History Timeline

  • Period: 1500 to

    AI: Middle Passage

    A) The Middle Passage refers to the part of the trade where Africans, densely packed onto ships, were transported across the Atlantic to the West Indies.
    B) This relates to the theme because slavery was unfortunately a big part of our country.
  • AI: Founding of Jamestown

    A) In 1607, 104 English men and boys arrived in North America to start a settlement. On May 13 they picked Jamestown, Virginia for their settlement, which was named after their King, James I. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America.
    B) Since it was the first permanent English settlement in North America, this settlement was very important for the American Identity
  • AI: Mayflower Compact

    A) The Mayflower Compact was signed aboard ship on November 11, 1620 by the Pilgrims. They used the Julian Calendar, also known as Old Style dates, which, at that time, was ten days behind the Gregorian Calendar.
    B) The Mayflower Compact allowed the Pilgrims to come to the United States.
  • AI: The First Great Awakening

    A) The Great Awakening or First Great Awakening was a Protestant religious revival that swept Protestant Europe and British America in the 1730s and 1740s. An evangelical and revitalization movement, it left a permanent impact on American Protestantism.
    B) Protestantism was a large part of the American Identity for a long time.
  • AI: Declaration of Independence

    A) The Declaration of Independence... declared our independence as a nation.
    B) This relates to the theme because it was a defining moment for our nation.
  • AI: The Ratification of the Constitution

    A) When each existing state in the United States accepted the Constitution as the supreme law of the land.
    B) One of the first processes of democracy in our nation.
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    AI: George Washington's Presidency

    A) George Washington was our first president.
    B) This is significant because it was one of the first acts of democracy in our nation.
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    PP: Second Great Awakening

    The Second Great Awakening was a Protestant religious revival during the early 19th century in the United States. The movement began around 1790, gained momentum by 1800 and, after 1820, membership rose rapidly among Baptist and Methodist congregations whose preachers led the movement. The Second Great Awakening is significant to the Political Participation theme because people becoming more religious led to more political participation from them.
  • AI: Louisiana Purchase

    A) The United States bought the Louisiana territory from France.
    B) The United States acquired New Orleans, a major trading city.
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    AI: Lewis and Clark Expedition

    A) The first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States.
    B) Lewis and Clark observed the western portion of the United States, which was before unexplored. Exploration of part of the American Identity.
  • PP: Election of Andrew Jackson

    The United States presidential election of 1828 was the 11th quadrennial presidential election. It featured a re-match between incumbent President John Quincy Adams, and Andrew Jackson, who won a plurality of the electoral college vote in the 1824 election. People participated politically by voting for the president of their choice and the candidates themselves participated politically by running in the first place.
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    PP: Abolitionist Movement

    The abolitionist movement attempted to achieve immediate emancipation of all slaves and the ending of racial segregation and discrimination. This movement was significant due to its members participating politically in order to free slaves and end racism segregation.
  • AI: Manifest Destiny

    A) Manifest Destiny was a belief that was widely held that the destiny of American settlers was to expand and move across the continent to spread their traditions and their institutions, while at the same time enlightening more primitive nations.
    B) A somewhat imperialistic phrase, but a large part of America's identity as a whole.
  • PP: Seneca Falls Convention

    The Seneca Falls Convention was the first women's rights convention. It advertised itself as "a convention to discuss the social, civil, and religious condition and rights of woman" This illustrated this Unit by being one of the first times women participated politically in order to further their own rights as human beings, which is a large part of what political participation is about. They were politically participating to they could further do so by voting.
  • PP: Underground Railroad

    On this date in 1853, Harriet Tubman began her work with the Underground Railroad. This was a network of antislavery activists who helped slaves escape from the South. The Underground Railroad was important to this Unit because it was a form of political participation for people who were already free to assist slaves in their escape from the south.
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    AI: 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments

    A) Civil War Amendments, were designed to ensure equality for recently emancipated slaves. The 13th Amendment banned slavery and all involuntary servitude, except in the case of punishment for a crime.
    B) This was one of the steps to completely abolishing slavery in our nation.
  • PP: Women's Suffrage in Wyoming

