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Period: 1 BCE to
The Beginning of Exploration
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500
The Dark Ages
The Dark Age was a period in which culture and economic failure occurred in Western Europe. This also eventually lead to the decline of the Roman Empire. The dark ages got its name because life was short during this period, people only lived to be about 30 years old. Lastly, during this era there was complete cultural/educational domination by the Catholic church and feudalism; lords followed by vassals and lastly peasants. -
1095
The Crusades
This was a time period in which Christians from Europe fought Muslims and Jews for control over Jerusalem and other holy place, these wars were called the Crusades. During this time, there was a lot of religious massacres and it was relatively unsuccessful. The legacy that came out of this time period was the increase in knowledge, military, and trade. -
1347
The Black Death
The Black Death took place in Europe, 1347, when trading ships docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after a long journey through the Black Sea. These boats arrived to Europe with most of the men on board dead and the ones alive were very ill. The disease they carried was very dangerous and deadly, the germ was transmitted through the bite of infected fleas and rats. The Black Death wiped out 40-50% of Europe, many fled the cities but they could no longer escape the disease. -
1492
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was a very talented Italian navigator who was born in Genoa, Italy. Columbus basically sucked at everything else besides sailing, and he believed the shorted route to Asia was the west. He wanted to prove his theory, so he ask Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella for permission to take this voyage. They said yes and he set sail on August 3, 1492 from Southern Spain. -
1492
Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange was the exchange of foods, diseases, animals, and plants between Europe, Africa, and the New world. In this exchange, Europeans had the introduction of new foods, plants, and animals from the new world to the old world. Meanwhile, Africa exchanged slaves for rum from Europe and then Europe would send those slaves to the new world. The worst part would be the widespread of diseases. The diseases that were spread caused a huge wipe out of Native Americans in the New World. -
Period: 1492 to
Colonial America to 1763
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1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
The Treaty of Tordesillas was the outcome of Spain and Portugal fighting over new territory. In order to stop this fight between them, the Pope divided the new lands, which were discovered by Christopher Columbus, this was called the Treaty of Tordesillas. Portugal will get Brazil and Spain will get lands in the west, Spain thought it got a raw deal because later they were convinced that they had received the short end of the stick. -
1536
John Calvin (Predestination)
John Calvin was born on July 10, 1509 in Noyon, Picardy, France. He was one of many to split from the church because he believed God set your destiny even before birth, Predestination. He was a principle figure of the Protestant Reformation and when Martin Luther and Henry VIII separated Protestantism from the Roman Catholic Church. Calvin's doctrines and theology created huge changes in the underdeveloped Protestant churches. -
Chesapeake Colonies
The Chesapeake Colonies consist of Jamestown/Virginia and Maryland during the 18th century. The colonies had a new system which attracted new settlers, this system was called the Headright System. The new system promised 50 acres of land to anyone who made it to Virginia on their own. This brought up the population of Virginia after having a decline in population. Their main cash crop was tobacco, therefore slavery was huge in the Chesapeake Colonies. -
Anne Hutchinson
Anne Hutchinson was a New England religious leader and midwife born in England in 1519. He followed the Puritan leader John Cotton to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634. She was accused of committing a crime of practicing her religion in her own home with other people from the village. She was set to a trial where she was announced guilty after several interrogations and was punishment by banishment by the General Court of Massachusetts and excommunication by the Church of Boston. -
Headright System
The Headright System was created in 1618 to attract new settlers into Virginia and address the labor shortage. Since Virginia has a lot of tobacco farming, a large supply of workers was needed to get the jobs done. Therefore, they created this system in which they gave 50 acres of land in they payed their way to Virginia. The system was a huge success because many new settlers arrived to Virginia just like the Virginian people wanted to. -
John Winthrop
John Winthrop was the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the chief role between the Puritan founders of New England. Winthrop had a bit to do with Anne Hutchinson, it was his greatest outrage when Anne Hutchinson gained control of his Boston church and converted the whole colony to a religious position that Winthrop considered blasphemous. -
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was an important document because it was the first document to establish self-government in the New World. The document was signed on November 11, 1620 by 41 adult colonists, including two indentured servants. At the time it was the only government they had until 1691 when Plymouth Colony became part of Massachusetts Bay Colony. The Mayflower Compact was a successful attempt at democracy and played the role in colonist seeking permanent independence from British rule. -
