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Jun 15, 1215
Magna Carta
a charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor -
Declaration of independence
The United States Declaration of Independence is the pronouncement adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at the Pennsylvania State House (now known as Independence Hall) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -
U.S. Adopts Dollar
Continental Congress adopts the "Dollar" and decimal coinage. -
Constitution
The constitution is an aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of the U.S. and commonly determine how it is to be governed. -
Bill of Rights
Includes 1-10 Amendments -
US Navy established
US Navy established on this date. -
US Post Office established.
US Post Office established on this date -
11 th Amendment
Makes states immune from suits from out-of-state citizens and foreigners not living within the state borders; lays the foundation for state sovereign immunity -
US Marine Corps established.
US Marine Corps established on this date. -
Louisiana Purchase
United States purchases the Louisiana Territory for $15 million, containing what's now Arkansas, part of Colorado, Iowa, Louisiana, part of Minnesota, Missouri, part of Montana, part of North Dakota, part of Oklahoma, South Dakota, and part of Wyoming. -
12 th Amendment
Revises presidential election procedures by having the president and vice president elected together as opposed to the vice president being the runner up in the presidential election -
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Dred scott v. Sandfort
was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court held that the Constitution of the United States was not meant to include American citizenship for black people, regardless of whether they were enslaved or free, and therefore the rights and privileges it confers upon American citizens could not apply to them. -
Start of american civil war
Confederate States of America formed. -
Period: to
Reconstruction era
The term has two applications: the first applies to the complete history of the entire country from 1865 to 1877 following the American Civil War; the second, to the attempted transformation of the 11 former Confederate states from 1863 to 1877, as directed by Congress. -
13 th Amendment
Abolishes slavery, and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime -
Purchase of alaska
United States purchases the Alaska Territory from Russia for $7.2 million. -
14 th Amendment
Defines citizenship, contains the Privileges or Immunities Clause, the Due Process Clause, the Equal Protection Clause, and deals with post–Civil War issues -
15 th Amendment
Prohibits the denial of the right to vote based on race, color or previous condition of servitude -
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Plessy v. Ferguson
Rejecting Plessy’s argument that his constitutional rights were violated, the Supreme Court ruled that a law that “implies merely a legal distinction” between whites and blacks was not unconstitutional. -
16 th Amendment
Permits Congress to levy an income tax without apportioning it among the various states or basing it on the United States Census -
25 th President
Woodrow Wilson sworn in as the 28th US President. -
17 th Amendment
Establishes the direct election of United States senators by popular vote -
WW1
World War I begins as the Ottoman Empire declares war on Bosnia. -
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico made a United States territory. -
18 th Amendment
Prohibited the manufacturing or sale of alcohol within the United States -
19 th Amendment
Prohibits the denial of the right to vote based on sex -
Great Depression
New York Stock Market crashes to an all time low (referred to as "Black Tuesday"), signaling the start of the Great Depression. -
20 th Amendment
Changes the date on which the terms of the president and vice president and of members of Congress end and begin (to January 20 and January 3 respectively). States that if the president-elect becomes vacant, the vice president-elect is inaugurated as president in their place. -
FDR Becomes President
Franklin Roosevelt sworn in as the 32nd US President. -
21 st Amendment
Repeals the 18th Amendment and makes it a federal offense to transport or import intoxicating liquors into U.S. states and territories where such transport or importation is prohibited by the laws of those states and territories -
Start of WW2
Germany invades Poland. -
FDR 3 rd Term
Franklin Roosevelt sworn in as President for a 3rd term. -
United Nations established.
United Nations established on this date. -
Atomic Bomb
United States drops the 1st atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. -
Philippines gains its independence
Philippines, a United States protectorate, gains its independence -
Cold War
Winston Churchill proclaims "an iron curtain has swept across the continent (Europe)," beginning the Cold War. -
NATO Established
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established by Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and the United States. -
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Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that state laws establishing racial segregation in public schools are unconstitutional, even if the segregated schools are otherwise equal in quality. -
22 nd Amendment
Limits the number of times that a person can be elected president: a person cannot be elected president more than twice, and a person who has served more than two years of a term to which someone else was elected cannot be elected more than once -
23 rd Amendment
Grants the District of Columbia electors in the Electoral College, their number being not more than those of the least populous state -
24 th Amendment
Prohibits the revocation of voting rights due to the non-payment of a poll tax or any other tax -
25 th Amendment
Addresses succession to the presidency and establishes procedures both for filling a vacancy in the office of the vice president, as well as responding to presidential disabilities -
26 th Amendment
Prohibits the denial of the right of US citizens, eighteen years of age or older, to vote on account of age -
Cold War End
United States and Russia sign a treaty officially ending the Cold War. -
27 th Amendment
Delays laws affecting Congressional salary from taking effect until after the next election of representatives -
Panama Canal
Panama gains control of the Panama Canal from the United States. -
9/11
On September 11th Al Qaeda terrorists crash three planes into the New York's World Trade Center and Pentagon -
President Bush State of the Union
In his State of the Union address of January 2002, President Bush defines an Axis of Evil, which includes North Korea, Iran and Iraq -
Illigal Immigration
The official number of illegal immigrants in the U.S. reaches 11 million -
Barack Obama
Barack Obama wins U.S. Presidential election