-
Common Sense published
Thomas Paine wrote Common Sense that incouraged colonists to want independence from unjust acts of Parliment. This pamphlet urged revolution. -
Signing of the Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a document that declared the 13 colonies of the United States as independent states from Great Britain. The importance of this document is that it is the reason we are an independent nation that has prospered up to this day. -
Articles of Confederation
A committee of the congress presented the articles of confederation to the other congressional delegates. This was a plan for a central government that created a confederation, or an alliance of states. -
Treaty of Paris
This document ended the revolutionary war between America and its allies and Great Britain. The Treaty of Paris not only freed the United States from Great Britain but also established land boundaries and fishing rights. -
The Northwest Ordinance
This document allowed land north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi to be settled in no less than three states or more than five states while maintaining civil liberties and excluding slavery.It continued the expansion westward of the United States. -
Constitution goes into effect
The constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but wasn't in effect until March 4, 1789. The constitution is a document of supreme law stating our government into three divisions including the judicial headed by the supreme court, the legislative run by congress, and executive headed by the president. -
Bill of Rights ratified
This document was added to create a protection of indivdual liberties to the constitution. Congress ratified ten amendments and this became known as the bill of rights. -
Library of Congress
This was established when President John Adams signed a bill transfering the seat of government from Philadelphia to the new capital city of Washington.This was a reference library for Congress until British troops set fire to it in 1814 and then Thomas Jefferson donated his own personal set of books. -
Louisiana Purchase
This event was when the United States bought the Louisiana territory of 828,000 square miles of land from France. This purchase doubled the size of the existing United States at less than three cents per acre. -
Period: to
Lewis and Clark Expedition
Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark to explore the resources of the newly purchased Louisiana Territory and to give authority to the Native Americans. They came back with a lot of information of the land including plant and animal specimens. -
Period: to
War of 1812
Because of Britain's repeated violations of neutral rights, continued impressment of American sailors and support of Native American uprisings, Congress declared War. The importance of this event is that the American Indians and British were defeated. -
Treaty of Ghent
This treaty was signed before the 1st battle of the War of 1812 and gave the Nothwest Territory to the United States because of the defeat of the American Indians and Great Britain. It resulted in peace between America and Great Britain. -
Missouri Compromise
this act maintained the balance of slave states and free states in congress by making Missouri a slave state and Maine a free state. This act also prohibited the spread of slavery in territories north of latitude 36 degrees 30'. -
Monroe Doctrine
American officials were worried that European powers would try to take back newly independent countries of Latin America. President Monroe declared in the Monroe Doctrine that the United States would consider these acts "as dangerous to our peace and safety". Basically it is to secure our borders and declare the Americas off-limits. -
Indian Removal Act
President Andrew Jackson signed this act that greatly pressured Native Americans to give up their homelands and move into federal lands west of the Mississippi River. Five major indian groups forced to leave were the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole. -
Texas Annexation
The Republic of Texas was admitted to the United States as the 28th state. Along with gaining the land of Texas, the United States also inherited the conflicts between Mexico and texas which led to the Mexican-American War. -
Period: to
Mexican-American War
This was a war between the United States and Mexico after the Annexation of Texas. Mexico considered Texas as part of their land even after the Texas Revolution. -
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
Peace treaty ending the American-Mexican War. This made the Rio Grande the border between Mexico and the United States and allowed the United States to gain California, Nevada and Utah, most of Arizona, and western portions of New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. -
California Gold Rush Begins
More than 40,000 people took the California trail in hopes to find newly discovered gold. The discovery of gold prompted migration to the far west and this added to the diversity of California's population. -
Dred Scott Decision
Dred Scott was a Missouri slave who sued for his freedom after his master died while in the free state of Illinois. He lost the case and this issue further divided the North and South. -
Firing at Fort Sumter
Confederates opened fire to Fort sumter and forced Major Robert Anderson to surrender. This made Lincoln request money to raise a militia to put down the rebellion and it marked the beggining of the civil war. -
First Battle of Bull Run
The Union won the first battle named after a creek outside of Washington. After this battle, everyone realized the war would last a lot longer than expected. -
Emancipation Proclaimation began
In september 1862, Lincoln issued the emancipation proclaimation declaring that all slaves in areas rebelling against the United States would become free on January 1, 1863. This inspired some 500,000 slaves to leave their masters and inlist as union soldiers. -
Period: to
Battle of Gettysburg
General Meade led the Union to the victory at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This battle marked a turning point in the civil war that the union could defeat th confederacy in a battle. -
President Lincoln Shot
The Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln. The President died the next day. -
End of Civil War
General Joseph Johnston surrendered to General Sherman. This ended the Civil War. -
General Grant meets General Lee at Appomattox Courthouse
General Grant of the Union army meets General Lee of the Confederate army at Appomattox Courthouse. This meeting was basically to disscuss the terms of surrender of the Confederate army to end the Civil War. -
Period: to
Great Chicago Fire
This fire killed hundreds of people and destroyed about 3.3 square miles in Chicago. It was one of the largest United States disasters in the 19th century, but the rebuilding after helped make Chicago one of the most populous and thriving cities in the United States. -
Civil Rights Act of 1875
This act was to inforce reconstruction by prohibiting discrimination by hotels and other businesses serving the public. This act did not work and led to more racism and corruption when it came to voting. -
Telephone was invented
Three days after Alexander Graham Bell's patent was issued, he succeeded in getting his telephone to work. By the end of the 1800s, more than a million telephones had been installed in the United States.
