The American Revolution and The New Nation (1763-1815) & Expansion and Reform (1801-1860)
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Treaty of Paris
Citation Ended the French and Indian War
This treaty ended the French and Indian War -
Period: to
American Revolution
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Proclamation of 1763
Prohibited all western settlement past a line drawn along the Appalachian Mountains. Meant to keep settlers off of the Indians land in hopes of maintaing peace/happiness -
The Stamp Act was passed
Citation
Required colonists were reuired to pay a tax on every piece of printed paper they used. Ship's papers, legal documents, licenses, newspapers, other publications, and even playing cards were taxed. This tax was a way of defraying costs of the recent wars. Colonists violently protested this. -
Quartering Act was passed
citationThe Act outlined the locations and conditions in which British soldiers were able to find places to stay in the American colonies. The act required the colonies to provide barrack housing for British soldiers. -
Stamp Act
The Stamp Act was previously enacted but this is the day that it was put into effect or action and people were required to start paying. -
The Stamp Act was repealed
CitationBecause of the violence in protests the Stamp Act was withdrawn but on the same day parliament passed the Declaratory Act which gave them the right to make laws which were binding of the colonies. -
British Troops Arrive
citationBritish warships arrived in Boston Harbor to protect the threatened customs officials. They remained in Boston to enforce custom laws. -
Boston Massacre
CitationWhen a patriot mob attacked soldiers in the city about 5 colonists were shot and killed by British troops who were stationed in Boston. Because of this said massacre the British Troops were removed from the city. -
Tea Act was enacted
Granted the British East India Company Tea a monopoly on tea sales in the American colonies. This was a great influence/cause of the future Boston Tea Party. -
Boston Tea Party
citationYoutube Video
Sons of Liberty members disguised themselves as Mohawk Indians, board three ships in the Boston Harbor, and destroyed around 90,000 pounds of tea. -
Declaration of Rights and Grievances
The Declaration stated that colonists had the same rights as British subjects living in Britain, that only the colonial assemblies had the right to tax the colonies (no taxation without representation) and that colonists had the right of trial by jury. -
Continental Association is formed
citationThis was a Call for a complete ban on all trade between America and Great Britain of all goods, wares or merchandise. It was important because the colonists hoped that by cutting off all trade with Great Britain enough economic hardship would follow that the Intolerable Acts would be repealed. -
Revere's Midnight Run
citation
Paul Revere and others rode out of Boston to warn colonists of the British approach.
(one by land two by sea) -
Battle of Lexington and Concord
CitationThese battles had kicked off the American Revolutionary War (1775-83). Tensions had been building between people of the 13 American colonies and the British authorities, particularly in Massachusetts. To this day, no one knows which side fired first -
Assumed Control
George Washington assumed command of the Continental Army. This will prove to be important in his election for President. -
Prohibitory Act
Citation Parlament passed this act to institude a naval blockade of all AMerican ports which put a halt to the colonies' trade with the world. -
Common Sense
CitationThomas Paine's Common Sense was published. Challenged the authority of the British government and the royal monarchy. The plain language that Paine used spoke to the common people of America and was the first work to openly ask for independence from Great Britain. -
Declaration of Independence
citation
A five-man committee including Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin was tasked with drafting a formal statement of the colonies’ intentions of gaining independence. This is important because it is marked as the day that America gained their independence. -
Treaty of Alliance (France enters the war)
As a result of the American victory at Saratoga, France allies itself with the new American government. French financial and military aid proves to be a vital support in winning the war. -
Capture of Savannah
CitationBritish Lieutenant Archibald Campbell and his troops (between 2500 and 3600) launched a surprise attack on American forces defending Savannah, Georgia. This capture successfully begins their southern strategy. -
The fall of Charleston
The British takes Charleston where they capture a large patriot army. This was one of the rebels worst defeats of the war. -
Siege of Yorktown
Citation Led by General George Washington and French Army troops laid seige to the British Army at Yorktown, Virginia. The siege proved to be the last major land battle of the American Revolutionary War. The British began peace negotiations shortly after this American victory. -
Vote against
citation The British House of Commons voted against further war which is important to note because this was an informal way of recognizing America's Independence. -
Evacuation
The British evacuate from the city of Charleston. This is important because it once again symbolizes the Independence of America and it creates a ripple effect of other evacuations. -