John Locke
John Locke was an English philosopher and political theorist who had a lot to do with the groundwork for the Enlightenment. He was trained in medicine and was the key advocate of the empirical approaches of the Scientific Revolution. He was also known as the "Father of Liberalism". -
English Bill of Rights
The English Bill of Rights was an act that was passed by the Parliament of England on December 16, 1689. The Bill was created to have separation of power, limit the power of the kind and queen, increase the democratic election, and to boost freedom of speech. The English Bill of Rights was created during the Glorious Revolution of 1688 when King James || retire and fled the country. -
Salem Witch Trials
The Salem Witch Trials was a time in history where prosecution of people occur due to accusation of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between 1692-1693. The trials started with a group of young girls in Salem Village, Massachusetts, who claimed to be possessed by the devil and accused several women of witchcraft. Due to these trials many innocent people were executed and later own the colonies were ashamed of killing so many innocent people, so later preferred to leave it in the pass. -
The Triangular Trade
The triangular trade was used to trade shipping goods from Britain to West Africa to be exchanged for slaves, then those slaves were shipped to the West Indies for an exchange for rum and sugar, and then finally the rum and sugar was shipped back to Britain. The trade created a triangular shape between the countries that were in the trade, which is how it got its name. -
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment was a time in history were there was an intellectual and philosophical movement that dominated the world of ideas in Europe during the 18th century. During this time ideas had to do with God, nature, and humanity and let to a revolutionary development in art, philosophy, and politics. -
Period: to
English Colonial Societies
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The Great Awakening
The Great Awakening was a Protestant religious revival that cleared up Protestant Europe and British America during 1730s and the 1740s. It left a permanent impact on American religion that lasted many years. The cause of the Great Awakening was because not all American ministers were swept by the Age of Reason, which eventually led to a religious revival. -
The Atlantic Slave Trade
The Atlantic slave trade included the transportation of slave traders who traded enslaved African people. The slave trade mostly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Passage during the 16th to the 19th century. Most of the slave being traded were from central and western Africa, who were sold first by other West Africans to Western European slave traders. -
Seven-Years War/French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was between Britain and France when France declared war with the colonies. The colonies were weak at the time so they sough for help from Britain and the war ended up being between Britain and France. The war was a huge success for Britain, though the outcome was debt from the war, which lasted seven years. Britain created and imposed taxes on the colonies to get out of debt from the war, this angered the colonies and other war grew between Britain and he colonies. -
Period: to
The Revolutionary War
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The Treaty of Paris of 1763
The Treaty of Paris of 1763 was what officially ended the French and Indian War between France and Britain as well as all their respective allies. Once the treaty was signed, France gave up all their territories in North America ending all military threat towards the British colonies. The treaty was signed by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. France also agreed to ending the war because of the huge debt they were in from the war. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was created and passed on by the British Parliament in 1765. This new tax was was put on all American colonist and required them to pay a tax on all printed paper that was used. This act mainly affected lawyers and printers because now they had to pay a tax for every paper they printed, for example legal documents, newspapers, publications, etc. -
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was an american patriot who was responsible for announcing "The Bloody Massacre in King-Street" so he called it. After the massacre occur, Revere wrote a poem in which he didn't explain the event so accurate. He shows an orderly line of British soldiers firing their weapons into an American crowd along with his poem. He made the event seem as if the British soldiers were enjoying the massacre and that the only victims during the event was the American crowd. -
Boston Massacre
The Boston Massacre took place on March 5, 1770. The massacre occur because the colonist began a snowball fight with a squad of British soldiers, but it wasn't any snowball fight. The snowballs created by the colonist contained rocks and they were attacking the British soldiers. The attack happened because the colonist were angry about all the taxes being imposed to them, so they rebelled and the massacre took place once the British soldiers began to shot the colonist. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston tea party took place in the Boston Harbor. A group of drunk Massachusetts colonists dressed up as Mohawk Indians and boarded the British tea ships and dumb 342 chest of tea into the harbor. The Boston tea party was a raid in protest of the British Parliament's Tea Act of 1773 because the colonists viewed it as another example of taxation tyranny. -
