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Early American History (1776-1860)
Long before the Civil War and the days of the Wild West, early American History began with those first Native Americans who settled upon this land some 15,000 years ago. ... Spain, France, the Netherlands, Russia, and England all formed colonies that would later become part of U.S. Territory. -
Civil War/Reconstruction (1860-1877)
The Reconstruction era was the period after the American Civil War from 1865 to 1877, during which the United States grappled with the challenges of reintegrating into the Union the states that had seceded and determining the legal status of African Americans. -
Homestead Act (1862)
provided 160 acres to anyone willing to settle on land in the west -
The Gilded Age (1877-1900)
The Gilded Age was an era that occurred during the late 19th century, from the 1870s to about 1900. The Gilded Age was an era of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern United States and the Western United States. -
Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)
: prohibited immigration of skilled or unskilled Chinese laborers, first US national immigration act -
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883):
awarded government jobs based on merit -
Interstate Commerce Act (1887)
Ensure railroad set “reasonable and just” rate and the first time government stepped in to regulate business -
Dawes Act (1887)
Gave individual ownership of land to native Americans instead of the tribe owning things collectively -
1889
Hull House founded, first of many settlement houses -
The Progressive Era (1890-1920)
The Progressive Era (1896–1916) was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States of America that spanned the 1890s to the 1920s. -
Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)
outlawed business monopolies -
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890)
outlawed trusts to promote economic fairness -
1896-1899: Klondike Gold Rush (Alaska)
The Klondike Gold Rush was a migration by an estimated 100,000 prospectors to the Klondike region of the Yukon, in north-western Canada, between 1896 and 1899 -
Imperialism (1898-1910)
Imperialism is the state policy, practice, or advocacy of extending power and dominion, especially by direct territorial acquisition or by gaining political and economic control of other territories and peoples. Homestead Act (1862): provided 160 acres to anyone willing to settle on land in the west
Sherman Antitrust Act (1890): outlawed business monopolies -
1898
USS Maine explodes off the coast of Cuba, starting the Spanish American War -
Open Door Policy (1899)
initiated free trade with China -
Open Door Policy (1899)
initiated free trade with China -
Roosevelt Corollary (1904)
an addition to the Monroe Doctrine -
1906
: The Jungle by Upton Sinclair is published -
Meat Inspection Act (1906)
law that makes it illegal to adulterate or misbrand meat -
Pure Food and Drug Act (1906)
: regulation of the preparation of foods and the sale of medicines -
1909
NAACP Founded -
World War 1 (1914-1918)
World War I, also called First World War or Great War, an international conflict that in 1914–18 embroiled most of the nations of Europe along with Russia, the United States, the Middle East, and other regions. ... The war was virtually unprecedented in the slaughter, carnage, and destruction it caused. -
Federal Reserve Act (1914)
established the Federal Reserve, which helped stabilize the banking industry -
1914
Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated, starting World War I -
1915
Sinking of the Lusitania -
1916
National Parks System created -
1917
Zimmerman Telegram intercepted by the British, warned the U.S. of a proposed ally between Mexico and Germany The United States enters WWI on the Allied side Bolshevik Revolution in Russia begins, causing Russian troops to exit the war -
1918
Battle of Argonne Forest, considered the turning point of the war Germany surrenders to the Allied Powers -
President Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Points (1918)
statement of principles for peace after World War I, included no colonialism, freedom of the seas, and a League of Nations -
Treaty of Versailles (1919)
peace treaty that ended World War I, required Germany to accept full blame and pay war reparations as well as demilitarize -
18th amendment
prohibition is enacted and alcohol is illegal -
19th amendment
women are given the right to vote -
Roaring Twenties (1920-1929)
The 1920s in the United States, called “roaring” because of the exuberant, freewheeling popular culture of the decade. The Roaring Twenties was a time when many people defied Prohibition, indulged in new styles of dancing and dressing, and rejected many traditional moral standards. -
