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Fire destroys 856 buildings in New Orleans
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George Washington elected 1st President
George Washington was elected as the first U.S. President. John Adams who received the second highest electoral votes became the first Vice President. Washington served two four year terms as president. -
Lavoisier's Table of 33 Elements Published
Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier, a French chemist, published his table of 33 elements in 1789. He was executed during the French Revolution on May 8, 1794. -
French Revolution Begins
Peasants and the urban poor rioted and stormed the Bastille Fortress in Paris to try to secure gunpowder and weapons. They were upset about high taxes, inflation, and having little control over their government. The French revolution lasted ten years. -
Modern shoelace invented in England
This shoelace was the first to use string and shoe holes. -
First U.S. Census conducted
The U.S. population was 3, 939,214 including 697,624 slaves. -
Distilled Spirits Tax Enacted
This was the first tax imposed on a domestic product by the newly formed Federal government. It was an excise tax on domestic and imported alcohol, also called the Whiskey Tax. Revenue raised by the tax was to be used to pay off some of the states' war debts assumed by the Federal government as part of the Hamilton Plan. The tax was unpopular. -
National Bank of U.S. created
The bank was built in Philadelphia to handle the large war debt and create a standard form of currency. Alexander Hamilton suggested the idea of a national bank as part of his financial plan. Having a national currency made it easier to trade between states and other countries. -
Chief Little Turtle Defeats American Army
Chief Little Turtle led an army of native tribes who attacked the American army led by Major General Arthur St. Clair near the Wabash River in the Northwest Territory. The Treaty of Paris of 1783 had granted the Northwest Territory to the U.S. from Britain, but the Native Americans also claimed the land. St. Clair retreated after suffering over 900 dead and wounded soldiers, women, and children. -
Bill of Rights added to Constitution
The Bill of Rights was made up of ten amendments intended to limit the power of the Federal government. They were added to protect individual liberty like freedom of speech and gave rights to people accused of crimes. The 10th amendment gave any power not listed in the Constitution to the states or the people. Some states had only agreed to ratify the Constitution based on the promise that a bill of rights would be added later. -
New York Stock Exchange Established
The stock exchange was formed by 24 merchants at 70 Wall Street, New York, NY. -
England and France go to War
French troops occupied Belgian lands which threatened the Dutch and British overland trade. Britain sent troops fight the French. Both Britain and France tried to get the United States to join the war as their ally. The two nations finally signed a peace treaty in 1802, but by 1803 they were at war again until 1815. -
Eli Whitney applies for cotton gin patent
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France Abolishes Slavery
In 1794, France abolished slavery, but it was established again in 1802 by Napoleon. France ended slavery again in 1848. -
The Whiskey Rebellion
Angry about the tax on the manufacture and sale of whiskey passed in 1791, Western Pennsylvania farmers turned to violence. They attacked tax collectors and burned down buildings. President Washington led a militia to put down the rebellion. He is the only sitting president who ever led troops in the field. -
Jay's Treaty with Britain
U. S. Chief Justice John Jay negotiated this treaty to avoid war and stay neutral in Britain's war with France. Britain had failed to leave forts in America as agreed in the Treaty of Paris, encouraged Indian attacks in the western U.S., blocked U.S. exports, seized U.S. cargo and ships bound for enemy ports, and forced U.S. sailors to serve on British warships. The treaty was unpopular in America since Britain only agreed to leave the forts, pay for seized ships, and reduce trade barriers. -
Treaty of Greenville with Indians
U.S. General Anthony Wayne signed a peace treaty with the Indian tribes in the Northwest Territory. The Americans had defeated the Indian tribes at the Battle of Seven Pines a year earlier on August 20, 1794. The tribes surrendered some lands in exchange for $20,000 at signing plus $9,500 in goods per year and boundaries to limit further intrusion by white settlers. Both Indians and white settlers refused to honor the treaty, so violence continued. -
Pinckney's Treaty with Spain
Washington sent Thomas Pinckney to negotiate a treaty at Spain's request. Spain saw Jay's Treaty as an alliance between the U.S. and Britain that threatened Spain's territory in America. Spain wanted to settle disputes with the U.S.. The treaty gave the U.S. use of the Mississippi and the port of New Orleans for shipping, settled the border with Florida, and both countries agreed to restrain Indians within their borders from attacking the other. Americans saw this treaty as a success. -
Earthquake kills 41,000 in Quito, Ecuador
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John Adams elected as 2nd President
After George Washington declined to serve a third term, John Adams representing the Federalists party narrowly defeated the Republican party candidate, Thomas Jefferson, to become our 2nd president. Based on Constitutional rules at that time Jefferson became the vice president. -
Alien and Sedition Acts Passed
Federalists expected the U.S. was going to have to declare war on France. They were concerned non-citizens from Europe might be loyal to France. These acts gave the president the authority to jail or make aliens leave the country and increased the time aliens had to live in the U.S. before they became citizens from 5 to 14 years. The acts also made it a crime to speak, write, or publish criticism of the government. -
Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions
Both Kentucky and Virginia passed resolutions claiming the Alien and Sedition Acts violated the Constitution. The Kentucky resolution also said the states could legally overturn unconstitutional Federal laws. Both resolutions supported the principal of state's rights that the Federal government only had powers it was given in the Constitution. -
Rosetta Stone Discovered in Egypt
The stone had inscriptions in Greek, Egyptian hieroglyphics, and Egyptian demotic. The Greek inscription said all three had been written in second century BC and had the same meaning. The stone was used to read the hieroglyphic language that had been dead for 2000 years. -
Napoleon overthrows French Government
General Napoleon Bonaparte staged a military coup to overthrow the five directors ruling France. Napoleon appointed himself "first consul" to lead France. This marked the end of the French Revolution. -
Congress meets in Washington, D.C. first time
Congress met in the capital building in Washington, D.C. for the first time. In the Compromise of 1790, southern states had previously agreed to support the Hamilton Plan if the U.S. Capital was relocated to the south. Work on the new capital building had begun in 1793.