First Continental Congress
The First Continental Congress met up in 1774 after the Intolerable acts, a series of measures imposed by the British into the colonies in response to the Boston Tea Party and their resistance to the new taxes. The Continental Congress served as the government of the American colonies from 1774-1789. The congress consisted delegates from each of the 13 colonies except Georgia because it was fighting a Native-American uprising and was depending on British for military supplies. -
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was drafted by Thomas Jefferson and he divided the document into five sections. A five-man committee took part, included Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin. The Declaration of Independence was officially adopted by congress on the Fourth of July. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights were counted as essential founding document of the US government as well as the Declaration of Independence. -
The Battle of Saratoga
The Battle of Saratoga was the turning point in America's fight for freedom. The victory of the Americans convinced the French government to formally recognize the colonists cause and enter the war as their ally. The battles took place in New York and after these battles and their victories made the Revolutionary War take its climax. -
Massachusetts Constitution
The Massachusetts Constitution was the constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It was the fundamental governing document of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. John Adams was the main writer of the Constitution which was approved by voters on June 15, 1780. Once it became effective, it remained the oldest functioning written constitution. -
Period: to
The Constitution
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Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation was the first written constitution of the United States. Under the articles, the states remained sovereign and independent, with Congress having the last on appeal of disputes. The central government was weak because it lacked the ability to impose taxes and regulate commerce which was an issue that later led to the Constitution Convention back in 1787 to make up new federal laws. -
Shay's Rebellion
Shay's Rebellion was the outcome of farmers getting their lands taken away because they could no longer afford it. The rebellion took place in states from New Hampshire to South Carolina, but was mostly serious in Massachusetts. During this time recession was going on in the country because it had so much debt. The rebellion was able to take place since their was no executive branch under the AOC which made them weak. Shay's rebellion was a huge test for the Articles of Confederation. -
The Virginia Plan
The Virginia Plan was written mainly by a fellow Virginian named James Madison in 1787. The plan basically outline what would later become the U.S. Constitution, a government that consisted three branches with checks and balances so the abuse of power would be prevented. This plan was the replacement of the Articles of Confederation, the Virginia Plan had a bicameral legislative branch. The larger states favored the Virginia plan and the smaller states favored the New Jersey Plan. -
Three Branches
The executive is in charge of making sure that the laws of the United States are obeyed and followed with the President as the head of the branch. The legislative branch is the one who makes up the laws with the Congress and several Government agencies included. The Supreme Court is in charge of the judicial branch of government according to the US Constitution. They are the one who are in charge of interpreting the laws as well as the Constitution. -
Northwest Ordinance
The Northwest Ordinance was an act of the Congress of the United States. It was adopted on July 13, 1787 by the Second Continental Congress chartered a government for the Northwest Territory. The Northwest Ordinance also protected civil liberties and outlawed slavery in the new territories. An unanimous consent was required from the states for the Northwest Ordinance to be passed. -
Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from May 25 to September 17, 1787. The convention was called together to discuss possible improvements to the Articles of Confederation. In the convention, they made and established a federal government with more power including relations with foreign government. -
Election on 1788
The election of 1788 was the first election ever where George Washington will run for president. Washington is seen like a god-like figure to the people, therefore he was everyone's choice. Washington won the elections and becomes the president. Meanwhile in this election the Vice President will be determine and selected by the next person in line which was John Adams, and no running mates will occur. -
Period: to
New Republic
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Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights was written by James Madison in 1789 and was later ratified in 1791. The first 10 amendments to the Constitution was what made up the Bill of Rights. The bill was a response to calls from the states who wished to have greater constitutional protection for individual liberties. In the bill their are specific prohibitions on government power listed to prevent the government of taking advantage on peoples rights. -
Whiskey Rebellion