Treaty of Paris
Youtube citation Citation
The signing of this treaty in Paris with representatives from Britain and the US marked the end of the American Revolutionary War. Not to be confused with the Peace of Paris, which was a combination of seperate treaties between Britain and the lands that supported the American cause. -
The Northwest Ordinance
Set up by the article of confederation, created the framework for the government and organization of the Northwest Territory. -
Land Ordinance
Citation Congress adopted the Land ordinance which allowed the selling and distribution of land in the US territories. -
Annapolis Convention
Delegates from various states met to reform against commerical regulations they called for changes to be made in Federal Government. -
Three-fifths clause adopted
CitationThe Constitutional Convention met to adopt the three-fifths clause which stated that if taxes were ever levied on the states according to population, slaves would be counted on a three-fifths basis for determining how much taxes the states would pay. -
First Draft
The first draft of the Constitution was presented to the Constitutional Convention. -
The Signing
State delegates signed the new United States Constitution. 11 days later Congress sent the Constitution to state legislatures for radification. -
Radification of the Constitution
CitationThe basic document by which the United States is governed, the US Constitution was ratified when the ninth state, New Hampshire, voted in favor of the document on June 21, 1788. The Constitution divided governmental powers between the national and state governments, it also divided the national government into three independent branches. -
The Judiciary Act
Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established the federal court system and the position of attorney general. The Supreme Court had already been established by the Constitution but the creation of a lower federal court system had been left to Congress. -
The French Revolution Began
Citation The Lousiana Purchase and the Monroe Doctrine were in part obtainable for the US because Europe was weakened by the Napoleonic Wars. -
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Ratification of the Bill of Rigts
The Bill of Rights was ratified. The first ten amendments to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights protects individual liberties from the power of the central government; guarantees freedom of speech, press, religion, petition, and assembly; and specifes the rights of the accused in criminal and civil cases. -
Re-election
George Washington was re-elected as the US president. -
Proclamation of Neutrality
President Washington issued a proclamation of neutrality, which called upon all Americans to avoid taking sides in the war between Britain and France. -
Resignation
Concerned over Washington’s proclamation of neutrality in the French Revolution, Thomas Jefferson resigned from his position as secretary of state -
Battle of Fallen Timbers
[Citation ](https://www.cmich.edu/library/clarke/ResearchResources/Native_American_Material/Excerpts_from_the_Michigan_Pioneer_and_Historical_Collections/Pages/The-Battle-of-Fallen-Timbers.aspx)With a defeat of American Indians from General Anthony Wayne Ohio country was opened up to white settlement. -
Treaty of Greenville
Citation American Indians from several tribes signed the Treaty of Greenville, ceding lands in the Ohio Valley to the United States in exchange for the federal government’s protection of remaining tribal lands from further white intrusion. This is very important because when comparing it to today's Indian Lands we see that this treaty was not upheld. -
John Adams was elected
The election of 1796 was the first in which voters chose between competing political parties. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams -
George Washington's Farewell Address
A Philadelphia newspaper published President Washington’s Farewell Address. A plea for national unity against partisan and sectional divisions. -
Fries’ Rebellion
In 1798, President John Adams signed a bill to levy the first direct federal tax on private property. John Fries of Pennsylvania used the popular discontent over the tax to encourage armed resistance to federal tax assessors and collectors, he was later pardoned for his participation. -
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Louisiana Returned to France
Spain ceded Louisiana back to France under pressure from Napoleon. The French had lost the territory after being defeated in the French and Indian War -
Chief Justice
John Marshall was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court. Under his leadership. This is important because the Court established the judiciary’s right to declare federal and state laws unconstitutional. -
Marbury vs Madison
This decision asserted the power of federal courts to review the constitutionality of federal laws and to invalidate acts of Congress when they are found to conflict with the Constitution. -
Louisiana Purchase
Citation France offered to sell its claim to the entire province of Louisiana. American negotiators agreed to a price of $15 million and signed the Louisiana Purchase Treaty. For just $5 million more than he planned to spend buying New Orleans, Jefferson doubled the size of the country. -
Lewis and Clark Exploration
youtube citation
