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US History Events

By Noah06037

  • Declaration of Independance (1776)

    This was when the Americans declared that they were independant of British rule. Originally, the goal with the Revolutionary War was to get better terms and representation with the British. However, this document, written by Thomas Jefferson and signed by the likes of Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Alexander Hamilton, transformed the war into a war fighting for independance.

  • Louisiana Purchase (1803)

    Thomas Jefferson, the president at the time, wanted New Orleans, which was under French control. He sent Robert Livingston and James Monroe to France to attempt to buy New Orleans for 10 million dollars. Livingston and Monroe were shocked when France offered to sell them the entire Louisiana territory for 15 million dollars. They agreed while overseas. This gave the US control of lots of land west of the Mississippi River and became one of the biggest land acquisitions in US history.

  • Civil War (1861-1865)

    With all the new territory, the pro-slavery and anti-slavery groups were each fighting to add the new territories to their side. Eventually, after Lincoln became president, southern states started to secede. The Union had superior troops and supplies, but the South nearly pulled off a victory with superior generals, such as Robert E. Lee. The turning point was at Gettysburg, where the Union earned a crucial victory. After the war was over, slavery was abolished.

  • Spanish/American War (1898)

    The US was looking to acquire even more land. After an explosion of the naval ship USS Maine, which many blamed on the Spanish, the US went to war with Spain. The war only lasted 3 months, and the Americans emerged as victors. The aftermath of the war assured that the Spanish colonial empire in the west would be ended and established the US as a global powerhouse. The United States gained control of Guam, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and Hawaii. In addition, Spain had to give up Cuba.

  • World War 1 (1914-1918)

    It started when the archduke of Austria-Hungary, Franz Ferdinand, was assasinated by a Serbian nationalist. In the war, the Central Powers (eg. Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and Austria-Hungary) were fighting against the Allied Powers (eg. France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, and Japan). America entered the war after Germany sunk a ship with Americans on board. Together, with America on their side, the Allied Powers managed to win the war.

  • Prohibition (1920-1933)

    Prohibition was started to lower crimes, increase the country's health and solve social problems. It banned alcohol in the United States. This led to a huge illegal network of selling alcohol, which may have contributed to the Great Depression. It was ended in 1933.

  • The Great Depression (1929-1933)

    This was the worst economic period in American history. It started when the stock markets crashed. Suddenly, thousands of people found themselves without jobs, food, or money as the banks had collapsed. Eventually, under Franklin Roosevelt's guiding hand, the worst of the turmoil passed.

  • World War 2 (1939-1945)

    The war started when Hitler invaded Eastern Europe, which made the UK and France declare war. The Germans took France early on. Eventually, Hitler struck a deal with the Soviet Union, but Hitler went back on his word and attacked. Japan bombed the US at Pearl Harbor, causing the US to get into the war. With the additional enemies, the Axis Powers were finished. Hitler killed himself in 1945, and later that year Germany surrendered. Japan was finished off with two nuclear bombs from the US.

  • Cold War (1947-1991)

    This "war" never had any battles, but it did have the two global superpowers competing against each other. The US believed in capatlism, and the Soviet Union was communist. The Cold War was all about these powers trying to find a way to break the other one down. They both tried to get as many nuclear bombs as they could, but they never used them. Eventually, after many years, the Soviet Union recieved a leader that was not a dictator, and the union fell apart.

  • Vietnam War (1955-1975)

    This war took place in the Cold War. A communist group was rising in North Vietnam and was threating to take over the entire country. The Soviets were gladly supporting this, as if Vietnam fell, the rest of Southeast Asia would as well (and maybe India as well). The US made the ill-advised decision to bring troops in against the highly trained combat troops of North Vietnam. Eventually, the US had to pull out because they were losing too many people, and Vietnam fell.

  • First Moon Landing (1969)

    This was another event in the Cold War. The US and Soviets were racing to see who could control space first. The Soviets completed the first ever launch into space, but it was the Americans who landed the first man on the moon. Neil Armstrong said the famous words, "That's one small step for man, and one giant leap for mankind."

  • 9-11 (2001)

    These were a series of terrorist attacks by the terrorist group al-Qaeda. Four planes were sent with terrorists on them. Two were overrun and crashed into the World Trade Center, killing everyone on the plane and most in the building. A third plane crashed into the Pentagon, killing everyone on the plane. The fourth plane saw a resistance from the passengers, and instead of crashing into the White House, it crashed in a field in Pennsylvania, killing everyone on board.