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New York Stock Exchange
The stock exchange created its first permanent headquarters near Wall Street in New York. -
Standard Oil
John D. Rockefeller introduced the Standard Oil of Ohio company. By 1890, it controlled 88% of refined oil flow in the United States. -
Mail Order Catalogs
Dry goods begin distribution to rural areas by way of mail order. -
Sherman Antitrust Act
The first Federal statute to limit cartels and monopolies to prevent raising prices by restriction of trade or supply. -
McKinley Tariff
The tariff set to protect United States manufacturing by setting the average ad valorem tariff rates for imports at 48.7%. -
Ford Motor Company
Henry Ford creates an automobile company for mass production. -
Wright Brothers
The first successful man-powered airplane takes flight for 59 seconds over 859 feet. -
Model T
Ford Motor Company introduces the Model T for $850. Efficient production later brings it down to $368. -
16th Amendment
Congress is given the power to collect an income tax without regard to census or enumeration. -
Assembly Line
Ford introduces the continous moving assembly line. It can produce a completed car in 2.5 minutes. This forced other manufacturers to produce at the same rate to compete. -
Federal Trade Commission
FTC created in promotion of consumer protection and elimination of anti-competitive business practice and to enforce antitrust laws. -
World War I
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was killed by Serbian Nationalist; Austria declared war on Serbia marking the beginning of World War I. -
Income Tax
Congress passes the Revenue Act mandating a tax on incomes above $3,000. -
Panama Canal
Panama Canal opens after 34 years of construction, allowing connection for shipping from Atlantic to Pacific. -
Zimmerman Note
United States enters WWI after telegram from Germany to Mexico is intercepted. The telegram promised Mexico the territories it lost in the Mexican-American War in return for joining forces against the United States. -
Treaty of Versailles
WWI ended in a series of conferences in teh Palace of Versailles and resulted in the creation of the League of Nations. -
18th Amendment
The manufacture, sale, and transportation of liquors became prohibited. -
World War Foreign Debt Commission
Congress established commission to round debts owed to the United States ($11.5 billion) over a course of 62 years. -
Black Tuesday
Investors abandoned the stock market and put their money into commodities. The stock market crash caused people to withdraw tehir money from the banks. Gold prices soared; Federal Reserve increased the value of the dollar by raising interest rates to avoid inflation. -
Glass-Steagall Act
Act that expanded the powers of the Federal Reserve Board. -
FDIC
A commission created to instill trust back into the banking system. -
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese bombing on Pearl Harbor marked the United States entry into World War II. -
Korean War
North Korea invades South Korea resulting in President Truman committing American troops to battle. -
Vietnam War
Prolonged conflict of communist and anti-communist forces result in America's involvement in communist foreign affairs and war. -
Sputnik
The Soviet Union becomes the first natin to successfully launch an unmanned satellite into space. Previous attempts by the United States had failed. Sputnik marked the era of the Space Race. -
Civil Rights Act
President Johnson enacts the Civil Rights Act, outlawing the discrimination in public facilities, public accomodations,and prohibits employment discrimination based on race, religion or ethnicity. -
Low Income Housing Bill
President Lyndon Johnson signs into law a housing act allocating more than $5 billion to meet the housing needs of low-income families. The bill finances the construction or renovation of 1.7 million units and provides subsidies for housing purchases and rentals. -
Nixon Shock
Nixon took on a series of actions that caught the American public by surprise, most notably the removal of the Gold Standard. The Gold Standard ended after teh value of the dollar continued to drop globally. -
OPEC Embargo
12 OPEC members made the deicsion to stop exporting oil to the United States resulting in teh quadrupling of oil prices over the next 6 months. -
Early 80s Recession
Inflation rose to 13.5%. The Federal Reserve increased interest rates to counteract inflation. Unemployment rose to 10.8% -
Black Monday
Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 22% in one day. -
Savings and Loan Crisis
The failure of 1,043 out of 3,234 savings and loan associations in the United States. -
1990s Recession
The result of the restrictive monetary policy of Federal Reserve. The loss of consumer and business confidence added onto the recession as a result of the 1990 oil price shock. -
Stock Market Crash
Congress rejected the bank bailout bill; DJIA dropped 777.68 points in intraday trading; Lehman Brothers filed bankruptcy.
