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Massacre at Mystic
An early morning assault on Mystic Fort resulted in the deaths of 500 adults and children from the Pequot tribe, marking the beginning of the Pequot Massacre (also known as the “Mystic Massacre”). This tragic event was the initial loss for the Pequot tribe against the English during the Pequot War, a conflict that lasted three years. The Puritans had started this war with the goal of taking over the tribe's ancestral territory. -
The Scalp Act
made it legal to sell heads for cash, with payment from the government of Pennsylvania. -
The 3/5ths Compromise
It was found that for every five individuals, three were considered as part of a state's population for the purpose of electing representatives and levying taxes. Prior to the Civil War, the Three-Fifths Compromise resulted in slave states having a greater number of representatives in the House of Representatives compared to their actual population. -
Slave Trade Ends in the United States
The slave trade violated the right to liberty, which was a right that the Enlightenment suggested all men held. Enslaved people suffered from a variety of diseases and conditions due to the Atlantic Slave Trade and inhumane living and working conditions. -
Battle of Tippecanoe
The Battle of Tippecanoe was important because it successfully broke apart the expanding Native American alliance under Tecumseh, greatly affecting the expansion of the United States westward and ultimately leading to the start of the War of 1812. This was because Tecumseh's troops then joined forces with the British after their loss at Tippecanoe. -
The Missouri Compromise
It kept a fine equilibrium between states that were free and those that were enslaved. The most contentious issue of the era split the U.S. Senate down the middle. Should the slavery issue be resolved through politics, any resolution would have to occur within the confines of the Senate. -
Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears National Historic Trail honors the forced relocation of the Cherokee and the routes taken by 17 Cherokee groups as they moved west. -
Indian Removal Act
The majority of white people in the United States believed that the country would never spread further than the Mississippi River. Relocation was seen as a way to protect Native Americans from the harm caused by settlers, and it was thought that they would be moved to a region where they could live in harmony and self-rule. -
Nat Turner Rebellion
The uprising led by Nat Turner was important because it broke down the false belief that enslaved individuals were happy with their existence and too passive to challenge their conditions, causing widespread terror among white Southerners and resulting in stricter laws for slaves that limited their freedom to move, learn, and gather, thereby reinforcing support for slavery in the area. In essence, it showed the possibility of violent opposition to slavery and its harsh truths. -
The Fugitive Slave Act
made the pursuit of runaway slaves, even in states that were free, completely lawful. For those fighting against slavery, this was a major setback to their cause. Not only had the central government supported slavery, but it had also pledged to protect it forever. -
Dred Scott Decision
The court maintained the practice of slavery in territories of the United States, ruled that black individuals were not recognized as citizens in the United States, and declared the Missouri Compromise to be invalid. -
Emancipation Proclamation
It lent ethical power to the Confederate effort and bolstered the Confederate cause on both fronts, military and political. -
13th Amendment
The change legally ended slavery, and right away set free over 100,000 people who were enslaved, ranging from Kentucky to Delaware. -
14th Amendment
Enacted by the Senate on June 8, 1866, and confirmed by the states two years following, on July 9, 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment extended citizenship rights to everyone "born in the United States" or those who had become naturalized, encompassing those who had been enslaved, and ensured that all individuals received "equal protection under the law." -
15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was significant as it ensured that African American men could vote, no matter their race, skin color, or past status as a slave. -
Battle of Little Bighorn
The demise of Custer and his soldiers served as a catalyst for the United States to ramp up its attempts to compel indigenous peoples to move onto designated reservation territories. -
Plessy vs. Ferguson
Plessy v. Ferguson was a pivotal Supreme Court decision because it confirmed the legality of racial separation, setting the "separate but equal" principle that essentially sanctioned Jim Crow legislation throughout the Southern United States, permitting the division of races in public places as long as they were deemed equal, thereby officially endorsing racial segregation for nearly 60 years until it was reversed by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. -
Battle of Wounded Knee
signified the final conclusion of Native American opposition to the intrusions of European colonists.