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First modern credit card introduced
In 1949, Frank X. McNamara thought of a way for customers to have just one credit card that they could use at multiple stores. McNamara discussed the idea with two colleagues and the three pooled some money and started a new company in 1950 which they called the Diners Club. -
Color TV Introduced
On June 25, 1951, CBS broadcast the very first commercial color TV program. Unfortunately, nearly no one could watch it on their black-and-white televisions.This first color program was a variety show simply called, "Premiere." -
Puerto Rico becomes a U.S. commonwealth
Puerto Rico becomes a U.S. commonwealth on july 25th 1952. First hydrogen bomb is detonated by the U.S. on Eniwetok, an atoll in the Marshall Islands on November 1st 1952. -
Civil Rights Movement
Many leaders from within the African American community and beyond rose to prominence during the Civil Rights era, including Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Andrew Goodman and others. They risked—and sometimes lost—their lives in the name of freedom and equality. -
Joseph McCarthy
McCarthy’s accusations were so intimidating that few people dared to speak out against him. It was not until he attacked the Army in 1954 that his actions earned him the censure of the U.S. Senate. -
Disney Land Opens
Disneyland opened for a few thousand specially invited visitors; the following day, Disneyland officially opened to the public. Disneyland, located in Anaheim, California on what used to be a 160-acre orange orchard, cost $17 million to build. The original park included Main Street, Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland, and Tomorrowland. -
Warsaw Pact Signed
A military alliance of communist nations in eastern Europe. Organized in 1955 in answer to NATO, the Warsaw Pact included Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and the Soviet Union. -
Emmett Till's Murder
was an African-American boy who was murdered in Mississippi at the age of 14 after reportedly flirting with a white woman. Till was from Chicago, Illinois, visiting his relatives in Money, Mississippi, in the Mississippi Delta region, when he spoke to 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant, the married proprietor of a small grocery store there. Several nights later, Bryant's husband Roy and his half-brother J. W. Milam arrived at Till's great-uncle's house where they took Till, transported him to a barn, be -
Montgomery Bus Boycott
The Montgomery Bus Boycott was the initial spark to the Civil Rights movement after WW2. The initial event was about a civil rights activist named Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her seat to a white. This caused controversy all over the nations and many other Civil Rights activists like Martin Luther King Jr. were born as a cause of this event. -
Interstate Highway System
nterstate highway system begins with the signing of the Federal-Aid Highway Act. The interstate highway system would enable quick and efficient travel for business and leisure travelers and make destinations like Disneyland and the National Park system more easily connected to the urban population centers of the USA. -
Little Rock Nine
In the court case Brown v. Board of Education, the previous ruling of "separate but equal" was deemed unequal. It called for desegregation, in schools and public places. When forced to desegregate, white schools resisted and would not allow the kids to enter by various means. The president of the United States, Eisenhower sent in the National Guard to guide 9 students into Little Rock Central Highschool. -
Laika Becomes the First Living Animal to Enter Orbit
The Soviet Union and the United States were in a very heated competition after World War II. Part of this competition was over control of space. As part of this "space race," the Soviets succeeded in putting up the first satellite into space in October 1957. Working hastily, the Soviets launched their second satellite (Sputnik 2) on November 3, 1957 with a living animal (Laika the dog) on board. Laika lived through the launch, but died in space since no return plan had been created for her. -
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a long, costly armed conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam and its southern allies, known as the Viet Cong, against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. The divisive war, increasingly unpopular at home, ended with the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973 and the unification of Vietnam under Communist control two years later. More than 3 million people, including 58,000 Americans, were killed in the conflict. -
BARBIE
The first Barbie is created by Ruth Handler in 1959. Around 350,00 Barbie dolls sold in the first year -
To Kill a Mockingbird
How to Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. It was immediately successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature. -
Berlin Wall Built
Just past midnight during the night of August 12-13, 1961, East German soldiers and construction workers headed to the border of West and East Berlin. While most Berliners were sleeping, the workers quickly constructed a barrier made of concrete posts and barbed wire along the border. -
The Beatles Record Thier First Single
In September 1962, the Beatles recorded their first single. On one side of the record was the song "Love Me Do" and on the flip side, "P.S. I Love You." Their first single was a success but it was their second, with the song "Please Please Me," that made them their first number-one hit. -
Assassination of Jhon F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy, commonly known by his initials JFK, was an American politician who served as the 35th President of the United States from January 1961 until he was assassinated in November 1963. -
U.S. Sends Troops To Vietnam
In response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident of August 2 and 4, 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson, per the authority given to him by Congress in the subsequent Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, decided to escalate the Vietnam Conflict by sending U.S. ground troops to Vietnam. On March 8, 1965, 3,500 U.S. Marines landed near Da Nang in South Vietnam; they are the first U.S. troops arrive in Vietnam. -
Hippie Culture
They made their way to Northern California this year. The Human Be-In in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco popularized hippie culture, leading to the legendary Summer of Love on the West Coast of the United States. -
