-
The Dead Rabbits Riot
Fiercely territorial, The Dead Rabbit gang fought long and hard to defend their poverty-stricken slum back in the mid-1800s. Ostensibly formed to protect the immigrant Irish underclass against the nativist Bowery Boys, The Dead Rabbits were also a criminal organization with extensive connections in New York politics. -
The Ku Klux Klan is Established
The Ku Klux Klan, commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is the name of an American white supremacist, far-right hate group. Various historians have characterized the Klan as America's first terrorist group -
John D. Rockefeller Creates Standard Oil
John D. Rockefeller founded the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. -
Alexander Graham Bell Patents the Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell successfully received a patent for the telephone and secured the rights to the discovery. Days later, he made the first ever telephone call to his partner, Thomas Watson. -
The Great Oklahoma Land Race
Approximately fifty thousand people; young and old, men and women rushed to acquire the 12,000 land tracts that were available. -
Ellis Island Opens to Process Immigrants
It opened as an immigration place on January 1st, 1892. Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States -
The Wizard of Oz (book) is published
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, published in 1900, is the first fantasy written by an American to enjoy an immediate success upon publication. -
J.P. Morgan Founds U.S. Steel
Early in 1901, J. P. Morgan, the country's most powerful banker, merged Andrew Carnegie's Carnegie Steel Corporation with nine other steel companies to form the world's largest corporation. The United States Steel Corporation, usually known as U.S. Steel or simply Big Steel, was capitalized at $1.4 billion. -
Teddy Roosevelt Becomes President of the United States
The presidency of Theodore Roosevelt started on September 14, 1901, when Theodore Roosevelt became the 26th president of the United States upon the assassination of President William McKinley, and ended on March 4, 1909. Roosevelt had been the vice president for only 194 days when he succeeded to the presidency. -
Ford Motor Company is Founded
On June 16, 1903, Henry and 12 others invested $28,000 and created Ford Motor Company. The first car built by the Company was sold on July 15, 1903. Henry owned 25.5% of the stock in the new organization. He became president and controlling owner in 1906. -
Ida Tarbell Publishes Her Article About Standard Oil
Ida M. Tarbell's The History of the Standard Oil Company was first serialized in McClure's Magazine starting in 1902 and then published as a best-selling book in 1904. Tarbell grew up around the Pennsylvania oil industry, where her father suffered from, and protested, John D. Rockefeller's business practices. -
The 16th Amendment is Passed
Passed by Congress on July 2, 1909, and ratified February 3, 1913, the 16th amendment established Congress's right to impose a Federal income tax -
Angel Island Opens to Process Immigrants
immigration and deportation station. 175,000 Chinese and about 60,000 Japanese immigrants were held under oppressive conditions, normally from two weeks to six months, before being allowed to go into the U.S -
The 17th Amendment is Passed
Passed by Congress on May 13, 1912, and ratified on April 8, 1913, the 17th Amendment modified Article I, Section 3, of the Constitution by allowing voters to cast direct votes for U.S. senators. Prior to its passage, state legislatures chose senators. -
The Empire State Building Opens
Construction started on March 17, 1930, and the building opened thirteen and a half months afterward on May 1, 1931. Despite favorable publicity related to the building's construction, because of the Great Depression and World War II, its owners did not make a profit until the early 1950s