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Shays' Rebellion
An armed uprising in Massachusetts led by Daniel Shays, a former captain of the Continental Army. It was a rebellion of local farmers that were uprising against state and local enforcement of tax collections and judgments of debt. Bad harvests, economic depression, and high taxes threatened farmers with the loss of their farms. -
Constitutional Convention of 1787
Delegates from the various states met in the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. Edmund Randolph proposed the Virginia Plan calling for a strong national government with both branches of the legislative branch determined by population. There was a series of compromises discussed, but they were mainly discussing how to number the votes since more states were more largely populated than others. The Constitution was signed on September 17. -
3/5 Compromise
Slavery was legal in southern states so they wanted slaves to count as population for determining the House of Representatives. However, they opposed counting slaves for the purpose of taxation. Northern states opposed counting slaves as population since they were claimed and treated as property but favored counting them for the use of taxation. The compromise was 3/5 of slaves would count as population for the House of Representatives and 3/5 would be counted for the purpose of taxation. -
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
This created the Northwest territory which was the first organized territory of the United States. It created 5 new states between Ohio and the Mississippi River. The territory prohibited slavery inside of it which established the Ohio River as a boundary between free and slave states. -
Orders in Council
This forbade French trade with the UK and its allies. These severly affected trade among the US and other countries. The UK saw the rising tensions and eventually repealed the orders, but the news didn't get across the ocean to America in time before they declared war on the UK whiuch started the War of 1812. -
Battle of Tippecanoe
Tecumseh and his brothers fought William Henry Harrison because they opposed US expansion into Native American territory.Tecumseh warned his brothers not to attack. The Natives ended up losing when they ran out of ammunition. After the battle, the Natives left Prophetstown, where they lived, and Harrison and their men burned it to the ground. -
Siege of Detroit
It was an early part of the Anglo-American war. A British force and Native American allies intimidated William Hull into surrendering the fort and Detroit. The British victory didn't last long when soon after a year of the siege they were forced to give it to Canada because of a defeat on Lake Eerie. -
Burning of Washington
It was an attack on the War of 1812 between the US and Britain. After defeating the Americans at the Battle of Bladensburg, a British force occupied Washington and burned down many important buildings incuding the White House. This is the only time since the Revolutionary War that that another country has captured and occupied the US capital. -
Missouri Compromise
In 1819, Missouri requested admission into the Union as a slave state. This created tension in the US COngress. So, they came up with the Missouri Compromise which granted Missouri as a slave state, but also admitting Maine as a free state to maintain the balance. It also drew an imaginary line across the nation seperating slave and free states. -
Compromise of 1850
It was a series of 5 bills that tried to control the spread of slavery into new territories in order to keep the North and South balanced. Several things came from this. Caifornia entered as a free state, New Mexico and Utah got to decide if t=slavery would be legal there, the slave trade in DC was abolished, and many more. -
Kansas-Nebraska Act
This created popular sovereignty which allowed states to decide if they would be slave or free states. This bill overturned the Missouri Compromise. Of course, this created conflict between pro-slavery and anti-slavery settlers. The disagreements led to a period of violence known as Bleeding Kansas. -
Abraham Lincoln Elected President
Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th president of the United States and first Republican president. He gained publicity during his campaign in 1858 for a Senate seat. This campaign was on the issue of slavery. Lincoln was arguing against the spread of slavery. He only received 40% of the popular vote but won the electoral college. -
Battle at Fort Sumter
This battle was the surrendering of Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina. After 7 states seceded from the South, South Carolina demanded that the US Army abandon its facilities in Charleston. They moved to Fort Sumter and the Confederates attcked. After 34 hours of fighting, the Union surrendered. -
First Battle of Bull Run
This was the first major battle of the American Civil War. Each side had about 18,000 solders that wer poorly trained. The Union was slow in positioning themselves for war allowing the Confederates to arrive faster by railroad. The Confederates ended up winning after an unorganized attempt at a retreat on the Union side. -
Battle at Yorktown
This was part of the Peninsula Campaign during the American Civil War. The Union General planned a huge bombardment of the Confederate Army that would happen on May 5, but the Confederate Army slipped away during the night on May 3 and went towards Williamsburg. -
Battle of Jackson
This battle was fought in Jackson, Mississippi. The Union and the Army of Tennessee defeated the Confederates by seizing the city and cutting off supply lines. The Union win of this battle gave the North control of New Orleans. This battle also saddened the spirits of the Confederate soldiers.
