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Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was fought between communist North Vietnam and the South Vietnam government. The North was supported by communist countries that comprised of the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union. The South was supported by anti-communist countries, mostley the United States. -
Korea is Divided
38th Parallel
After World War II, Korea is divided into communist North Korea and non-communist South Korea along the 38th parallel. Since the Soviets occupied the northern part of the country, the US wanted to create a US occupation zone, so the US government drew an evenly divided line between the North and South. -
Trinity Test
Trinity Test
Trinity was a code name for the testing of the first nuclear weapon, which triggered the Nuclear Arms Race. This testing took place in a remote area in New Mexico at dawn and the destructive powers were released into the early morning darkness and forever changed the world. -
Ho Chi Minh Declares Vietnam Independent
Vietnam's Independence
Immediately after Japan's surrender in World War II, Vietnamese communist Ho Chi Minh declares Vietnam independent from France, establishing the Democratic Repubic of Vietnam. They accused the French of depriving them of their liberties, imposing inhuman laws upon them, and ruining the country’s resources. -
First Day of Trials
Nuremberg Trials
On November 20, 1945, the International Military Tribunal began trials for the 24 highest ranking Nazis indicted for war crimes. Before the trials took place, Industrialist Gustav Krupp was found too ill to face trial and labor leader Robert Ley committed suicide before trial, so the trials began for the remaining 22 men. The next day, each man pleaded not guilty of the prosecution. -
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The Nuremburg Trials
Nuremberg Trials
Following World War II, the United Nations held the Nuremberg Trials for the purpose of bringing Nazi war criminals to justice. They were 13 trials that were held in Nuremberg Germany and after some debate, it was decided that the fairest way to proceed was the public trial of the men and organizations who committed these horrific crimes. -
Trial Verdicts
Trial Verdicts
The verdicts for the Nuremberg trials were announced on October 1, 1946. Eighteen of the defendants were found guilty while three were freed. Eleven of the guilty were sentenced to death by hanging, and the rest received prison sentences ranging from 10 years to life. -
Nazi Doctors Trial-Found Guilty
Doctors Trial
Military Tribunal I found sixteen doctors guilty during the Nazi's Doctor Trial. Out of the sixteen, seven of the doctors were sentenced to death. They were acussed of being a part of the Nazi Human Experiment and mass murder. -
Ministries Trial
Ministries Trial
The Ministries Trial was the eleventh of the twelve trials for war crimes that the United States held in Nuremberg, Germany. This trial involved three Reich Ministers and eighteen other members of the Nazi party that were acussed of war crimes and crimes against humanity. This sentencing brought an end to the Nuremberg Trials. -
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Nuclear Arms Race
Arms Race
During the Cold War, the United States and Soviet Union competed in an arms race to see who had supremecy in nuclear weapons. Both America and the Soviet Union massively built up their stockpiles of nuclear weapons because they believed that the more weapons you had, the more powerful you were. -
North Korea Invades South Korea
North Invades the South
On Jnue 25th, the North Korean army attacked South Korea, with permission from Russia, crossing the 38th parallel. The North Korean army hoped to take control of Seoul, South Korea's capital, as quickly as possible. South Korea was unprepared for North Korea's attack and it greatly weakened their army. -
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Korean War
Korean War
World War II divided Korea into North Korea (Communist) and South Korea (Non-Communist) along the 38th parallel. The war began when the North Korean army crossed the 38th parallel and invaded the South. The U.S. helped push the North's forces back and China steped in to help the North. Since neither side wanted to appear weak, a peace treaty was eventually signed at Panmunjom in 1953. -
Truman Relieves MacArthur of Duties
Truman Relieves MacArthur
General Douglas MacArthur, the commander of the United Nation fores in Korea, issued an unauthorized statement that contained information about expanding the war to China. Persident Truman felt that he had no other option but to relieve MacArthur of his duties. -
Battle of Heartbreak Ridge
Battle of Heartbreak Ridge