My Lai Massacre
On March 16, 1968, U.S. soldiers from Charlie Company, 11th Brigade, Americal Division, led by Lt. William Calley, entered the Vietnamese village of My Lai on a search and destroy mission during the Vietnam War.Under Lt. Calley's command, the soldiers massacred somewhere between 347 and 504 civilians. -
Martin Luther King Jr Assassinated
At 6:01 p.m. on April 4, 1968, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was hit by a sniper's bullet. King had been standing on the balcony in front of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, when, without warning, he was shot. -
Neil Armstring Becomes The First Man On The Moon
July 20, 1969, as part of the Apollo 11 mission, astronaut Neil Armstrong opened the hatch of the lunar module (nicknamed Eagle) and stepped out onto the ladder. Once at the bottom of the ladder, Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon and became the very first man on the moon. -
Kent state Shootings
On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen were on the Kent State college campus to maintain order during a student protest against the Vietnam War. For a still unknown reason, the National Guard suddenly fired upon the already dispersing crowd of student protesters, killing four and wounding nine others. -
The Pentagon Papeers
US involvment in Vietnam had been documented since Truman was president. Daniel Ellsberg, who opposed to the war and the illegal happenings sent the papers to the NY Times who published it and put it on display for the world to see. After the American public saw this, they started to lose faith in their government and they could not believe the lies they were being told. -
Richard M. Nixon Watergate Scandal
big scandal with the president. these robberers were arrested for stealing documents and setting wiretaps. they were related to nixons campaign committee. nixon was asked to resign for trying to cheat the election. he was pardoned however by his former vice president. -
MASH T.V. Show Premieres
MASH was an extremely popular TV series, which first aired on CBS on September 17, 1972. Based on the real experiences of a surgeon in the Korean War, the series centered upon the interrelationships, stresses, and trauma involved in being in a MASH unit. MASH's final episode, which aired on February 28, 1983, had the largest audience of any single TV episode in U.S. history. -
Microsoft Founded
In 1975, Gates and Allen form a partnership called Microsoft. Like most start-ups, Microsoft begins small, but has a huge vision—a computer on every desktop and in every home. During the next years, Microsoft begins to change the ways we work. -
Apple Inc. Founded
Steve Jobs founded this company in his garage. It is now one of the most recognised companies in the world. The invention of Macintosh computers started a revolution in the world of personal computers -
The Movie Star Wars Opens
It’s hard to remember a day when Star Wars wasn’t a towering cultural and marketing event, but on May 25, 1977, it was a smallish movie opening on a Wednesday in just 32 theaters.
Star Wars becomes the highest grossing film at the time. -
Elvis Presley Found Dead
Most stories conclude that Elvis was sitting on the toilet, nude, and reading. He collapsed. By the time Ginger woke up, Elvis had probably been dead for two or three hours. She found him at 2:00pm. The medical examiner's report says that he was found in the dressing room. -
HIV/AIDS
HIV is the infection that causes AIDS.HIV has few or no symptoms for up to 10 years or more before symptoms of AIDS develop.There is no cure for HIV/AIDS, but treatment is available. -
Mt.St.Helens Erupts
The eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980 was the worst volcanic disaster in U.S. history; however, it offered scientists an exceptional opportunity to examine and study a large volcanic eruption, which has enriched scientific knowledge of volcanoes. -
Jhon Lennon's Murder
The Beatles' musician John Lennon was shot and killed outside of his New York City apartment on the night of Dec. 8, 1980. Lennon and wife Yoko Ono were returning from the recording studio to their home at The Dakota when 25-year-old crazed fan Mark David Chapman shot him at close range -
Ronald Reagon Assassination Attempt
On March 30, 1981, 25-year-old John Hinckley Jr. opened fire on U.S. President Ronald Reagan just outside the Washington Hilton Hotel. President Reagan was hit by one bullet, which punctured his lung. Three others were also injured in the shooting. -
Michael Jordan joins NBA
Michael Jeffrey Jordan, also known by his initials, MJ, is an American former professional basketball player, entrepreneur, and current majority owner and chairman of the Charlotte Hornets. By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. -
Discovery Of The Titanic Shipwreck
After the sinking of the Titanic on April 15, 1912, the great ship slumbered on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean for over 70 years before its wreckage was discovered. On September 1, 1985, a joint American-French expedition, headed by famous American oceanographer Dr. Robert Ballard, found the Titanic over two miles below the ocean’s surface by using an unmanned submersible called Argo. -
Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster
At 11:38 a.m. on Tuesday, January 28, 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger launched from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. As the world watched on TV, the Challenger soared into the sky and then, shockingly, exploded just 73 seconds after take-off. All seven members of the crew, including social studies teacher Sharon "Christa" McAuliffe, died in the disaster. -
Black Monday
In 1987 the Chinese market crashed spreadin west to Europe and eventually hitting the United States. The Market crashed on Monday October 19, 1987 -
President Bush Announces He Doesn't like Broccoli
There are a lot of people in the world who don’t like broccoli, but when word got out in March 1990 that U.S. President George H.W. Bush had gone so far as to ban it from Air Force One, broccoli-hating made the news.Bush responded at a state dinner for Polish Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki by stating, “I do not like broccoli... And I haven’t liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I’m President of the United States, and I’m not going to eat any more broccoli!”
