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Nov 8, 1492
Columbus Lands in the New World
Columbus landed in the New World thinking it was India. He came looking for spices and gold and claimed this land for Spain. He named it San Salvador. -
Nov 10, 1500
The Spanish Empire
Spain sent soldiers called Conquistador's across the Atlantic to conquer a vast empire for Spain. Francisco Pizarro and Hernan Cortes conquered most of South America and Mexico for Spain. Their main goal was to get gold and make their empire wealthy. Through the process they spread diseases like small pox and kidnapped the Inca ruler and demanded for gold in exchange. -
Nov 25, 1500
Slave Trade
In the late 1400's European explorers started trading guns and other goods for slaves. In the 1500's European slave traders started shipping slaves to the Carribean for sale. The terrible voyage lasted anywhere from weeks to months, most of the slaves were usually dead after. When the slaves arrived in the America's they were sold to their new masters at auctions. Many perished from disease and overwork. -
Nov 25, 1513
The Spanish Borderlands
As Conquistador's explored new territories, they claimed the areas for Spain. At first, Spain did little to encourage settling in these areas, but when other nations started to show interest in these lands, soldiers were sent to protect the claims. Missionaries also accompanied the soldiers to the borderlands, here they convinced people to convert to the Christian faith. -
Nov 13, 1534
New France
Jacque Cartier's goal was to find a Northwest Passage, he failed to find this passage but he did claim the land we know today as Canada, for France. Quebec was a base for French explorers, soldiers, missionairies, traders and coureurs de bois (fur trappers). There was a harsh climate and there weren't many good land policies. The French managed to make the Native American's their business partners and not their slaves. -
Jamestown: The First English Colony
James Cabot tried to seek his own western route to Asia. He sailed west across the atlantic and landed in Newfoundland. He mistakenly believed that he had landed in Asia and with one flag marked the land. England claimed all of this land because of the flag planted by Cabot. At first the people in Jamestown lived in constant danger of Indian attacks, mosquitoes and starving times. To end the indian attacks Pocahontas and John Rofle got married to help end conflicts between their people. -
Starving Time
In the Fall of 1609, Smith was injured and sent back to England. That Winter was the worst for Jamestown; without Pochahontas and Smith there to keep the friendship between the two groups, the Native Americans refused to trade food or supplies. The English died out and the following Spring only 60 of the 500 people were alive. -
New Netherland
Henry Hudson was exploring the coastline north of the Netherlands and hoped to find the Northwest passage. He found a deep river full of fish and thought it would take him across the continent, and so he claimed the land along its banks for the Netherlands. The Dutch collonists settled along the upper Hudson, where they built Fort Orange. They then started fur trading as it gave them good profits. -
Pennsylvania
The Founder, William Penn was the son of Admiral Penn. King Charles II needed to pay back a loan of 16,000 pounds. So he granted land to William, making it one of the largest land grants in individual history -
Proclamation of 1763
This law forbids all colonists from settling west of the Appalacian mountains, this is to keep the Indians and the colonists separate and to keep things peaceful. The colonists reacted to this by saying it was an act of tyranny, they also thought it was uselss because settlers were already crossing the mountains. Colonists also needed more farmland. The British government ignored these arguments and expanded the British army in America to 7500 men. The colonists continued to cross the mountains. -
The Quartering Act
The quartering act ordered colonial assemblies to provide British troops with quarters or housing, the troops had to stay in the colonists houses to protect the colonists. New Jersey protested that the new law was "as much an act for laying taxes." New Yorker's said the soldiers just took up space and did nothing. The New York assembly decided not to vote any funds for salt, vinegar, and liquor. The British government reacted by refusing to let the assembly meet until it agreed to obey the act. -
The Stamp Act
The Stamp Act required colonists to buy a stamp for every piece of paper they used, they created this act because they had to pay off the large debt left over from the French and Indian war. The Colonists started protesting and saying that this was a violation of their rights. Mobs calling themselves "sons of liberty" attacked tax collectors homes. They all cried "No taxation without representation." The British repealed the law after months of protest and the Colonists celebrated. -
The Quartering Act
The Quartering Act was another law enforced on the Colonists, stating that they must give British soldiers a place to stay, food, beer, candles, fire, vinegar, cooking utensils, etc. Providing for the soldiers was basically a tax for them. When the New York Assembly chose not to fund beer, salt and vinegar for the soldiers, the British Parliment didn't let them meet. -
The Townshend Acts
The Townshend acts placed a duty or tax on certain goods the colonies imported from Britain. This was to pay for the soldiers that were being sent to the colonies to keep the peace. Samuel Adams led the opposition to the Townshend acts, the colonists then boy cotted British goods, especially women. British merchants were then losing money because of this. And so Lord North persuaded parliament to repeal all the Townshend duties-except the taxes on tea. The stubborn King didn't give up the taxes. -
The Tea Act