Shay's Rebellion was the first major domestic test for the Constitution and the New Republic. The rebellion occurred when Pennsylvania and Kentucky farmers were being taxes for the whiskey they made. The tax was imposed by Alexander Hamilton to earn a large profit from it. In result, Washington will lead an army against the rebellion where he will take control and end the rebellion and he is able to do that because there is no longer the AOC which made the country weak. -
Election of 1796
The election of 1796 was the first presidential election between parties, the first party system. By this election Washington will no longer seek for a 3rd term of presidency and now John Adams and Thomas Jefferson will run. John Adams as a Federalist and Thomas Jefferson as a Republican will run and Adams will win the election making Jefferson the Vice President. Later on Washington will create the "Washington's Farewell Address" to try and avoid conflicts for the U.S. -
Bank of the United States
The Bank of the United States was also known as the First Bank of America, it was a national bank, and chartered for a term of twenty years by the United States Congress. The bank made deposits and loans to the people of America which will stabilize the currency and economy of the country. Alexander Hamilton, the creator of the bank considered the bank his baby and wanted private investors. Though later suffers sets of constitutionality issues. -
Election of 1800
In the Election of 1800 John Adams and Thomas Jefferson will run again. In this election each sided believed the victory by the other would ruin the nation. Federalist will attack Jefferson because of the French Revolution and they believed he will bring similar bloodshed and chaos to the U.S. Meanwhile, the Democratic-Republicans do not support the strong centralization of federal power under Adams's presidency. In the end Jefferson will win the Election of 1800. -
Thomas Jefferson
He was the author of the declaration of Independence and third president of the U.S. During his presidency the Louisiana Territory and the Lewis and Clark explored the vast new acquisition. Jefferson also promoted individual liberty but he was slave owner as well. He was the first to have a presidential inauguration held in Washington D.C. Before becoming the president Jefferson was asked by George Washington to become the new nation's first secretary of state. -
Period: to
The Age of Jefferson
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Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase in 1803, gave the United States about 828,000,000 square miles of territory from France which doubled the size of the U.S. The purchase was considered one of the most important achievement of Thomas Jefferson's presidency. Jefferson bought Louisiana because France's offered was less than three cents per acre and he could not turn down the offer. The reason France sold the territory to the U.S. for such cheap price was because they needed the money to fight Britain. -
Sacagawea
Sacagawea was a bilingual Shoshone woman who accompanied Lewis and Clark on their expedition to the northern plains through the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean and back. She was a huge part of the expedition because she worked as the translator. She was mostly significant because of her claiming presence on both the expeditioners and the Native Americans they encountered, who otherwise been hostile to strangers. She also did the expedition while caring her son who she just gave birth too. -
Embargo Act of 1807
The Embargo Act of 1807 was a law passed by the United States Congress and signed by President Thomas Jefferson on December 02, 1807. It stopped American ships from trading with all foreign ports. Agriculture prices and earnings were falling and shipping industries were devastated. -
War of 1812
The cause of the War of 1812 included British trying to restrict U.S. trade and America wanting to expand its territory. The United States went through a lot of costly defeats by the British, Canadian, and Native American troops over the War of 1812, including the burning of the nation's capital in Washington, D.C. America gained national confidence after the British invasion in New York, Baltimore, and New Orleans. Finally two years later, the Treaty of Ghent in 1815 ended the War of 1812. -
Cotton Gin
The Cotton Gin was invented by Eli Whitney, it was a machine that speed up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber. By the mid-19th century, cotton became America's leading export. The invention gave Southern planters a justification to maintain and expand slavery even if some Americans supported its abolition. Lastly, Eli Whitney's invention of the Cotton Gin led to the second wave of industrialization across the United States. -
Changes in Transportation
A change in transportation occur during the American Industrial Revolution. Modern roads, steamboats, canals, and rail roads were built. The steamboats helped manufacture goods through rivers. A very important canal would be the Erie canal which was about 300 miles long. Lastly, the rail roads made everything much faster and cheaper, also this made it possible to carry more cargo at a time. -
Period: to
The American Industrial Revolution
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Panic of 1819
The Panic of 1819 occur after the War of 1812 because the country fall into debt. Banks throughout the United States failed and people were being forced out of their homes and farms. Though the primary cause of the panic changed toward more conservative credit policies by the Second Bank of the United States in 1816. The Panic of 1819 was also the first major financial crisis in the United States. It marked the end of the economic expansion that had followed the War of 1812. -
Missouri Crisis