The Battle of Heartbreak Ridge was a month long battle where the United Nation forces fought against the North Korean and Chinese armies about 8 miles north of the 38th parallel. The fighting for Heartbreak Ridge went back and forth and eventually ended with 15,000 North Korean and Chinese men dead in the battle field. -
North and South Korea Sign Armistice
Armistice
After three years of war, the United States, People's Republic Army of China, North Korea, and South Korea agree to sign an armistice that brought the Korean War to an end. The war ended with a communist North Korea and a non-communist South Korea. -
The Bravo Test
The Bravo Test
The Bravo Test was conducted when United States tested a 17 megaton hydrogen bomb on Bikini Atoll in the Pacific which turned out to be the largest U.S. nuclear test ever exploded. Bravo was a code name given to the test project and it led to the most significant accidental radioactive contamination that was ever caused by the United States. -
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Civil Rights Movement
Civil Rights Movement
The African-American Civil Rights Movement were active movements in the United States with the goal to end racial segregation and discrimination against black Americans and enforce them with voting rights. African American men and women, along with whites, organized and led these movements at local as well as national levels. -
School Segregation Unconstitutional
School SegregationOn May 17, 1954, during the case of Brown vs. Board of Education, the Supreme Court declared that racially segregated public schools were unconstitutional. Brown v. Board of Education was filed against the Topeka, Kansas school board by representative Oliver Brown, parent of a child who was denied access to Topeka's white schools. He claimed that the racial segregation of the school went against the Constitution's Equal Protection Clause because black and white schools were not equal. -
The Geneva Accords
Geneva AccordsAn international conferene was held at Geneva, Switzerland to duscuss the problems at Indochina. The Geneve Accords created the peaceful withdrawal of the French from Vietnam and provided a temporary boundary between North and South Vietnam along the 17th parallel. The Geneva Accords stated that Vietnam was to become an independent nation and were designed to create peace in Vietnam but eventually contributed to war. -
Rosa Parks Arrested
Rosa ParksRosa Parks took a seat on the bus on her way home from the Montgomery Fair department store where she worked as a seamstress. Before she reached her destination, the bus driver asked her to move to the back of the bus so a white male could have her seat. Rosa Parks, an African American, was arrested for violating a law requiring public buses to be racialy segregated. -
Little Rock Nine
Little Rock NineThe Little Rock Nine were nine African-Americans who were involved in the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School. They were rejected many times from the school because of their race, but they all refused to give up on attending the school. While the National Guard prevented the students from going to the school, they also faced verbal and physical assaults from white students. Eventually federal troops excorted them into the school so they could finally attend. -
Soviet Union launches Sputnik 1
Sputnik I
The Soviet Union launches the first artifical satellite into space, and this shocked many Americans. Americans were very upset that the Soviets had more advanced technology than the superior United States. This surprise success launch of the Sputnik I triggered the Space Race. -
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Space Race
Space Race
During the Cold War, the United States and Soviet Untion competed with each other to build rocket-propelled weapons and rocketry for space-exploration. In 1957, the Space Race began when the Soviet Untion launced the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, into orbit. The "race" went back and forth between the US and Soviet Union to see who had the more advanced space technology. -
United States launch Explorer 1
Explorer I
Explorer I was the first stellite that was lainched by the United States. The primary goal of Explorer I was to measure the radiation environment in Eath's orbit. After a series of unsuccessful launches and the Soviet Union's successful launch of Sputnik, this satellite marked a moment when the United States got its confidence back during the space race. -
Ho Chi Minh Trail
Ho Chi Minh Trail
The Ho Chi Minh Trial was a network of roads that led from North Vietnam to South Vietnam. This trail was used as a root to lead troops from the north to the south, and also as a way to bring supplies like food, weapons, and equipment to soldiers. There were thousands of trails and some were created only to confuse Americans who were aiding South Vietnam. -
Sit In At NC A&T