Lewis and Clark explored the territories gained through the Louisiana Purchase. Explored 8,000 miles along the Missouri and Columbia Rivers and reached the Pacific. Jefferson hoped that Lewis and Clark would find a water route linking the Columbia river and the Missouri river. -
Re-election
Thomas Jefferson was re-elected -
Expedition of Pike
Zebulon Pike led an expedition that ascended the Arkansas River and crossed the Rocky Mountains. He was captured in Spanish territory and imprisoned in Mexico. -
Congressional Vote
Congress voted to end the international trade on slavery, in effect on January 1 1808 -
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Non-intercourse Act
The act lifted all embargoes on American shipping except for those bound for British or French ports. -
Macon’s Bill No. 2
Replaced the Non-Intercourse Act and reopened trade with Britain and France, -
War of 1812
citationThe United States declared war against Britain over interference with American shipping -
First factory
Francis Cabot Lowell opened the first factory in the United States able to convert raw cotton into cloth using power machinery. -
Battle of Horseshoe Bend
citationChief Red Eagle of the Creeks surrendered to General Andrew Jackson after the battle of Horse Shoe Bend, leading to the opening of southern and western Alabama to white settlement. -
Treaty of For Jackson
Andrew Jackson signed the Treaty of Fort Jackson, which ended the Creek War, a two-year conflict that had begun as a civil war among the Creek Indians. -
Star-Spangled Banner
youtube citationLawyer Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner” while detained on a British warship during the War of 1812. The song eventually became the country’s national anthem. -
Treaty of Ghent
Brought an end to the War of 1812. The treaty returned both nations to the pre-war status quo, calling for all captured territory to be returned to the country that had possessed it before the war. -
Election
citation
James Monroe was elected president. He oversaw major westward expansion of the U.S. and strengthened American foreign policy -
Tariff of 1816
Imposed a high tax on foreign goods to protect American industry after the War of 1812. -
American Colonization Society founded
citationRobert Finley founded the American Colonization Society with the intention of resettling freed slaves in Africa -
Rush-Bagot Agreement
The United States and Britain agreed to substantially demilitarize the Great Lakes boundary between the US and British Canada -
Erie Canal
CitationConstruction of the Erie Canal began. The canal, designed to connect the Great Lakes to Albany, officially opened in 1825. -
Convention of 1818
CitationEstablished part of the present-day border between the United States and Canada. The agreement stipulated that 49 degrees north latitude would mark the boundary, from Lake of the Woods west to the Rocky Mountains -
Adams-Onís Treaty
Spain ceded Florida to the United States. The treaty also established the border between Spanish territory and the US. -
Colonization of African Americans
Eighty-six African Americans sailed for Africa aboard the Mayflower in the first organized colonization effort to Liberia. -
Missouri Compromise
CitationThe Missouri Compromise prohibited slavery north of latitude 36°30' north except in Missouri, which was admitted to the Union as a slave state. -
The Land Act
The Land Act of 1820 reduced the price of land to $1.25 an acre for a minimum of 80 acres (down from $1.64 per acre -
International Slave Trade Punishment
Congress declared international slave trade piracy punishable by death. -
Colony in Texas
Stephen F. Austin established an American colony in Texas. -
Liberia Founding
The American Colonization Society founded Liberia as a colony for free blacks from the United States. -
Monroe Doctrine
CitationPresident James Monroe announced what became known as the Monroe Doctrine. He declared that further efforts by European nations to colonize land or interfere with states in North or South America would be viewed as acts of aggression, requiring U.S. intervention. -
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
The Bureau of Indian Affairs was organized in the War Department by order of Secretary of War John C. Calhoun. -
First secular community
In Indiana, Robert Owen established New Harmony, the first secular utopian community. -
Cherokee Republic
The Cherokee Republic was formed in an attempt to avoid forced removal. -
Indian Removal Act
citationPresident Jackson signed the Indian Removal Acts, which authorized aggressive efforts to open Indian lands to whites and promised financial compensation to Indian tribes that agreed to resettle on lands west of the Mississippi River. -
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia
CitationThe Supreme Court declined to rule in the case of Cherokee Nation v. Georgia on the grounds that “an Indian tribe or nation within the United States is not a foreign state in the sense of the constitution, and cannot maintain an action in the courts of the United States.” -
Worcester v. Georgia
The case was filed by Worcester who claimed that his family’s forced removal was a violation of his constitutional rights. The US Supreme Court ruled that Georgia’s laws did not apply to Cherokee tribal lands, that the state government did not have the power to enforce a law within lands that were not within the jurisdiction of the state. -
Black Hawk War
Citation A 65-year-old Sauk warrior led some 1,000 Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo men, women, and children, including about 500 warriors, across the Mississippi River to reclaim land in Illinois -
