-
1400
Beginnings
Native Americans pass down origin stories -
1492
Discovery
Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas -
1500
Middle Passage
Europeans begin to capture Africans and ship them to the Americas -
1527
Cabeza de Vaca
Cabeza de Vaca (and other explorers) come to the New World with the goal to colonize Mexico -
Puritan Separation
Puritans begin to separate from the Catholic church in England -
Anne Bradstreet
Puritan poet Anne Bradstreet is born -
Plymouth
Pilgrims land at Plymouth after sailing on the Mayflower -
Mayflower Compact
Pilgrim leaders sign the Mayflower Compact -
Massachusetts Bay Colony
Puritans travel to the Americas and form the Massachusetts Bay Colony -
John Locke
Enlightenment philosopher John Locke is born -
Harvard College
Harvard College is established -
Enlightenment
The Enlightenment era begins -
Salem Witch Trials
Many people (especially women) in Salem, Massachusetts are tried for accusations of being a witch -
Benjamin Franklin
Founding father Benjamin Franklin is born -
Great Awakening
The Great Awakening (religious revival) begins -
Poor Richard's Almanack
Benjamin Franklin's "Poor Richard's Almanack" is published -
Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine is born -
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
Jonathan Edwards gives his fire and brimstone sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" -
Thomas Jefferson
Founding father Thomas Jefferson is born -
Edwards' Dismissal
Jonathan Edwards is dismissed from the church for his confrontational sermons -
Phyllis Wheatley
African poet Phyllis Wheatley is born -
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War begins -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act is passed, putting a tax on all sugar -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act is passed, putting a tax on all paper goods -
Quartering Act
The Quartering Act is passed, making it legal for British soldiers to demand Americans to house them -
Sons of Liberty
The Sons of Liberty group is formed -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party takes place when Americans rebelliously board British ships and dump tea into the Boston Harbor -
Revolution
The Revolutionary War in America begins -
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson drafts and completes the Declaration of Independence -
End to War
The Revolutionary War comes to an end -
Three-Fifths Compromise
It is decided that all slaves count as three-fifths of a person for taxing -
Manifest Destiny
Americans begin to settle in the west -
Louisiana Purchase
The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory -
Lewis and Clark
Louis and Clark's expedition westward begins -
Embargo Act
The Embargo Act is passed -
Olaudah Equano
Olaudah Equiano contributes to banning of slave trade -
Monroe Doctrine
The United States makes it illegal for other countries to colonize