1922
Teapot Dome Scandal uncovered by the Wall Street Journal -
American Indian Citizenship Act (1924)
granted citizenship to any Native Americans born within the United States -
1925
Scopes Monkey Trial -
1927
Charles Lindbergh makes history by making a nonstop solo flight from New York to Paris -
Great Depression (1929-1939)
The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. It began after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. -
1929
stock market crash -
1930-1936
Dust Bowl -
20th amendment
adjusted the dates of the presidential terms -
1932
Franklin D. Roosevelt elected Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) established -
21st amendment
repeals the 18th Amendment and prohibition ends -
1933
: Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) established -
1934
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) established -
1935
Works Progress Administration (WPA) established -
Social Security Act (1935)
established the Social Security Administration, which provides unemployment insurance, aid to the disabled, old age pensions, and insurance for families -
World War 2 (1939-1945)
World War II, also called Second World War, conflict that involved virtually every part of the world during the years 1939–45. The principal belligerents were the Axis powers—Germany, Italy, and Japan—and the Allies—France, Great Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and, to a lesser extent, China. -
1939
Adolf Hitler invades Poland, starting WWII -
1941
Attack on Pearl Harbor -
1942
Battle of Midway -
Executive Order 9066 (1942)
incarceration of Japanese Americans for the duration of WWII -
Executive Order 9066 (1942)
incarceration of Japanese Americans for the duration of WWII -
1944
“D-Day” - Invasion of Normandy -
G.I. Bill (1944)
gives military veterans financial and educational benefits -
Early Cold War (1945-1960)
In June 1950, the first military action of the Cold War began when the Soviet-backed North Korean People's Army invaded its pro-Western neighbor to the south. Many American officials feared this was the first step in a communist campaign to take over the world and deemed that nonintervention was not an option. -
1945
The atomic bomb, “Little Boy” is dropped in Hiroshima, Japan (August 6) The atomic bomb, “Fat Man” is dropped in Nagasaki, Japan, ending World War II (August 9) -
1945
United Nations formed -
22nd amendment
prohibits anyone who has been elected president twice from being elected again -
Truman Doctrine (1947)
U.S. policy that gave military and economic aid to countries threatened by communism -
1948
Berlin Airlift -
Marshall Plan (1948)
program to help European countries rebuild after World War II -
1949
NATO established -
Civil Rights Era (1950-1970)
The civil rights movement was an organized effort by Black Americans to end racial discrimination and gain equal rights under the law. It began in the late 1940s and ended in the late 1960s. Although tumultuous at times, the movement was mostly nonviolent -
1950-1953
Korean War -
1951
Rosenbergs trial -
1952
First H-Bomb detonated by the United States -
Vietnam War (1954-1979)
Vietnam War, (1954–75), a protracted conflict that pitted the communist government of North Vietnam and its allies in South Vietnam, known as the Viet Cong, against the government of South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States. -
1955
Jonas Salk invents the Polio Vaccine -
Interstate Highway Act (1956)
authorized the building of a national highway system -
1957
USSR launches Sputnik -
1962
Cuban Missile Crisis -
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964)
begins undeclared war in Vietnam -
1965
Medicare and Medicaid established -
1968
Tet Offensive -
Tinker v. Des Moines
defined the First Amendment rights for students in the United States Public Schools -
End of the Cold War (1970-1991)
During 1989 and 1990, the Berlin Wall came down, borders opened, and free elections ousted Communist regimes everywhere in eastern Europe. In late 1991 the Soviet Union itself dissolved into its component republics. With stunning speed, the Iron Curtain was lifted and the Cold War came to an end. -
26th amendment
moved the voting age from 21 years old to 18 years old -
1971
Pentagon Papers leaked -
War Powers Act (1973)
law limited the President’s right to send troops to battle without Congressional approval -
1975
Fall of Saigon, marks the end of the Vietnam War -
1990s-21st Century (1990-present day)
technology has advanced -
Dollar Diplomacy (1909)
Taft’s policy of paying for peace in Latin America
