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President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States. Even though he preferred remaining at peace, Wilson he prepared for entering World War I in the 1900's which made Germany very nervous. He got Congress to pass two pieces of legislation in 1916 to prepare for the possibility of U.S. involvement in the war. They expanded the side of the army, and built more warships. Wilson still worked to avoid involvement, though. -
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Archduke Francis Ferdinand
Archduke Francis Ferdinand was the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary. On a routine visit to Sarajevo, Archduke and his wife were assassinated by young Bosnians who believed that Bosnia rightfully belonged to Serbia, and named Archduke as a tyrant. Their assassinations shocked people around the world sparked conflict when Kaiser William II assured Austria-Hungary that Germany would be an ally. When Serbia didn't cooperate with investigation for the assassinations, war was declared. -
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President Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding was the 29th President of the United States. In the 1900's, Warren rejected Wilson's ideas while running for Presidency and campaigned to return to, "normalcy." In 1913, Harding won the election and was voted into office. He completely removed America from world affairs and turned America into the world's largest creditor nation in which other countries demanded American goods. -
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Militarism
Militarism is the the belief or desire of a government or people that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests. Countries used militarism and built their military's strength when they had decided that World War I would come, but they were unaware of when exactly it would begin. Years passed by, and each country's military strength increased so that when needed, they were prepared to fight in a war. -
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Nationalism
Nationalism helped contribute the start of World War I. Nationalism is the devotion to one's nation. Nationalism created tensions between countries when Europeans rejected the belief that a nation is a collection of different ethnic groups, and instead started to believe that a nation should express the nationalism of a single ethnic group. -
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Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism is the idea that all beings including humans, plants, and even animals compete constantly for exisitance where natural selection results in "survival of the fittest." Social Darwinism was applied to human society when Social Darwinists believed that the best nation would come out ahead in the constant competition among countries. This idea led to Militarism, which helped lead to the start of World War I. -
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The Great Migration
During World War I, African Americans and women siezed opportunities. African Americans seized the opportunity to migrate to the North away from the South in search for a better life. Over 6 million African Americans migrated during this time period. -
The Convoy System
The United States made a huge impact on World War I. They helped defend their allies against enemy forces, and helped put an end to the German U-Boat attacks. To defend against the U-boats, they formed the Convoy System where groups of merchant ships sailed together by warships. -
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World War I
World War I was the first huge battle to involve many countries around the world. In the process, thousands of people have died, including innocents. World War I had a huge impact on the world we see today. -
Germany Invades Belgium
In an attempt to capture France quickly, Germany invaded neutral Belgium. In the process, Germany destroyed innocent villages, killed innocent people, and angered America. Worried America would interfere in the war, and to stall America from declaring war against Germany, Germany, again, assured that it would not happen again. This was another contribution to America declaring war on Germany. -
Germany Sinks Lusitania
A ferry containing a lot of people as well as goods was torpedoed by a German U-boat for carrying contraband goods. America became enraged that Germany would commit such a horrendous act against innocents. In hopes they would calm the Americans down, they promised that they would stop attacking innocents. Germany's actions helped contribute to America declaring war on them. -
The Zimmermann Telegram
The Zimmermann Telegram was a telegram sent from the German Empire to Mexico in an attempt to form an alliance if America entered World War I. This telegram was intercepted and decoded by British intelligence and sent to America. This led to America declaring war on Germany, and causing America to become involved in World War I. -
The Selective Service Act
In preparation for World War I, Congress passed the Selective Service Act in which they could draft young men to serve in the army in Europe. Although many men accepted the draft, there were also those who rejected it and eventually were arrested and sentenced to jail. -
The Great German Offensive Fails
General John J. Pershing was the commander of American forces in Europe. He led a small American force into France to help the allies defend against Germany's forces. In 1918, large numbers of American troops finally arrived to France. Near March of 1918, German forces were exhausted from counterattacks, and eventually was defeated. -
The Espionage Act
Due to the high amounts of resistance against the draft, Congress passed the Espionage Act to prohibit reasonable or seditious newspapers, magazines, or printed materials from the mail, as well as the ability to punish any person engaging in disloyal or treasonable activities. -
Influenza
After the war, an unsually deadly form of the Influenza virus spread in America. This deadly version of the flu is believed to be the bird flu that mutated to spread to humans that originated in the United States and spread around the world. This deadly virus killed millions worldwide. -
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Inflation
During the war, prices for goods rose, and when the war ended the prices fell sharply. This made it difficult for farmers to pay their mortgages or purchase the supplies they needed for the next farming season. Americans rushed to purchase consumer goods rather than war bonds, and due to the scarcity of those goods along with the widespread demand for them, inflation occured. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties signed at the end of World War I. This peace treaty ended the war between Germany and the Allied Powers in 1919 when it was signed. This treaty forced Germany to accept full responsibility for their actions in the war as well as causing the war to begin with, limit its military, and give up territories it acquired. This treaty angered Germany which led to the rise of the Nazis, Hitler's rule, and the start of WWII. -
Women and African Americans Lose Job Opportunities
After the war ended, by 1920, the opportunities women and African Americans seized while the men were at war fighting were gone. Job opportunities became competitive due to the postwar recession. Less women were given jobs and were seen in the workplace than during the war. -
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The Great Depression
The Great Depression was a time period in which many people suffered from poverty due to recent blows in their economy. Many people lost their jobs, their investments. Eventually, America called for her loans to Germany which led to Hitler's rise to power who eventually started World War II. -
The Tulsa Race Riot
After the war, veterans rioted at a courthouse when an African American man named Dick Rowland was arrested and in court for the accusation of sexually assulting a woman operating the elevator he was in at the time. When the African American community showed up to support him, the riot broke out when the races began fighting against each other, which resulted in many deaths. Homes got destroyed, as well as looted. -
President Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover was the 31st President of the United States. In World War I, Hoover was the founder of the Belgium relief program and then as head of the Food Administration. During the Great Depression, Hoover attempted to combat it with tariffs, work projects, and increases in taxes. His efforts did not go far for the Great Depression, though. -
Black Tuesday
Many people trusted the stock market more than they should have. They invested a lot of their money, if not all, into the stock markets with the idea in their heads that the economy would only continue improving until the stock market crashed. On Black Tuesday, many people had lost their investments bringing America into the Great Depression. -
The Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act
Out of desperation, the American government passed the Hawley-Smoot Tariff to raise U.S. tariffs on over 20,000 imported goods to record levels. In retaliation, the Europeans did the same causing the Hawley-Smoot Tariff to backfire on America causing more depression.