Before the Missouri Compromise of 1820 there was tension that began to rise between pro-slavery and anti-slavery. It only got worse once Missouri requested admission to the Union as a slave trade which would unbalance the states between slave states and free slaves. To keep in peace, Congress came up with a two-part compromise which involved Missouri's request and admitting Maine as a free state. It also passed an amendment that drew an imaginary line across the former Louisiana Territory. -
Free-Black Communities
The Free-Black Communities was larger in the North and the Midwest. The communities dealt with a lot of discrimination and prejudice and they competed for jobs with immigrants in the North and Midwest. The South also has communities but there wasn't as many like in the North and the Midwest. Hostilities rose along with some additional prejudice during the time Free-Black Communities were going on. -
Second Great Awakening
In the Second Great Awakening, cultural shifted which meant that people were getting less religious due to industrialization. It began around 1800 and picked up around 1820 and it boast the War of 1812. Secularism and Deism was rejected and mortality was taken away by economics and politics. After 1820, membership rose rapidly among Baptist and Methodist congregations whose preachers led the movement. -
Revivalism
Revivalism was the increase in spiritual interest or renewal in the life of the church. Revivalism was also seen as the restoration of the church to a vital relationship with God after a period of religious decline. The decline occur due to industry because the industrialization made everyone uninterested in religion at the time. -
Period: to
Cultural Changes
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Election of 1824
In the Election of 1824 there was no successor and four candidates, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William Crawford, and Henry Clay. During the election Jackson wins popular votes but not the electoral college, therefore Adams will win election of 1824. Congress decided to turn over the presidential election to the House of Representatives, as dictated by the 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This election is the only one in history to be decided by the House of Representatives. -
Period: to
Age of Jackson
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Temperance Movement
The Temperance Movement was the reduce of alcohol intoxication. It use its political influence to make the government come up with a law to regulate the availability of alcohol or to even get rid of it completely. This became a movement because during this time all men would do was drink all day and get drunk and then later their wife would pay the price. The drunk men would hit their wife and get out of control which became an issue. -
Election of 1828
The Election of 1828 was the first modern election to take place. The candidates were Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams, Jackson as a Democratic and Adams as a Republican. Jackson won the election with 178 electoral votes mainly because he had a new strategy to win the election. The Vice President candidate of Jackson was John C. Calhoun. -
Shakers
The Shakers were a group of people who were celibate which meant that they didn't believe in having sex. They also didn't believe in marriage or procreation and rejected domesticity. They believed in equality among the sexes and no private property was allowed. Later on, since they didn't believe in having sex, all Shakers died and eventually Shakers no longer existed. -
Nat Turner's Rebellion
The Nat Turner's Rebellion was a slave rebellion that took place in Southampton County, Virginia in 1831. The rebellion was one of the largest slave rebellions ever to take place in the United States, it developed antebellum slave society. Turner saw a solar eclipse and took it as a sign from god telling him it was time for the up rising to happen. Many whites and their families were killed, including Turner's master. They supplied with weapons with the families they killed along the way. -
Election of 1832
The Election of 1832 was the first where the major political parties held national conventions to nominate their candidates. Andrew Jackson, a democrat, was nominated again and was running against National Republican Henry Clay. Andrew Jackson won this election with 219 electoral votes out of 286. Lastly, this election was also the first to introduce a third party, the Anti-Masons. -
Nullification Crisis
Nullification Crisis was when states had the right to ignore a federal law passed by congress. The crisis was when South Carolina adopted the ordinance to nullify the tariff acts and named them unconstitutional. The Tariff of 1832 was made short after the Force Bill was passed by Congress. The Tariff was what resolved the Nullification Crisis. -
Lowell Mills
The Lowell Mills were young girls workers who worked in industrial corporations in Lowell, Massachusetts during the Industrial Revolution in the United States. The girls worked there about three years before leaving there work and they started at a young age because they wanted young single girls. The Lowell system was important because the textile industry was beginning to grow and the textile industry had began to use helpful machines such as the spinning mule. -
Telegraph
The Telegraph was invented by Samuel Morse and other inventors, the telegraph revolutionized long-distance communication. The was the telegraph worked was by transmitting electrical signals over wire laid between stations. Also, Morse developed a code called, Morse Code, which assigned a set of dots/dashes to each letter of the alphabet and allowed messages across telegraphs lines. Later on by the start of the 21st century, the telegraph was replaced by newer inventions like the telephones, etc. -
