting the king circumvent MA courts -
Declaration of Indpendence
In Philadelphia, PE, the Continental Congress brokes ties with England and declared their independence by ratifying this document drafted by Thomas Jefferson -
Period: to
Shays' Rebellion
An armed uprising led by Daniel Shays in Central and Western Massachusetts to reform the state government during the post-war eco depression; It showed weakness of current federal government under the Articles of Confederation, which led to the creation of the current constitution -
Period: to
Whiskey Rebellion
Rebellion ensues when Secretary of the State Hamilton wants to place a tax on whiskey, which is often used to barter instead of selling first, which would hit the farmers hard. Revolts get more violent until George Washinton marches out with his army and everyone flees -
Alien and Sedation Acts
Four acts that the Adams administration used to arrest and prosecute critics of the federal government and the Federalist party. They also covered immigration, forcefully changing the electoral body to suit their party's preference. The Jefferson administration pardoned those prosecuted and let the acts expire, but not before arresting some of their own party critics. -
Period: to
Manifest Destiniy
Widely held belief that it is Ameirca has a divine right to expand across the continent -
Marbury v. Madison
Before leaving office, President Adams tried to give Justice of Peace to Marbury, but his commission was never delievered, and the new presidency refused to deliver it. Chief Justice Marshall avoided any conflict by declaring the bill the position was based on as unconstitutional, also setting precendence as to the extent of the Supreme Court's power. -
Lewis and Clark
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark lead first American expedition to cross what is now the Western portion of the United States in order to find a practical route across the Western half of the continent and establish an American presence in the territory before the British and other European powers -
Cotton Gin
Eli Whitney validates his invention that allows cotton lint to be cleaned at phenomenal speeds, which sparks a boom in the cotton industry in the South and in slavery to keep up with demands -
Missouri Compromise
To end the feuding between slave and free states, this bill was passed, creating another free state (Maine) out of Massachusetts and setting a line along Missouri's border that will determine which states are which. -
Monroe Doctrine
A policy that stated that further efforts by European nations to colonize land or interfere with states in North America or South America would be viewed as acts of aggression, requiring US intervention. Also neither interfere with existing colonies nor meddle in the internal concerns of European Countries -
Period: to
Trail of Tears
The Indian Removal Act of 1830 forced the relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the US, such as the Cherokee and Seminole. However, many died on the way. -
The Alamo
Texan War for independence from Mexico. Texans slaughtered, but soldiers serve as martyrs, helping Texas win. “remember the Alamo” -
Seneca Falls
Early and influential women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York, namely standing up for women’s rights and role in society with focus on suffrage, as mentioned in the Declaration of Sentiments -
Compromise of 1850
A package of bills determining how slavery status would be determined in the territories gained after the Mexican-American War. Texas succeeded its claims to land in the New Mexico territory and above the Missouri Compromise line, California became a free state, the slave trade was banned in D.C., a stronger Fugitive Slave Act was passed, and the remaining territories statuses were to be decided by popular sovereignty. This helped diffuse the conflict between the North and South for years -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
An anti-slavery novel published in 1852 by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. It was the best-selling novel of the century and best-selling book behind the bible. It also exposed Americans throughout the country to the harsh realities of slavery -
Dred Scott Case
The court held that African Americans, whether slave or free, could not be American citizens and therefore had no standing to sue in federal court, and the federal government had no power to regulate slavery in the federal territories acquired after the creation of the US. This set precedence until cancelled out by constitutional amendments -
Emancipation Proclamation
An executive order by President Lincoln during the Civl War that freed all slaves in rebelling states, setting the groundwork for the 13th amendment, the ban on slavery. -
Period: to
KKK-Force Acts
Criminal codes which protected several blacks’ rights and gave the government the right to intervene when states didn’t act in order to to improve conditions for blacks and freed slaves, namely help protect them from the Ku Klux Klan. Groundwork for the 14th amendment -
Period: to
Spanish-American War
Tensions between the United States and the Spanish Empire build, namely after the sinking of the "Maine" in Havana Harbor, and eventually a war breaks out during the Revolutionary struggles. The United States won, gaining Cuba as a protectorate and gaining Guam, Puerto Rico, and The Philippines. After this there are only remains of the Spanish -
Zimmerman Telegram
Arthur Zimmerman (Foreign Sect of Germ Emp) sent a coded telegram trying to make an alliance with Mexico against the United States, which gave them the final push to get U.S. to join (against Germany) -
Period: to
Harlem Renaissance
"New Negro Movement," the introduction of black culture to the Northeast and Midwest following the Great Mitgration of African Americans out of the South -
Black Tuesday
AKA Wall street crash. New York Stock Exchange takes the most devastating crash in the history of the US, signaling the beginning of the Great Depression -
New Deal
A series of domestic economic programs created from 1933-1936 by FDR that try to counter the depression by focusing on the three R's: Relief, Recovery, and Reform -
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese Empire makes a surprise military assault on the US naval base at pearl harbor; They were trying to prevent the United States from interfering with their affairs in the pacific, but instead pulled them into the war -
Hiroshima
The "Enola Gay" dropped the first atomic bomb, "Little Boy," to try and get them surrender -
Nagasaki
The "Enola Gay" dropped the first atomic bomb, "Fat Man" to try and get them surrender -
Truman Doctrine
International relations policy set forth during a speech by President Truman that begins the Cold War by starting a policy of containment towards communism throughout the world by the US -
Brown v. Board of Education
Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional, opening all schools to all races -
Gulf of Tonkin
In response to two separate naval conflicts in the Gulf of Tonkin between the US and Northern Vietnam. It gave the president authorization, without Congress formally declaring war, for the use of “conventional” military force in Southeast Asia; helped escalate things to the Vietnam War -
Tet Offensive
The Viet Cong and North Vietnam launch a suprise offensive throughout Vietnam against South Vietnam and the United States during a declared cease fire for the lunar holiday during the Vietnam War. The attack was a fail, but it showed the United States the enemy was much stronger than expected. -
Watergate
A break-in at the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate office complex leads to a full-scale investigation revealing piles of evidence against Nixon's staff, including numerous tape recordings. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously forced Nixon to give over the tapes, but after doing so he resigned in order to avoid imminent impeachment. Gerald Ford stepped up from vice president to replace him and then pardoned him. -
Iran Hostage Crisis
52 Americans are held hostage when a group of Pro-Revoluion Iranian students take ovep -
Challenger Explosion
The Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight over the Atlantic Ocean off coast of FL, leading to the deaths of several crew members. This caused the grounding of space shuttle fleet for 3 years while various safety measures were put in and a new policy on management decision making for future launches -
Iran-Contro Scandal
Senior admin officials during the Reagan Admin secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, the subject of an arms embargo. Originally selling to try and free hostages; 14 admin officials indicted, but no evidence on Reagan -
9/11
A series of four coordinated attacks launched by Islamic terrorist group al Qaeda upon the United States in NYC and DC metropolitan area. The World Trade Center (twin towers) is (are) hit. This led the US to a declared war on terrorism and military operations to fight this war in the Middle East in countries such as Afghanistan
