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Oct 12, 1492
The discovery of America by Cristopher Columbus
On this day, Christopher Columbus sailed the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María to the New World. -
Period: Oct 12, 1492 to
US history timeline
This is the United States history from the discovery of America to the invention of the airplane. -
The settlement of Jamestown
This was when Jamestown, the first permanent English colony in the new world, was settled. -
The French and Indian War
The French and Indian War started over the dispute about whether the English owned the Ohio River Valley and therefore if the Virginians and Pennsylvanians could settle there. The French opposed this. -
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party is when some of the residents of Boston were angry about the Tea Act, which said the colonies could only buy tea that came from the East India Company that was expensive and could not buy from anybody else that had lower prices, so the residents of Boston dressed up like Indians and dumped the tea into the Boston Harbor. -
The battles of Lexington and Concord
The battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military battles of the American Revolution. -
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence is the document which declares sovereignty of the American colonies from Great Britain. -
The Constitutional Convention
The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia and resulted in the creating of the American Constitution. -
The battle of Yorktown
The Battle of Yorktown is where the American troops led by George Washington, and the French troops led by General Comte de Rochambeau, beat the British troops who were led by General Lord Cornwallis. -
The Alien and Sedition Acts
The Alien and Sedition Acts were designed to deal with the threats involved in the “quasi-war” with France. -
The invention of the cotton gin
The cotton gin was designed by Eli Whitney to scrape the seeds out of cotton faster, and to reduce the work of slaves, however this backfired when cotton field owners bought more slaves to work the cotton gins. -
The Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase happened because Napoleon Bonaparte needed more money for war with Great Britain and did not need colonies in North America, so he sold it to the United States. -
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 started because the U.S. was angry that British sea captains were declaring American sailors as English deserters, and taking them to fight in the English navy against the French. -
The Missouri Compromise
In the Missouri Compromise, slavery was made illegal above 36°30′ parallel. -
Andrew Jackson’s Election
This is the date on which Andrew Jackson was elected president. -
The invention of the telegraph
The telegraph is a machine that sends messages in Morse code across land in wires. This invention allowed for very fast communication and connected the western states with the eastern states. -
The Trail of Tears
The Trail of Tears also known as the Indian Removal Act stated that land in the east, which Indians owned would be traded for an equal amount of land in the west, and therefore all Indians must leave their homes and belongings and march out west. -
The Panic of 1837
The Panic of 1837 was caused by the New York City banks suspending payments in specie (gold and silver), The Panic of 1837 also started one of the worst depressions in American history: the Bank Panic of 1837. -
The Mexican-American War
The Mexican-American War was started when the armies of the United States and Mexico fought over land claimed by both countries. -
The Compromise of 1850
The Compromise of 1850 was a group of five separate bills passed by the United States Congress in September 1850, which temporarily addressed a four-year political battle between slave and free states on the status of territories acquired during the Mexican–American War. -
The Firing on Fort Sumter
Early morning on 4/12/1861 the Civil War started by Confederate guns firing on Fort Sumter. -
The Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation states “that all persons held as slaves” within the rebellious states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”. -
Surrender at Appomattox Courthouse
At the surrender at Appomattox Courthouse Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General-In-Chief Ulysses S. Grant, all but ending the American Civil War. -
13th, 14th, 15th Amendments
The 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments made life in the United States easier for African-American people by freeing them from slavery and giving them the right to vote. -
Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C by John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865. -
Andrew Johnson’s Impeachment
The impeachment of Andrew Johnson was started on February 24, 1868, when the United States House of Representatives decided to impeach Andrew Johnson. -
The Organization of Standard Oil Trust
Standard Oil, in full Standard Oil Company and Trust, American company and corporate trust that from 1870 to 1911 was the oil business of John D. Rockefeller and associates, controlling nearly all oil making, processing, marketing, and moving in the U.S. -
The Pullman and Homestead Strikes
The Pullman Strike was a nationwide railroad strike in the United States that lasted from May 11 to July 20, 1894. -
The Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was an war between Spain and the United States in 1898 over land in the southwest United States. -
Theodore Roosevelt becomes president
Theodore Roosevelt became president on September 14, 1901 when former president William McKinley was assassinated on March 4, 1909. -
The invention of the electric light, telephone, and airplane
The invention of the electric light, telephone, and airplane helped modernize the United States and other countries around the world.
