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Aug 3, 1492
Columbus Discovers the Western Hemisphere
[Columbus discovers the Western Hemisphere](www.iwitnesstohistory.com/columbus.htm) -
Jul 2, 1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
[Treaty of Tordesillas](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)The Treaty of Tordesillas was authorized by Pope Alexander VI to determine which country would be able to exploit Columbus's discovery. It was decided that Spain would get the New World and Portugal would get foreign lands in the East. The pope drew a line of demarcation dividing the two spheres which was later amended so that Portugal could retain Brazil. -
Jan 1, 1500
Development of Wealth
[Creation of Wealth](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)Spain's wealth came from the labor intensive mining of gold and silver. Portugal's wealth came from sugar cane production. For both, they needed a large amount of labor which first came from forcing Native Americans. However, because of the harshness of the treatment and work as well as disease, millions died. The Europeans then turned to Africa and forced inhabitants to come to the New World where they were sold as slaves. -
Jamestown Colony
[Jamestown Colony](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)Seeing the incredible wealth that accrued to Spain and Portugal, England was anxious to explore North America which the Spanish had neglected. A joint stock company was formed and sent a ship which landed in Jamestown. They had hoped for gold but instead found tobacco which they were able to develop into a major cash crop. -
Massachusetts Bay Colony
[Massachusetts Bay Colony](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)The earliest settlers in the north were the Pilgrims and Puritans on the Mayflower. They will establish Plymouth Colony which will develop into the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Religious persecution will drive more Englishment to New England and they will practice subsistence farming. However, individuals from Boston to Portsmouth became wealthy by engaging in the slave trade. -
American Revolution
[Declaration of Independence](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)Tensions between England and their colonies in America grew and culminated in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. This document laid out justification for secession and a list of their grievences against the monarch. War ensued and the Americans, assisted by the French, won. -
The Constitution of the United States
[The Constitution](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)The 13 colonies initially joined in a confederacy with power shared between state and central governments. The Articles of Coonfederation proved inadequate; the central government had insufficient economic, judicial, and enforcement power over the states. The Philadelphia Convention to revise the Articles ended up with a new federal system. Slavery was referenced by the 3/5 clause on apportionment for Congress (HR), the Fugative Slave clause, and discussion of the slave trade in 1808. -
The Constitution of the United States
When the war ended, the 13 colonies chose to become a ca confederacy whereby states and the central government shared power. The Articles of Confederation were inadequate because the central government lacked economic, enforcement, and judicial power. The Articles were to be revised at the Philadelphi convention; a new federal system was devised. The references to slavery include: 3/5 clause, slave trade to be considered in 1808, and the Fugative Slave clause. -
The Expansion of Cotton
[Eli Whitney and Cotton Gin](www.nbpsice.pbworks.com)In 1793, Eli Whitney invented a simple device for eliminating the seeds from 'green' cotton. This technological advancement changed the industry because green cotton could be grown in most of the South whereas Sea Island cotton, although it had few seeds, could only be grown under very specific conditions. -
Missouri Compromise
By 1819, slave v. free states were evenly matched. When Missouri applied for statehood as a slave state, it was controversial because it would give the South a majority in Congress. A compromise was reached which allowed Missouri to enter as a slave state balanced by Maine entering as a free state. Congress then drew a line between free and slave states at the 36 parallel. -
William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison was unequivocably opposed to the war and launched a newspaper to inform the public about this issue. -
Fannie Kemble
Fannie Kemble, formerly from England, visited her husband's plantation in Georgia and was appalled at how slaves were treated. Her book, Journal of a Residence on a Georgian Plantation in 1838 - 1839 is one of the few accounts that exist. It greatly affected abolitionists in the North. -
Harriet Beecher Stowe
The publication of Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin was extremely influential in getting great empathy for the plight of slaves in the South.
