European Nations Settle in North America

  • Jan 1, 1524

    Verrazzano

    Verrazzano, sailing for France discovers New York Harbor.
  • Jan 1, 1534

    Jacques Cartier

    Frenchman Jacques Cartier navigates the St. Lawrence River and names an island along the River Montreal.
  • Jamestown

    Jamestown is founded on the coast of Virginia by 100 English settlers.
  • Samuel de Champlain

    French explorer, Samuel de Champlain, founds the colony of Quebec.
  • Smallpox

    An epidemic of smallpox, brought by Europeans, kills many Native Americans on the New England coast.
  • Plymouth

    Pilgrims from England found an English Colony in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
  • Henry Hudson

    Henry Hudson, exploring for the Netherlands, claims land that will become New Netherland.
  • The Duke of York

    The Duke of York drives out the Dutch in New Netherland. The Duke of York claims the colony for England and renames it New York.
  • King Philip's War

    King Philip's War begins in Colonial villages of Massachusetts, between colonists and Native Americans.
  • Sieur de la Salle

    Sieur de la Salle explores the lower Mississippi Valley River, and claims the valley for France and names it Louisianna in honor of the French King Louis XIV.
  • French and Indian War

    War between the British and French, known as the French and Indian War. The war is fought over disputed land claims in the Ohio Valley.