Lord North was trying to rescue the British East Company and so enforced the Tea Act. There was 17 million pounds of tea sitting in London's warehouses. The tea was so cheap that it gave the British East India Company total control. Still the colonists boycotted the tea. As the colonists coudn't handle their monopoly, some dressed up as Native Americans and got into the British ships in order to dump 90,000 pounds of tea into the sea. -
The Intolerable acts
After hearing about the Boston Tea Party, King George III decided to close off the Boston Harbor and place the goevernment of Massachusetts strictly under British control. However, this united many of the colonies against Britain, and colonists throughout America were rebelling by forming their own militias. -
Lexington and Concord
At the battle of Lexington and Concord, British troops were marching towards some colonists. We still don't know who fired the first shot, but the American's defeated the British. This small battle started the seven year war. -
The Battle of Bunker Hill
In the battle of bunker hill, British troops marched to bunker hill to prevent Boston's militia from getting stronger. The American's were able to hold off the British twice, but on their 3rd attempt, they ran out of gun powder and left Bunker Hill. -
The Second Continental Congress
In the second continental congress, John Adam's of Massachusetts, proposed to congress to creat a "continental army." This would be made up of troops from all the colonies. To lead this army the commander-in-chief would be Colonel George Washington, the vote to make him the leader was unanimous. -
The Siege of Boston (The British Abandon Boston)
George Washington started a rumor that he had 1800 barrels of gunpowder when in reality, he only had 36. Luckily he was able to deceive the British, meanwhile he begged other colonies for barrels of gunpowder. Washington got his gunpowder and stole guns from Fort Ticonderoga. He then put Boston under siege, by surrounding the city with canons. Many British troops and loyalists fled to Canada. -
The Olive Branch Petition
In the Olive Branch Petition, congress sent a petition to King George asking him to end the quarrel. However, by the time this petition reached London, the King declared the colonies to be in “open and avowed rebellion.” And he ordered his ministers to bring justice to the traitors. -
Battle For New York
American soldiers and British soldiers met in Brooklyn, New York for a battle. The British had a great number of trained soldiers while the Americans had great confidence but lacked in skill. After 2 days of fighting, the British lost 377 men and the American's lost 1407. -
Trenton
On the morning of Christmas after the British had a large feast, Washington and his men ambushed the British troops. When they reached there, all the hessians were asleep, because they were caught by surprise, they had to surrender. Washington managed to capture 868 prisoners, without any of his own men dying. -
The Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson drafted the declaration of of independence on July 2, 1776. This was a clear statement about why America needed to become independent from Britain. After the first draft, Benjamin Franklin and John Adam's suggested changes. The final draft was constructed and signed by all 13 colonies on July 4. -
Saratoga
General Burgoyne was on his way to meet General Howe (both British Generals), and on his way, decided to attack Saratoga Springs. Even though he was outnumbered, they fought round after round against the British. Finally he accepted defeat. Even though the Americans lost, they gained an advantage, the Spanish and French decided to help the Americans by becoming allies. Lafayette and Freidrich von Steuben were important members in helping the American army. -
Ratification of the Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation was a document that served as the United States first constitution. They were adopted by the Continental Congress on tNovember 15, 1777. But, there were disputes over borders, representation, voting and the Western lands claimed by some statues. This caused the ratification of the Articles of Confederation to be delayed. -
Yorktown
Since the French and the American had become allies, they decided to set up a trap for Cornwallis and his soldiers. The French sent 8000 troops and 20 warships to join the American army. The French warships arrived just in time to seal off the entrance to Chesapeake Bay. By doing this Cornwallis became cut off from the British navy. -
Treaty of Paris
In Paris, the representatives of the US and Britain signed a peace treaty. The treaty had three major agreements: the first being that the US would be recognized as an independent nation by Britain. The second was that Britain would give up its claims to all lands between the Atlantic Coast and the Mississippi River. The thrid part was that the US would return all the rights and land to the Loyalists. -
Shay's Rebellion
The articles of confederation became a problem for farmers as their land and property were taken away. It was a farmer's rebellion and they attacekd government buildings, courthouses and arsenals. This eventually led to the new constitution. -
Constitutional Convention
The convention tore up the articles of confederation to make a whole new constitution. This new constitution focuses power on national government. James Maddison is called the Father of the convention for taking notes and telling everyone about it afterwards because the convention was kept a secret. -
Ratification of the US Constitution
This new U.S constitution focused on a strong national government. The Bill of rights was added to convince New York, and virginia and several articles were added to convince Rhode Island and North Carolina.It had to be approved by at least 9 states. There were three branches in this constitution. Legislative (two houses of congress), Executive (led by the president), Judicial (supreme court). -
The Louisiana Purchase
In the Louisiana Purchase, President Thomas Jefferson bought the land from the French for $15 million. Napolean sold it because he was afraid of losing it to Britain in a war, so he would rather gain money then have nothing at all. -
Spain gives Florida to the U.S.