    Wyoming passed the first woman suffrage law on December 10, 1869, and women voted for the first time in 1870. The word suffrage comes from the Latin word suffragium, meaning the right to vote. The State of Wyoming participated politically by passing this law before anyone else.
  • PP: Great Railroad Strike of 1877

    The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 started on July 14 in Martinsburg, West Virginia, in response to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O) cutting wages of workers for the third time in a year. Striking workers would not allow any of the trains, mainly freight trains, to roll until this third wage cut was revoked. Strikes are a direct form of Political Participation and this strike specifically was when strikes weren't as common for getting what you want.
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    PP: Knights of Labor

    The largest and one of the most important American labor organizations of the 1880s. Labor Unions were a large part of this Union, for it was people banding together in order to demand better working conditions and rights for workers.
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    PP: Progressive Era

    The Progressive Era was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States, from the 1890s to the 1920s. Social Activism is a direct form of political participation, whether it's protesting, striking, sending letters, etc.
  • PP: NAWSA

    The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) was formed on February 18, 1890 to work for women's suffrage in the United States. It was created by the merger of two existing organizations, the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA). Women's Suffrage allowed women to vote, which is a form of political participation.
  • PP: Populist Party

    The People's party, more commonly known as the Populist party, was organized in St. Louis in 1892 to represent the common folk—especially farmers—against the entrenched interests of railroads, bankers, processers, corporations, and the politicians in league with such interests. This party was organized in order to give farmers and other workers a voice in politics, which is important for this Unit because this was direct political participation.
  • PP: Pullman Strike

    The Pullman Strike was a nationwide railroad strike in the United States on May 11, 1894, and a turning point for US labor law. Along with the Great Railroad Strike, this was another strike in protest of unfair working conditions for railroad workers. Strikes are a form of political participation.
  • PP: Pure Drug and Food Act

    February 1906. Upton Sinclair publishes The Jungle, an expose of the meatpacking industry. June 30, 1906. President Theodore Roosevelt signs the Pure Food and Drug Act as well as the Meat Inspection Act. President Roosevelt signed the act, which was a form of political participation on his part.
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    AI: Americanization Movement

    A) The United States dealt with a flood of immigrants during the early 20th century through the Americanization Movement—a variety of programs and campaigns aimed at turning foreigners into Americans. At the turn of the 20th century, millions of immigrants poured into the United States.
    B) Being a "melting pot" of various cultures is very important to the American Identity.
  • AI: California Alien Land Act

    A) The California Alien Land Law of 1913 prohibited "aliens ineligible for citizenship" from owning agricultural land or possessing long-term leases over it
    B) This is a large part of the American identity because Americans are very serious about illegal immigrants, especially nowadays.
  • PP: 17th Amendment

    The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures. Adding an Amendment to the constitution is political participation because it affects the politics of the United States.
  • PP: 18th Amendment

    The 18th Amendment did not prohibit the consumption of alcohol, but rather simply the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcoholic beverages.This began Prohibition This Amendment was a way of preventing alcohol-related tragedies/accidents. Passing this amendment was political participation because it changed the supreme law of the land.
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    AI: 18th Amendment/Prohibition

    A) The ratification of the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution–which banned the manufacture, transportation and sale of intoxicating liquors–ushered in a period in American history known as Prohibition
    B) The first ban on drugs/alcohol. America today has very strict laws on drugs.
  • PP: 19th Amendment

    Passed by Congress June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920, the 19th amendment granted women the right to vote. The 19th amendment guarantees all American women the right to vote. This amendment allowed American women to participate politically by voting. It was achieved due to brave women protesting peacefully (another form of political participation)
  • PP: Scopes Trial

    The Scopes Trial was a trial against a substitute teacher for teaching evolution in a school, which at the time was illegal due to biblical contradictions. A trial is a form of political participation because they can be used in the future as a reference, as well as the fact that laws can be made based on said trials.
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    AI: Mexican Repatriation

    A) The mass deportation of around 2,000,000 Mexicans and Mexican-Americans.
    B) Many people are still bent on eliminating illegal immigrants from the US, and it remains a large part of the American Identity.
  • AI: September 11 Terrorist Attacks

    A) 2 planes were hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Center in NYC. First/largest major terror attack on American soil.
    B) Brought Americans together and made us a lot more protective of our country.