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Founding of Jamestown
Jamestown was the first "permanent" colony founded by Britain, and was backed by the London Company. This event has importance, because it was the start of an effort to colonize North America, and was part of Virginia, the first of the 13 Colonies. -
The Founding of the Plymouth Colony
Plymouth was the first colony founded in what would later become the Massachusetts Colony. This would be the second colony of the 13 Colonies founded.This is important, because Plymouth was one of the first colonies settled, to be reorganized into the Massachusetts Colony. -
New York Colony Established
The New York Colony was the third colony established out of the 13 colonies and was first established by the Dutch and named New Amsterdam, but was surrendered to Great Britain in 1664. It was renamed New York and became one of the most prominent colonies. (I could not find an exact date and the date used is when it was settled by the Dutch.) -
Establishment of the Maryland Colony
Maryland founded as a safe haven for English Catholics fleeing anti-Catholic persecution in Europe. It was the first settlement in the New World to guarantee religious freedom for all Tri. Christians. (No Exact Date Found.) -
Founding of Rhode Island
It was an English colony from 1636 until 1707, and then a colony of Great Britain until the American Revolution in 1776, when it became the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. It is important because it was the first colony to offer political and religious freedom. In doing so it was one of the most liberal colonies. (No Exact Date Found.) -
Colony of Connecticut Established
It was organized as a settlement for Puritan congregation and was seized by the English in 1637. Connecticut was self governing and was based around trade and religion. This was the 6th colony to be founded out of the 13 colonies. -
(1638-1682) Establishment of New Hampshire through Pennsylvania
It would be tedious if I listed the rest of the colonies individually, so I am listing the rest remaining, with the exception of Georgia. All the remaining colonies were established in this time starting with New Hampshire in 1638, to Pennsylvania in 1682. (I couldn't make it a timeline, otherwise it wouldn't stay in this position, so I put the time period in the title.) -
The Establishment of the Georgia Colony
Georgia is the last out of the 13 colonies to be established and completes the later "13 Colonies." This colony allowed every religion, but Catholics and would be the 4th state to ratify the constitution. (No Exact Date Found.) -
Independence Day
The 13 Colonies broke off of Great Britain and became their own, no longer under a monarchy. This event plays an immense role in the creation of the Constitution and is a key event in our country's history. -
Articles of Confederation Face Trouble
After a massive inflation of paper money, riots rage throughout Vermont and New Hampshire. Shay's Rebellion also occurred, which was an armed uprising against increased tax payments enforced by the government. All these events pointed towards revising the Articles of Confederation, or something new all together. -
The Beginning of the Constitutional Convention
The convention begins at the State House, but only two state delegations are present, and they must keep adjourning until more states arrive. The convention was originally supposed to revise the Articles of Confederation, but instead people gave ideas of changing the entire government system all together. -
The Virginia Plan
Edmund Randolph proposed the Virginia Plan, which would act on a centralized government, and the representation of each state would be based on their population. -
Big vs. Small
The deciding question if this plan will be put into action is asked: how to determine each states representation. The large states were obviously in agreement with the Virginia Plan, but the smaller states refuse and hold out for equal representation, and New York joins them. -
The New Jersey Plan
William Paterson presents the New Jersey Plan, a small-state alternative to the Virginia Plan. It stands for equal representation regardless of population. The introduction of this plan would produce ideas incorporated into the final decision. -
The Connecticut Compromise
The committee votes for a plan proposed by Roger Sherman. This plan combines parts of both the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey plan. The lower house will have a representation based of the population, and the upper house will have two delegates from each no matter the population. This compromise shows that the delegates can come to an agreement, and will provide a beacon that the convention will adopt. -
Presidency
The convention agrees with a presidency on the motion of George Mason. The will be one executive, who will be picked by the national legislature and will serve for a term of seven years with no second terms. This provides a rough draft for what we use today. -
Convention Agrees On the Constitution
After four months of argument and deliberation, the convention agrees to adopt the Constitution. This decision played a pivotal role in the formation of the United State's values. -
Beginning of Ratification
The Congress submits the Constitution for Ratification to the states. This will decide if the Constitution will be put into effect. -
Delaware Ratifies the Constitution
Delaware is the first state to ratify the Constitution, and does it with a unanimous vote. Delaware believed that a stronger national government under the Constitution would help protect them against attack and level the economic playing field with larger states. -
Rhode Island Rejects
Rhode Island is the first state to reject the Constitution. It was the only state that did not hold a convention to ratify, and instead went through town meetings, most of which were boycotted by Federalists. -
New Hampshire Ratifies
New Hampshire is the 9th state to ratify the Constitution, with a vote of 57-47. This means that the Constitution can now be put into effect, but it won't mean much without the support of the larger states, such as Virginia and New York. -
Virginia Ratifies the Constitution
Virginia ratifies with a vote of 89-79, after an internal struggle between Patrick Henry leading the anti-federalists to reject. This was a very important ratification, as it will be one of the deciding factors for the Constitution's overall approval. -
New York's Ratification
New York is the eleventh state to ratify the constitution with a vote of 30-27. New York was key to the ratification of the Constitution because it gave new nation the strength it needed to recover from the debts of the Revolutionary War, and to prepare for future events. -
The First Congress
The first ever session pf Congress under the new Constitution takes place in New York. The first order of business was to elect a Speaker of the House. -
Bill of Rights Enacted
James Madison proposed the Bill of Rights, and the first 10 amendments were put into action. George Washington sent copies to each of the states and it was ratified by three fourths of the states. We still use these same amendments from the Constitution and others put into the Bill of Rights.