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U.S. enters WWI
Declaring war on Germany (April 6, 1917) -
Leagues of Nations meets for the first time.
U.S. is not represented (Jan. 13).
Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, prohibiting the manufacture, sale, and transportation of liquor (Jan. 16).
It is later repealed by the Twenty-First Amendment in 1933. Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, granting women the right to vote (Aug. 18).
President Wilson suffers a stroke (Sept. 26).
Treaty of Versailles, outlining terms for peace at the end of World War I, is rejected by the Senate (Nov. 19). -
Fair Labor Standard Act
Setting the first minimum wage in U.S . at 25 cents per hour. -
World War II
U.S. declares its neutrality in European conflict (Sept. 5, 1939). Japan attacks Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines (Dec. 7, 1941). U.S. declares war on Japan (Dec. 8).
Germany and Italy declare war on the United States; U.S.
First atomic bomb is detonated at Alamogordo, N.M. (July 16)
U.S. drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan (Aug. 6).
U.S. drops atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan(Aug. 9).
Japan agrees to unconditional surrender (Aug. 14). -
United Nation is established
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Vietnam War
President Truman authorizes $15 million in economic and military aid to the French, who are fighting to retain control of French Indochina, including Vietnam. As part of the aid package, Truman also sends 35 military advisers (May 1950).
North Vietnamese torpedo boats allegedly attack U.S. destroyer in Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of North Vietnam (Aug. 2,1964).
U.S. planes begin bombing raids of North Vietnam (Feb. 1965). -
Korean War
President Truman, without the approval of Congress, commits American troops to battle (June 27).
President Truman removes Gen. Douglas MacArthur as head of U.S. Far East Command (April 11, 1951). -
Miranda V. Arizona
Landmark Supreme Court decision further defines due process clause of Fourteenth Amendment and establishes Miranda rights (June 13). -
Persian Gulf War
U.S. leads international coalition in military operation (code named ―Desert Storm‖) to drive Iraqis out of Kuwait (Jan. 16–Feb. 28). Iraq accepts terms of UN ceasefire, marking an end of the war (April 6) -
Oklahoma Bombing
Bombing of federal office building in Oklahoma City kills 168 people (April 19)