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The Battles of Lexington and Concord
In this first battle of the American Revolution, Massachusetts colonists defied British authority, outnumbered and outfought the Redcoats, and embarked on a lengthy war to earn their independence. -
The Winter at Valley Forge
It was here, over the winter of 1777 and 1778, that 11,000 of Washington's Continental Army faced one of its most trying episodes. While rain, snow, and cold temperatures afflicted the army, the situation was made far worse by the lack of shelter, blankets, winter coats, and even shoes. -
Benedict Arnold turns traitor
Revolutionary War hero Benedict Arnold turned his back on his country in a secret meeting with a top British official. -
The Battle of Cowpens
At the Cowpens, a frontier pastureland, on January 17, 1781, Daniel Morgan led his army of tough Continentals and backwoods militia to a brilliant victory over Banastre Tarleton's battle-hardened force of British regulars. Located in present-day South Carolina north of Spartanburg. -
The USS Constitution defeats the HMS Guerriere
On August 19, 1812, USS Constitution met and defeated HMS Guerriere, a 38-gun British frigate under the command of Captain James Richard Dacres. While relatively inconsequential in strategic terms for the War of 1812, the stunning victory provided a much needed morale boost for the American public. -
The Battle of Baltimore
Faced against the greatest military in the world, American forces held their ground and saved Baltimore from facing the same fate as Washington D.C., the epic event also inspired Francis Scott Key to write the words that would eventually become "The Star-Spangled Banner," today's National Anthem. -
The Battle of New Orleans
The British gambled and lost on a forward attack that sent a force of 5,300 against about 4,000 Americans dug into fortified mud and cotton bale earthworks on the east bank of the Mississippi. -
The Election of Andrew Jackson
The significance of Andrew Jackson's 1828 presidential election lies in his appeal as a "people's president" who represented the common man. Unlike his predecessors, Jackson was not a political insider and came from a modest background. His election marked the rise of the Democratic Party and the establishment of the two-party system with the Democrats and Whigs. -
The Battle of the Alamo
Battle of the Alamo, battle during the Texas Revolution that occurred from February 23 to March 6, 1836, in San Antonio, Texas. It ended in a decisive victory for Mexican forces over “Texian” volunteers, who were annihilated. -
Mexico loses California, New Mexico, and Arizona
Under the terms of the treaty negotiated by Trist, Mexico ceded to the United States Upper California and New Mexico. This was known as the Mexican Cession and included present-day Arizona and New Mexico and parts of Utah, Nevada, and Colorado -
Abraham Lincoln Elected President
On November 6, 1860, voters in the United States went to the polls in an election that ended with Abraham Lincoln as President, in an act that led to the Civil War. But Lincoln’s victory didn’t happen on that day, and his victory wasn’t assured for months. -
South Carolina secedes from the United States
South Carolina became the first state to secede from the federal Union on December 20, 1860. The victory of Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 presidential election triggered cries for disunion across the slaveholding South. -
The First Battle of Bull Run
The first land battle of the Civil War was fought on July 21, 1861, just 30 miles from Washington—close enough for U.S. senators to witness the battle in person. Southerners called it the Battle of Manassas, after the closest town. Northerners called it Bull Run, after a stream running through the battlefield. -
The Battle of Gettysburg
The charge was repulsed by Union rifle and artillery fire, at great loss to the Confederate army. Lee led his army on a torturous retreat back to Virginia. Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers from both armies were casualties in the three-day battle, the most costly in US history. -
The Treaty at Appomattox Courthouse
Trapped by the Federals near Appomattox Court House, Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered his army to Union general Ulysses S. Grant, precipitating the capitulation of other Confederate forces and leading to the end of the bloodiest conflict in American history. -
The sinking of the USS Maine
A second-class battleship built between 1888 and 1895, was sent to Havana in January 1898 to protect American interests during the long-standing revolt of the Cubans against the Spanish government. In the evening of 15 February 1898, Maine sank when her forward gunpowder magazines exploded. -
Battle of the Philippines (Spanish American War, not World War II)
The Spanish fleet guarding the Philippines was defeated by the U.S. Navy under the command of Commodore George Dewey on May 1, 1898. -
The Adoption of the Star Spangled Banner as the National Anthem
On March 3, 1931, the U.S. Congress passed a joint resolution (46 Stat. 1508) making the song the official national anthem of the United States, which President Herbert Hoover signed into law. The resolution is now codified at 36 U.S.C. § 301(a).