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Menlo Park Lab
Thomas Edison opened up his research laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey. -
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Mark Twain published his novel, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer". -
First Telephone Call
Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call. -
Colorado
Colorado became the 38th state and joined the Union. -
Crazy Horse
Crazy Horse led his warriors in their last fight with the United States Cavalry at Wolf Mountain. -
West Point Military Academy
Henry Ossian Flipper graduated from West Point Military Academy - becoming the first African American to graduate from there. -
White Bird Canyon
The Nez Perce defeated the United States Cavalry at White Bird Canyon. -
Phonograph
Thomas Edison completed the first model for the phonograph and filed a patent for it. -
Nez Perce War
Chief Joseph and his tribe surrendered to the United States, thus ending the Nez Perce War. -
Socialist Labor Party
The Socialist Labor Party of North America held its first national convention. -
Flour rolling mill
John Stevens applied for a patent for his invention - a flour rolling mill. -
Department of Labor
The Department of Labor was created by the United States Congress. -
Frederick Douglas
Frederick Douglass became the first African-American nominated for presidency in the United States. -
Dakotas, Montana, and Washington
The Dakotas, Montana, and Washington join the union. -
Motion picture
Thomas Edison showed his first motion picture. -
Female at the White House
Alice Sanger became the first female staff White House. -
General Federation of Womens' Clubs
The General Federation of Womens' Clubs was founded. -
Sherman Antitrust Act
Congress passed the Sherman Antitrust Act. -
Idaho
Idaho became the 43rd state in the United States. -
Wyoming
Wyoming became 44th state in the United States. -
Weather Bureau
The United States Congress created the Weather Bureau. -
Courts of Appeal
The United States Congress created the Courts of Appeal. -
Office of Superintendent of Immigration.
The United States Congress created the Office of Superintendent of Immigration. -
Wrigley Company
The Wrigley Company is founded. -
Nation Forest Service
The United States National Forest Service was organized. -
Motion picture camera
Thomas Edison patented his motion picture camera. -
Women's Christian Temperance Union
The first meeting of the Women's Christian Temperance Union was held. -
Ellis Island
Ellis Island opens as a United States immigration inspection station. -
General Electric
The General Electric Company was formed by merging Thomas Edison's General Electric Company with Thomson-Houston Electric Company. -
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club was created by John Muir and others, -
Washington National Cathedral
The Washington National Cathedral is chartered by the United States Congress. -
First movie studio
Thomas Edison completed the world's first movie studio. -
Diplomatic Appropriation Act
Diplomatic Appropriation Act authorized the United States rank of ambassador. -
Panic of 1893
The panic of 1893 caused a large crash on the New York Stock Exchange. -
Exclusion Act
Chinese were deported from San Francisco under the Exclusion Act. -
Henry Ford
Henry Ford completed his first petrol/gasoline fuelled engine. -
Colorado
Women in Colorado were granted the right to vote. -
Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass passed away -
Automobile patent
The first United States patent for the automobile was granted to George B. Selden for his two stroke automobile engine. -
Plessy versus Ferguson
Plessy versus Ferguson decision by the United States Supreme Court states that racial segregation is approved under the "separate but equal" doctrine. -
First Boston Marathon
The first Boston Marathon was run. -
Klondike
The Klondike Gold Rush began. -
First underground transportation in North America
The first underground public transportation in North America opens in Boston. -
Cuba blockade
The blockade of Cuba began. -
Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico was bombed by the American navy and Puerto Rico was taken over by the United States. -
Hawaii
The United States annexed the independent republic of Hawaii. -
Peace Treaty
The Peace Treaty ending the Spanish-American War was signed. -
Voting machines
The United States Congress approved the use of voting machines in federal elections. -
Guerilla war
Under leader Emilio Aguinaldo, Filipino independence fighters began a guerrilla war after failing to gain a grant of independence from the United States, which they had been fighting for from Spain since 1896. -
Open Door Policy
The Open Door Policy with China was declared. -
Assassination of President Mckinley
The President of the United States, William Mckinley, was shot and killed. -
Wright Brothers
The Wright Brothers made their first flight. -
Panama Canal Zone
The United States acquired the Panama Canal Zone. -
Seventeenth Amendment
The Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, providing for the direct election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than by the state legislatures. -
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal opened to traffic. -
First long distance telephone service
First long distance telephone service was demonstrated. -
Virgin Islands
The United States purchased Danish West Indies (Virgin Islands) for $25 million. -
Jeannette Rankin
Jeannette Rankin became the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. -
World War I
The United States entered World War I. -
Airmail service
First regular airmail service began. -
World War I
Armistice ending World War I was signed. -
Influenza
Worldwide influenza epidemic struck. -
League of Nations
League of Nations mets for the first time. There was no representation of the United States. -
Eighteenth Amendment
The Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified. It prohibited the manufacturing, sale, and transportation of liquor. It was later repealed by the Twenty-First Amendment in 1933. -
Nineteenth Amendment
Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, which granted women the right to vote. -
Teapot Dome scandal
The Teapot Dome scandal broke as Senate launched an investigation into improper leasing of naval oil reserves during Harding administration. -
Evolution in public schools
Tennessee passed a law against the teaching of evolution in public schools. -
The Spirit of St. Louis
Charles Lindbergh made the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in his plane - The Spirit of St. Louis. -
Stock market crash
The crash of the stock market precipitates the Great Depression. -
Star Spangled Banner
The Star-Spangled Banner was adopted as the national anthem. -
Hattie Wyatt Caraway
Hattie Wyatt Caraway became the first woman elected to the United States Senate (to fill a vacancy caused by the death of her husband). She was reelected in 1932 and 1938. -
Amelia Earhart
Amelia Earhart completed the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight by a woman. -
Lame Duck Amendment
The Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, moving the president's inauguration date from March 4th to January 20th. -
New Deal
New Deal recovery measures were enacted by the United States Congress. -
Twenty-First Amendment
Twenty-First Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, repealing Prohibition. -
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was established. -
Social Security Act
The Social Security Act was passed. -
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Bureau of Investigation became the Federal Bureau of Investigation. -
Fair Labor Standards Act
The Fair Labor Standards Act was passed - which set the first minimum wage in the U.S. at 25 cents per hour. -
Peacetime conscription
The United States Congress approved and enacted the first peacetime conscription draft. -
Iceland
The United States occupied Iceland, taking over its defense from Great Britain. -
World War 2
A Japanese fighter plane launched a surprise attack on United States soil, destroying the United States Pacific Fleet docked at the base. The attack took the greatest amount of United States naval life in history. One day later, the United States of America declares war on Japan, officially entering World War II. On December 11, 1941, the United States declared war on Germany and Italy, responding to their declaration of war against America.