Sit-InFour black freshman from North Carolina A&T State University staged a sit in sat the segregated counter of F. W. Woolworth's in Greensboro, N.C. They were rufused service but remained sitting all day and returned for the next day with about 25 more students, but still did not recieve service. They inspired similar sit-ins across the state which eventually resulted in the desegregation of Woolworth's counter. -
First Man in Space
Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin
Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space. He traveled in the Vostok I with a 108 minute flight that completed one orbit of the earth, and landed about two hours after his launch. -
First American in Space
First American in Space
Alan Shepard became the first American in space when his spacecraft, Freedom 7, took off from Florida. The flight went perfectly, and he became the first American astronaut in space during a 15-minute ride. When Shepard returned, he was happily greated by many, having gotten America back into the Space Race. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis occurred from October 16-29 in 1962. It was a very tense stand off between the United States and the Sovit Union when the US discovered Soviet missiles in Cuba. The United States blockaded Cuba for 13 days, and this crisis brought the US and Soviet Union to the brink of nuclear war. -
Civil RIghts Act Passed
Civil Rights Act Passed On July 2, 1964, President Johnson formally signed the Civil Rights Act with Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, and many other famous civil rights activist present. This law banned racial discrimination in several areas, including hotels, restaurants, education,and also guaranteed equal job opportunities. -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed by congress to authorize military action in Southeast Asia and allowed President Johnson to take any measures he believed was necessary to keep peace. This resolution was a responce to two navy battles between the North Vietnamese Navy's Torpedo Squadron and the destroyer USS Maddox. -
First Space Walk
<ahref='http://www.nmspacemuseum.org/halloffame/detail.php?id=17' >Space Walk</a>Alexei Leonov was the first human to conduct a space walk. The 30-year-old Russian floated outside his spacecraft, the Voskhod 2for 12 minutes while connected to a 50.7 foot tether. Because of the vacuum pressure outside the spacecraft, Leonov's spacesuit inflated to the point where he could no longer re-enter the airlock. He opened a valve of his suit to allow some of the pressure out, and was barely able to get back inside the capsule. -
Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King AssassinationAt 6:01 p.m. on April 4, 1968, the civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot by a snipers bullet while he was on a hotel balcany in Memphis, Tennessee. Martin Luther King Jr. was a prominant leader in the Civil Rights Movement and after his death, riots began all over the United States because of the impact that he had on desegration. On June 8, 1968, James Earl Ray was arrested for the death of Martin Luther King. -
Non-Proliferation Treaty
Non-Proliferation Treaty
The Treaty of Non-Proliferaction of Nuclear Weapons, or NPT, is an international treaty whose goal is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, and to promote peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Its membership includes 188 States Parties, which makes it the largest arms control treaty in the world. -
First Man on the Moon
First Man on the Moon
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first person to step foot on the moon, followed only minutes later by Buzz Aldrin as a part of their Apollo Mission. This amazing accomplishment placed the United States in front of the Soviets in the Space Race, and also gave people around the world the hope of future space exploration. -
Paris Peace Accords Signed
Paris Peace Accord SingedThe United States, Viet Cong, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam formally signed "An Agreement Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam" in Paris on Janurary 27, 1973. This settlement created a cease-fire throughout Vietnam. The United States also agreed to the withdrawal of all U.S. troops and advisors (about 23,700) and the dismantling of all U.S. bases within 60 days. In return, the North Vietnamese agreed to release all of the U.S. prisoners of war. -
American Mariner 10
Mariner 10
When Mariner 10 took off from Cape Canaveral, very little was known about other planets in the solar system. The Mariner 10 was the first spacecraft to fly to Mercury. It showed close-up pictures of the sun's closest neighbor and also did investigations of Mercury's surface and environment. -
South Vietnam Surrenders
South Vietnam Surrenders
Communist North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon, and forced South Vietnam to surrender which brought an end to the Vietnam War. As North Vietnam took control of Saigon, the renamed it Ho Chi Minh City immedetly.