Battle of Gonzales
The Battle of Gonzales was the first battle fought during the Texas Revolution. The battle was between rebellious Texian settlers and the Mexican army soldiers near Gonzales, Texas on October 2, 1835. In this battle, Texas elected John Moore to be their leader and so they crossed the river and attacked the Mexican camp. -
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, also known as Santa Anna, was the dominant figure of Mexican politics during the 19th century. Santa Anna was known of leaving a legacy of disappointment and disaster by placing his own-interest first before his duty to the nation. Santa Anna was the military leader during the Mexican-American War where Mexico lost due to Santa Anna's idea to let all the soldiers take a siesta while Sam Houston made a surprise attack during their siesta. -
Trail of Tears
In the beginning of the 1830s about 125,000 Native Americans lived in lands of Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Florida that their ancestors had occupied and cultivated for generations. By the end of the decade, few natives remained living in these lands because white settler wanted to grow cotton on the Indians' land and the federal government forced them to leave their own land. They walked thousands of miles to a designated "Indian Territory" across the Mississippi River. -
Election of 1836
In the Election of 1836 Martin Van Buren won the election as a Democratic with 170 electoral votes. Van Buren was the personal choice of Andrew Jackson and faced no opposition for the Democratic nomination. However, the Whigs Party split and decided to field a number of regional candidates in the hope of having the issue decided by the House of Representatives. -
Transcendentalism
A Transcendentalism is a person who believes in ideas that are not seen as religious beliefs but as a way of understanding life relationships. Transcendentalism an over educated work that describes a very simple idea. Men and women equally have knowledge about themselves and the world around them that goes more of what they can see, hear, taste, touch, and feel. -
Battle of San Jacinto
The Battle of San Jacinto was the last battle of the Texas Revolution. The reason of the American victory was because Sam Houston decided to make a surprise attack on Santa Anna's army while they were taking a siesta. The war only lasted about 20 minutes and Santa Anna was captured by the American army. Santa Anna was forced to sign the Treaty of Velasco when captured which declared Texas an independent nation. -
Iron Plow
The iron plow was invented by John Deere in 1837 when the Middle-West was being settled. The soil was different than the one in the East and the wood plows would keep breaking. There Deere later invented the iron plow in Grand Detour, Illinois where he had settled. The cost of an iron plow in 1837 was $10 to $12. Now a day they cost well over $100. The plow was used to efficiently turn/till the soil. -
Election of 1840
The Election of 1840 was when William Henry Harrison became the 9th President of the United States. While his presidency was short lived, Harrison was the first member of the Whig Party to become president. Harrison won the election against Van Buren with 234 electoral votes. The reason of Harrison's victory was because the Whigs spread rumors about Van Buren and the Whigs will get women influence vote from their husband. After Harrison only makes it for a month, John Tyler becomes president. -
Manifest Destiny
Manifest Destiny was a term during the 19th century that American expansion was destined to stretch from coast to coast. This movement had a great impact with the fuel western settlement, Native American removal, and was with Mexico. This expansion would not just involve the increase in territory, but also the progress of liberty and individual economic opportunity as well. The concept was taken up by those who wanted to secure Oregon Territory, California, and Mexican land in the Southwest. -
Period: to
Western Expansion
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Frederick Douglas
Frederick Douglas, abolitionist leader was born into slavery around 1818 in Talbot County, Maryland. Douglas was eventually asked to tell his story at abolitionist meetings and was later a anti-slavery lecturer. While Douglas was in a lecture tour in 1843, he was chased and beaten by an angry mob and then was rescued by a local Quaker family. -
Election of 1844
The Election of 1844 was between Democratic candidate James K. Polk and a Whigs, Henry Clay. Polk defeated Clay with 170 electoral votes to Clay's 105. Texas came back to debate and Polk's three main goals was the Annexation of Texas, settlement in Oregon and Mexican border. Though Texas was annexed before Polk, he sent diplomats to discuss buying Southwest from Mexico. -
Southern Society
The Southern Society included the Planters, Yeoman Farmers, and Tenant Farmers. The Planters were considered the higher class. Most of them did not own slaves and they were the ruling class of the South. The Yeomen were the middle class, some relied on Planters and some resented Planters. Their main task was to catch runaway slaves. Lastly, the Tenant was the lowest class of whites. They had the biggest population among all of the three Southern Society and they could not be with slaves. -
Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War was the conflict between America and Mexico when America wanted to expand westward which included taking part of Mexican territory. Once America had their Manifest Destiny moment, Mexico wasn't so happy about it because they didn't wanted to give up part of their land. Therefore, war occur with Mexico and America, though Mexico was not prepared for war they still fought back. America took advantage of Mexico's situation and declared war winning 1/3 of Mexican territory. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was the treaty that officially ended the Mexican-American War where it settled border dispute and seized over half of Mexico's territory. The Mexican territory added 525,000 square miles to the United States. This included all the land that now a day is Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. The treaty also said that Mexico gave up all claims to Texas and recognized the Rio Grande as the border. -
Seneca Falls Convention
The Seneca Falls Convention was the first women's rights convention in the United States. It was held in New York on July 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, this meeting launched the women's suffrage movement, which later ensured the right for women to vote. Elizabeth Cady Stanton played an important role in the convention, she was one of the meeting's organizers and gave a speech on the goals and purpose of the convention. All 11 resolutions were passed except the right to vote for women. -
Period: to
Sectionalism
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California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush took place in 1849 when there was a discovery of gold nuggets in the Sacramento Valley. As the news spread about the discovery, thousands of prospective gold miners traveled by sea or by land to San Francisco. By the end of 1849, the non-native population of California territory had a huge increase compared with the previous year, it almost became over populated.. After 1852, it became harder to find gold so mining began which supported industries. -
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was a network of people who were helping African Americans escape slavery by offering them shelter and aid. There was no exact dates of the operations all that is known is that it took place in the late 18th century till the Civil War. The way the railroad work; their were hiding place for the slaves to stay long the way to the North. There was many well-known routes stretching west through Ohio to Indiana and Iowa. Others went through Pennsylvania into New England. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas-Nebraska Act was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1854. This act allowed Kansas and Nebraska to decided for themselves if they wanted to be slave free or not. This was also known as popular sovereignty, allowing settlers of territory to make their own decision about slavery. The act also repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820 which prohibited slavery north of latitude 36 30. This bill was what made up sectionalism, splitting the nation into two major political parties. -
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas is what they called the period of violence during the settling of the Kansas territory. Pro-slavery and free-states settlers hovered over Kansas to try and influence their decision. The term Bleeding Kansas was giving to this event because basically men fought each other over making Kansas a Pro-slaver or a Free-state. A pro-slave government will be establish and the anti-slavery settlers establish an anti-slavery government. -
Election of 1860
The Election of 1860 was held on November 6, 1860 with candidates Abraham Lincoln Republican, John C. Breckenridge Democrat, Stephen A. Douglas Democrat and Constitutional Union candidate John Bell. Abraham Lincoln defeated all of them because of the falling apart of the Democratic party, leaving Lincoln as the only Republican. -
Confederate States of America
During the Civil War, the Confederate States of America consisted of the government of 11 southern states that seceded from the Union in 1860. The states on the CSA left the Union because they were threatened by the election of President Abraham Lincoln based on slavery. After the battle in Fort Sumter, four of the upper South states joined the Confederate States of America. The Confederacy military fortunes went well for only the first two years with Bull Run and the Seven Days' Battles. -
Crittenden Compromise
The Crittenden Compromise of 1860, was an unsuccessful proposal given by United States Senator John J. Crittenden on December 18, 1860. His attempt was to prevent the secession of southern states and avoid the Civil War. The compromise offered several constitutional amendments to serve as a compromise between pro-slavery and anti-slavery. The amendments basically would have permitted slavery in the territories in the south but not the north of latitude 36 30. -
1st Bull Run
On July 21, 1861, the Union and Confederate armies clashed in the first major battle of the American Civil War. The engagement began when Union troops marched from the federal capital to strike a Confederate force along a small river known as Bull Run. The rebels rallied and were able to break the Union right flank, sending the Federals into a chaotic retreat towards Washington. This 1st battle gave the South a surge of confidence due to their victory, and shocked many in the North. -
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The Civil War
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Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam occurred in 1862 at Antietam Creek near Sharpsburg, Maryland. In this battle, Confederate General Robert E. Lee Army of Northern Virginia was pitted against Union General George McClellan's Army of the Potomac. The battle's outcome would be vital to shaping America's future, and it remains the deadliest one-day battle in all American military history. The Emancipation of Proclamation came after this battle, Battle of Antietam. -
Emancipation Proclamation