American Anti-Slavery Society founded
The American Anti-Slavery Society was founded, pledging “immediate emancipation without expatriation.” -
Texas Declaration of Independence
citationThe Texas Declaration of Independence was issued during a revolution against the Mexican government. Texas formally declared its independence from Mexico. Similar to the United States Declaration of Independence, this document focused on the rights of citizens to “life” and “liberty” but with an emphasis on the “property of the citizen.” -
Fall of the Alamo
Mexican troops defeated the Texans at the Alamo. The battle inspired the motto “Remember the Alamo!” which Texan troops invoked in the Battle of San Jacinto, the deciding battle of the Texas Revolution. More » -
Trail of Tears
citationAs part of Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, the Cherokee nation was forced to give up its lands east of the Mississippi River and to migrate to an area in present-day Oklahoma. 14,000 Cherokees were forcibly removed from western Georgia and southeastern Tennessee and marched down the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma. Some 4,000 died during route. -
Married Women’s Property Act
Mississippi passed the first Married Women’s Property Act, protecting the rights and property of married women -
Annexation of Texas
citation Texas was admitted to the Union as a slave state. The annexation soon led to the Mexican-American War. -
Life of Frederick Douglass
citationThe Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass was published. In the Narrative, Douglass recounted his life in slavery. The book’s publication made him one of the most famous faces of abolition. -
Donner Party tragedy
Eighty-seven pioneers led by George Donner set out from Illinois for California on April 16, 1846. The expedition suffered a series of unfortunate events and circumstances, leading to the deaths of nearly half the party. It is said that some actually resorted to cannibalism for survival. -
Start of Mexican-American War
President Polk told Congress that Mexico had “invaded our territory and shed American blood on American soil.” Congress voted to declare war on Mexico. -
California Gold Rush
citationWhen gold was discovered at a sawmill near Sacramento, California it set off the California gold rush. In 1849, 80,000 men arrived in California hoping to make a fortune in mining -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War. The US acquired California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and parts of Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, and Wyoming. -
Compromise of 1850 & Fugitive Slave Law
Congress adopted the Compromise of 1850, which admitted California to the Union as a free state without forbidding slavery in other territories acquired from Mexico. The law prohibited the sale of slaves in Washington, DC, but included a strict law requiring the return of runaway slaves to slaveholders. Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act as part of the Compromise of 1850. The act forced northerners to cooperate in returning runaway slaves to the South. -
Abolished Slave Trade
Congress abolished the slave trade in Washington, DC, effective January 1, 1851. -
Gadsden Purchase
Mexico sold the United States 29,640 square miles of territory south of the Gila River (in what is now southern Arizona and New Mexico) for $10 million. -
Republican Party
The Republican Party held its first meeting, in Ripon, Wisconsin. -
Kansas Nebraska Act
citation Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which overturned the Missouri Compromise. This opened Kansas and Nebraska to white settlement and allowed popular sovereignty to determine slave- or free-state status in territories seeking statehood. -
Dred Scott decision
The Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision denied the citizenship of African Americans and the right of the federal government to control slavery in US territories -
House Divided Speech
citationAbraham Lincoln delivered his “House Divided” speech in Springfield, Illinois.
Click here for the text of this historical document.
On June 16, 1858, at the Illinois Republican convention in Springfield, Abraham Lincoln kicked off his bid for the U.S. Senate with a speech that would come to be known as the "House Divided" speech. Lincoln believed that the recent Supreme Court decision on the Dred Scott case was part of a Democratic conspiracy that would lead to the legalization of slavery in -
John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry
John Brown, with allies including five black men, led an armed abolitionist raid on the Harpers Ferry arsenal in Virginia. Two days later the US Army, led by Colonel Robert E. Lee, stormed Harpers Ferry and captured Brown. -
Election
Lincoln is elected as president -
Crittenden Compromise
The compromise would have protected slavery in the South through a series of constitutional amendments but the proposal was narrowly defeated in the Senate -
South Carolina’s secession
Fearing that Lincoln’s election signaled the end of slavery, South Carolina became the first state to secede from the Union. -
Confederate States of America formed
The states of the lower South established a new government, the Confederate States of America, and drafted a constitution in Montgomery, Alabama. It explicitly guaranteed slavery in the states and territories but prohibited the international slave trade.
