-
Aug 3, 1492
The Discovery of America by Columbus
Christopher Columbus Discovers America in 1492. Columbus led his three ships - the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria - out of the Spanish port of Palos on August 3, 1492. His objective was to sail west until he reached Asia (the Indies) where the riches of gold, pearls and spice awaited. It was significant because it was the start of white men and the genocide of Native Americans. -
The Settlement of Jamestown
On December 6, 1606, the journey to Virginia began on three ships: the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery. 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. It was significant because it was the first permanent English settlement in North America. -
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War was the North American conflict in a larger imperial war between Great Britain and France known as the Seven Years’ War. The French and Indian War began in 1754 and ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1763. It was significant because the war provided Great Britain enormous territorial gains in North America, but disputes over subsequent frontier policy and paying the war’s expenses led to colonial discontent, and ultimately to the American Revolution. -
The Boston Tea Party
This served as a protest against taxation. On the night of December 16, 1773, Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty boarded three ships in the Boston harbor and threw 342 chests of tea overboard. This is significant because it resulted in the passage of the punitive Coercive Acts in 1774 and pushed the two sides closer to war. -
The Battle of Lexington and Concord
First Revolutionary Battle at Lexington and Concord. In April 1775, when British troops are sent to confiscate colonial weapons, they run into an untrained and angry militia. This ragtag army defeats 700 British soldiers and the surprise victory bolsters their confidence for the war ahead. These battles are significant because they were the first battle of the revolutionary war -
The Declaration of Independence
A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood is an assertion by a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. It was signed by John Hancock (President of Congress) on July 1st 1776. It was signed in Philadelphia. It was written to justify and clarify the Second Continental Congress. It is significant because it contains the ideals or goals of our nation. -
The Battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown ended on October 19, 1781 at Yorktown, Virginia. It was a decisive victory by a combined force of American Continental Army troops led by General George Washington and French Army troops led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by British peer and Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis. The British surrendered at the Battle of Yorktown which ended the American Revolutionary War. -
The Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place from May 25 to September 17, 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was intended to create a new government rather than fix the existing one.The delegates elected George Washington to preside over the Convention. This was significant because the result of the Convention was the creation of the United States Constitution. -
The invention of the cotton gin
In 1794, U.S.-born inventor Eli Whitney (1765-1825) patented the cotton gin, It was significant because it was a machine that revolutionized the production of cotton by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber. -
The Alien and Sedition Acts
Signed into law by President John Adams in 1798, the Alien and Sedition Acts consisted of four laws passed by the Federalist-controlled Congress as America prepared for war with France.The Alien Act Respected Alien Enemies.The Sedition Act was for the Punishment of Certain Crimes against the United States. These acts are significant because it was passed in preparation of a anticipated war with France. -
The Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition of the Louisiana territory by the United States from France in 1803. The U.S. paid fifty million francs and a cancellation of debts worth eighteen million francs for a total of sixty-eight million francs. It was significant because it doubled the size of the U.S and gave control of the Mississippi River and the port city of New Orleans. -
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 (1812–1815) was a conflict fought between the United States, the United Kingdom and their respective allies. It was significant because Canadians and Native American see it as a decisive turning point in their losing struggle to govern themselves. -
The Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise was an effort by Congress to defuse the sectional and political rivalries triggered by the request of Missouri late in 1819 for admission as a state in which slavery would be permitted. At the time, the United States contained twenty-two states, evenly divided between slave and free. This was significant because it helped reduce tensions between the North and South. -
Andrew Jackson's Election
The United States presidential election of 1828 was the 11th quadrennial presidential election, held from Friday, October 31, to Tuesday, December 2, 1828. 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. It was significant because Jackson was one of the first Presidents elected who did not have the Federalists pedigree of prior candidates. -
The invention of the Telegraph
Developed in the 1830s and 1840s by Samuel Morse (1791-1872) and other inventors. It worked by transmitting electrical signals over a wire laid between stations. Also Samuel Morse developed a code (bearing his name) that assigned a set of dots and dashes to each letter of the English alphabet and allowed for the simple transmission of complex messages across telegraph lines. It was significant because it revolutionized long-distance communication. -
The Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears was a series of forced removals of Native American nations from their ancestral homelands in the Southeastern United States to an area west of the Mississippi River that had been designated as Indian Territory. This is significant because The Trail of Tears remains one of the worst human right disasters to befall Native American people in United States history. -
The Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was a financial crisis in the United States that touched off a major recession that lasted until the mid-1840s. It was significant because Profits, prices, and wages went down while unemployment went up. Pessimism abounded during the time. -
The Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War (1846-1848) marked the first U.S. armed conflict on foreign soil. It pitted a politically divided and unprepared Mexico against the expansionist-minded administration of U.S. President James K. Polk, who believed the United States had a “manifest destiny” to spread across the continent to the Pacific Ocean. It was significant because Mexico had lost about one-third of its territory, including nearly all of present-day California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. -
The invention of the electric light, telephone, and airplane
Edison is often credited with the invention because his version was able to outstrip the earlier version. Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone but Antonio Meucci, an Italian immigrant, began developing the design of a telephone in 1849. In 1903 the Wright brothers achieved the first powered, sustained and controlled airplane flight. These are significant because these inventions changed the world. -
The Compromise of 1850
Senator Henry Clay introduced a series of resolutions on January 29, 1850, in an attempt to seek a compromise and avert a crisis between North and South. It was significant because as part of the Compromise of 1850, the Fugitive Slave Act was amended and the slave trade in Washington, D.C was abolished. -
The Civil War
The American Civil War was fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865 when Confederates attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina, shortly after Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated. The nationalists of the Union proclaimed loyalty to the U.S. Constitution. The Civil War was a significant event in world history because the North's victory proved that democracy worked. -
The Firing of Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter (April 12–13, 1861) was the bombardment of Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina by the Confederate States Army, and the return gunfire and subsequent surrender by the United States Army. Major Robert Anderson, garrison commander, surrendered the fort and was evacuated the next day. This was significant because it started the American Civil War. -
The Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation, or Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863. He freed the slaves to keep control of territory, resources, and markets of the South This was significant because the Emancipation Proclamation led the way to total abolition of slavery in the United States. -
The Organization of Standard Oil Trust
The Standard Oil Trust was formed in 1863 by John D. Rockefeller. He built up the company through 1868 to become the largest oil refinery firm in the world. In 1870, the company was renamed Standard Oil Company, after which Rockefeller decided to buy up all the other competition and form them into one large company. This was significant because they established a strong foothold in the U.S. -
13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
The 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, known collectively as the 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. The 14th Amendment was adopted on July 9, 1868 and it protected U.S. citizens. The 15th amendment granted Blacks the right to vote. These amendments were significant because they ensured equality for recently emancipated slaves. -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
On April 9, 1865, near the town of Appomattox Court House, Virginia, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. He surrendered because he had no remaining troops.This was significant because it ended the four year civil war. -
Abraham Lincoln's Assassination
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, was assassinated by well-known stage actor John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865, while attending the play Our American Cousin at Ford's Theater in Washington, D.C., just as the American Civil War was drawing to a close. This is significant because it happened 5 days after General Robert E. Lee surrendered. -
Andrew Johnson's Impeachment
On February 24, 1868 three days after Johnson's dismissal of Stanton, the House of Representatives voted 126 to 47 in favor of a resolution to impeach the President for high crimes and misdemeanors. One week later, the House adopted eleven articles of impeachment against the President. This was significant because for the first time ever the House of Representatives impeached a President. -
The Pullman and Homestead Strikes
The Pullman strike of 1894 was a nationwide railroad strike that placed the American Railroad Union against the Pullman Company, the main railroads, and the federal government. The strike occurred after the Pullman Company cut wages and laid off many workers, and refused to lower rent for the company housing..This was significant because these two major events happened 2 years apart and left people at unease. -
The Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict fought between Spain and the United States in 1898. Hostilities began in the aftermath of the internal explosion of the USS Maine in Havana harbor in Cuba lead to the United States intervention in the Cuban War of Independence. This is significant because the American acquisition of Spain's Pacific possessions led to its involvement in the Philippine Revolution and ultimately in the Philippine–American War. -
Theodore Roosevelt becomes President
The presidency of Theodore Roosevelt began on September 14, 1901, when he became the 26th President of the United States upon the assassination and death of President William McKinley, and ended on March 4, 1909.This was significant because he was the nation's youngest president.