At the time, Florida was under Spain's rule. So President James Monroe sent Andrew Jackson to Georgia with orders to end raids. Despite the orders he invaded Florida with 1700 troops. Spain wanted Jackson to be called out for illegal invasion. But Spain was fearful of war so they handed over Florida to the United States. In exchange the US paid off $5 million in settlers and agreed to honor their claim to Texas. -
Missouri applied for statehood as a slave state: Upset Northerners
This issue upset the northerners because they were scared that slavery would spread across the Louisiana territory. It would also mean that slave states would have more representaion in the senate. -
Congress tables Anti Slavery Petitions: Upset Northerners
Abolitionists wanted to stop slavery in Washington, D.C., but Congress refused to consider anti-slavery petitions. This angered the North a lot because Congress wouldn't act upon their petitions and they tabled them. -
The Indian Removal Act
This act was made by President Jackson and Congress and forced all Native Americans to move across the Mississippi river. Some tribes moved voluntarily but others resisted and so ended with tragic results. This happened with the Sac & Fox tribe, that was led by a chief called Black Hawk. -
The "Trail of Tears"
The "Trail of Tears" happened when 17000 Cherokee were dragged from their homes in Georgia and were herded west by federal troops. 4000 Cherokee died on their long walk to Indian territory. A soldier who took part in the removal called it "the cruelest work I ever knew." -
Texas is Annexed
Most Texans were Americans who wanted Texas to become apart of the US. Despite this, Texas remained independent for 10 years. Southerners were eager to add another slave state and Northerners opposed it completely. Others feared that this would lead to war with Mexico. But James K. Polk was eager to acquire Texas, and so after he was elected, Congress voted to annex Texas. -
Oregon Treaty
After Polk won the election he promised that he would not rest until the United States had annexed all of Oregon Country. But he didn't want it enough to risk war with Britain. So he agreed to a treaty that divided Oregon roughly in half at the 49th parallel. That line now marks the western border between the United States and Canada. The Senate ratified this treaty by a vote of 41 to 40. -
War With Mexico
In the Mexican-American war, Mexicans fired the first shot at American's so Congress declared a war with Mexico. In this war mexico happened to lose a lot of men and so they ceded California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and Colorado and New Mexico to the US. In exchange the US paid them $15 million. Mexico and the US then created the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Rio Grande became the border between the states and California stretched the land in the US from one shining sea to the other. -
The Wilmot Proviso: Upset the Southerners
The Wilmot Proviso bill stated that slavery would not be allowed in the Mexican Cession. This upset the southerners because they said Congress had no right to decide where slaveholders could take their property. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin: Upset Southerners
The book Uncle Tom's Cabin upset the Southerners because they thought slavery was ok and didn't like such such hatred about slavery being aroused by this book. The novel/author were cursed and scorned in the south. -
Civil War
The Civil War started when 11 southern states seceeded from the Union. The main reason for this secession was slavery. The first attack made was when the confederacy took over Fort Sumter. In the battle of Gettysburg, soldiers passed away, and the south decided to surrender because they couldn't afford any more of their men to be killed, plus their economy was tanking. The south lost the war in 1865 and became part of the union once again.