When the Civil War began, President Abraham Lincoln looked at the conflict concerning the preservation of the Union instead of the abolition of slavery. Lincoln knew that neither Northerners nor the residents of the border slave states would support abolition as a war aim. So, later as slaves fled to join the Northern armies, he had come to the conclusion that abolition had became a sound military strategy. The Emancipation Proclamation transformed the fight into a battle for human freedom. -
Women at Work
During the Civil War, women who treated very differently and they were gaining more responsibilities. Women were now able to have positions that only men use to have for example, teachers, working for the government and becoming nurses. A very important women was Clara Barton, she created the American Red Cross where she and other nurses provided emergency assistance, disaster relief, and education in the U.S. during the Civil War. We can say that the Civil War had a huge impact for women. -
Armies
The Army of the Potomac was the primary Army of the Union in the Eastern Theater of the Civil War. The army was created after the First Battle of Bull Run. The Army of the Northern Virginia was the primary army for the Confederate during the American Civil War. The leader of the army was Robert E. Lee while the leader for the Union army was Ulysses S. Grant. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
General Robert E. Lee lead his army to invade the North which converges on a town in central Pennsylvania, Gettysburg. Their goal was to destroy the Union army but instead their was a turning point where it became the bloodiest battle of the war. Gettysburg was a three-day battle which favored the Union after their great victory. -
Freedom Amendments
Three Amendments were made after the American Civil War during the reconstruction, the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendment. The 13th Amendment was the abolish of slavery, Lincoln and Radical Republicans reached common ground. The 14th Amendment was the one that gave citizenship to all people born in America including African Americans. Finally the 15th Amendment gave the right to citizens of the U.S. to be able to vote regardless of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. -
Appomattox Courthouse
In April 9, 1865 General Robert E. Lee surrenders to General Ulysses S. Grant which brought an end to the Civil War after four years of battle. The Appomattox Courthouse was what ended the Civil War officially and it only lasted a few hours. Days earlier, Lee abandoned the Confederate capital of Richmond and the city of Petersburg; his goal was to rally the remnants of his beleaguered troops, meet Confederate reinforcements in North Carolina and resume fighting. -
Black Codes
Black Codes is basically slavery without chains. Southern states will limit Civil Rights and economic opportunity for African Americans including, exploitable workforce, outlawed interracial marriage, and outlawed serving on juries. These laws were passed by Democrat-controlled Southern states in 1865 and 1866 and ended in 1877 due to the Reconstruction after the Civil War. What helped stop the black codes, was the Freedmen's Bureau which was created in 1865. -
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Reconstruction
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KKK
The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was founded in 1866 and extended into almost every southern states and became a white southern resistance to the Republican Party's Reconstruction era policies aimed at establishing political and economic equality for blacks. The Klan intimidated blacks with violence to reach their goal of reestablishment of white supremacy-fulfilled through Democratic victories. At least 10% of the black legislator elected during the constitutional convention became victims of violence. -
Panic of 1873
During the Panic of 1873, African American become less important to the people of America because of the panic. It is important to point out that the panic was part of a larger international economic depression in the United States. The financial pain of the U.S. spread across the ocean in Europe when the value of silver decreased. After the panic, Grant reduces efforts in the political south. -
Compromise of 1877
The Compromise of 1877 officially ended the Reconstruction era. Southern Democrats' promised to protect civil and political rights of blacks but was not kept, and the end of federal interference in southern affairs led to widespread of blacks voters. Known as Jim Crows laws, these segregationist statutes governed life in the South through the middle of the next century, ending only after the hard-won successes of the civil rights movement in the 1960s. -
Sharecroppers
Sharecroppers were people in the south who became tenant farmers. The reason of this was because the south only had 6% of national industrial output. People became tenant farmers because the price of cotton was drastically falling due to overproduction. Many people are forced to quit farming due to the cotton situation. Farmers during this time paid their rent by giving owners 1/3 to 1/2 of their harvest, 70% of people lived this way by the 1900. -
Mississippi Plan
The Mississippi Plan was made by the Democratic Party in the state to get rid of the Republican Party in Mississippi by organizing threats of violence and suppression or purchase of the black vote. Their state government was trying to prevent Black political participation using this strategy. Southern states later used white primaries and other strategies to exclude Black voters. Democrats will win very easily and tactic spreads across the South, Reconstruction governments start to fail.
