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1492
The discovery of America by Columbus
Christopher Columbus sailed across the Atlantic to find a better route to the indies but instead found America -
The settlement of Jamestown
English men arrived in North America to start a settlement in Jamestown, Virginia. The settlement became the first permanent English settlement in North America. -
The French and Indian war
Fought to decide if Britain or France would be the strong power in North America. France and its colonists and Indian allies fought against Britain, its colonists and Indian allies. -
The Boston tea party
American colonists, frustrated and angry at Britain for imposing “taxation without representation,” dressed as native Americans and dumped chests of tea, imported by the British East India Company into the harbor. -
The battle of Lexington and Concord
The Battles of Lexington and Concord proved that America could stand up to one of the most powerful armies in the world. -
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was the first formal statement by a nation’s people asserting their right to choose their own government. -
The battle of Yorktown
The outcome of the battle in Yorktown, Virginia marked the conclusion of the last major battle of the American Revolution and the start of a new nation's independence. -
The constitutional convention
The point of the event was decide how America was going to be governed. -
Invention of the cotton gin
Invented by Eli Whitney, the cotton gin was a machine that revolutionized the production of cotton by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds from cotton fiber. -
Alien and sedition acts
Four laws passed by the Federalist-dominated 5th United States Congress and signed into law by President John Adams -
Louisiana purchase
the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from France In return for fifteen million dollars. The United States nominally acquired a total of 828,000 sq miles. -
War of 1812
a conflict fought between the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and its own allies. -
Missouri compromise
The Missouri Compromise was United States federal legislation that admitted Maine to the United States as a free state, and Missouri as a slave state, thus maintaining the balance of power between North and South in the US Senate. -
Andrew Jackson’s election
While Andrew Jackson won the popular vote in the election of 1824, he lost to John Quincy Adams as the election was deferred to the House of Representatives -
invention of the telegraph
Invented by Samuel Morse, the telegraph revolutionized long-distance communication. It worked by transmitting electrical signals over a wire laid between stations. -
Trail of tears
The Trail of Tears was a series of forced relocations of approximately 60,000 Native Americans in the United States from their ancestral homelands in the Southeastern United States, to areas to the west of the Mississippi River that had been designated as Indian Territory. -
Panic of 1837
a financial crisis in the United States that touched off a major depression -
Mexican American war
an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico -
Compromise of 1850
package of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850 that defused a political confrontation between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired in the Mexican–American War. -
Firing on fort Sumter
the bombardment of Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina by the South Carolina militia, and the return gunfire and subsequent surrender by the United States Army, that started the American Civil War. -
the emancipation proclamation
The proclamation declared "that all persons held as slaves" within the rebellious states "are, and henceforward shall be free." -
The Organization of Standard Oil Trust
formed by John D. Rockefeller, the company became the largest oil refinery firm in the world. -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
General Robert E. Lee surrendering his Army of Northern Virginia to Union Army General Ulysses S. Grant in Appomattox, Virginia -
Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination
While attending a special performance of the comedy, "Our American Cousin," President Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth -
Andrew Johnson’s Impeachment
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 11 articles of impeachment against President Andrew Johnson. The House vote made President Johnson the first president to be impeached in U.S. history. -
13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
designed to ensure equality for recently emancipated slaves -
The Pullman and Homestead Strikes
The workers from Carnegie mills went on strike because Andrew Carnegie, the head of the Carnegie Steel Company, refused to increase their wages. The strike ended in defeat for the workers. -
The Spanish-American War
The war resulted in the United States receiving the Philippines and the islands of Guam and Puerto Rico. Cuba became independent, and Spain was awarded $20 million dollars for its losses. -
The invention of the electric light, telephone, and airplane
The telephone made business more efficient and it saved money from having to travel back and forth from far places. The electric light bulb helped to establish social order after sundown, extended the workday well into the night, and allowed us to navigate and travel safely in the dark. After the invention of the airplane, people became more socially interactive. -
Theodore Roosevelt becomes president
Theodore Roosevelt became the 26th President of the United States upon the assassination and death of President William McKinley