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First Permanent English Settlement in Jamestown
The first permanent settlement was in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. England sent them there to make them money. Jamestown was not based on religious freedom. The settlers were not experienced farmers so they were unsure of when to plant and when to harvest. Due to them not knowing when to farm led to a period of time called the Starving Time which killed 75% of the colonists. -
HeadRight System
The kingdom came up with a plan to help the settlers out in America. They gave 100 acres of land to whoever was already settled there, and 50 acres to new settlers who paid to go to the New World. Additionally, if someone was paying for someone else to go to the new world they would get 50 extra acres. -
First Slaves come to America
In 1619 was when the first slaves came to America. There were a total of 11 slaves. The slaves landed in Virginia. During the route to America around 50% of the slaves would die. -
Adams Presidency
Adams became president October 30, 1735. One of the things that happened while he was president was the XYZ affair. The XYZ affair consisted of three diplomats going to France to negotiate a treaty with France. -
French and Indian War
The war is also known as the 7 years war. It occurred between England and France due to them both wanting the land. France joined forces with the Natives due to the fact that the Indians wanted to maintain control over their land and the French didn’t want the British to take claim over more land. The war ended with the Treaty of Paris of 1763 when both of the countries signed it. -
Sugar Act
The Sugar Act reduced taxes on sugar and molasses to decrease the rate of smuggling those things. They lowered the tax to what it would be for the black market. The colonists still tended to buy from the black market rather than from the British market. -
The Quartering Act
This act forced colonists to allow British soldiers to house with them if they requested to do so. The people that the soldiers lived with would also have to provide them with food and drinks. Whilst the soldiers were staying in the houses they would keep tabs on the people that owned or lived there. -
Stamp Act
This act made people pay to get notarized/ stamped. It required them to pay the tax when dealing with any kind of document. The majority of the people that would use stamps were the rich people. -
Boston Massacre
Colonists were rebelling against the taxes. There had been skirmishes due to the colonists rebelling. There was a riot going on outside of a customs house. The colonists began harassing the soldiers because they couldn’t do anything about it, but then one of the soldiers got hit in the head with a rock and the soldiers started to fire. 5 people ended up dying. -
Boston Tea Party
The group known as The Sons of Liberty were annoyed with the tax on tea so they met up at a bar during the middle of the day. They had dressed up as Native Americans and ran to the ship that had all of the tea. They dumped what was worth over 1 Billion dollars worth of tea into the ocean. -
Shot heard round the world
The British Army wanted to capture Sam Adams and John Hancock in Lexington. When people heard about the red coats coming they road into other cities to warn them. Adams and Hancock had just fled and the soldiers were greeted with 70 militia men. One of the soldiers or militiamen fired their weapon and a battle began. -
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a group of delegates from the thirteen colonies. This group would have discussions about the taxes that were being implemented and how the kingdom treats them unfairly. They are known for making the Declaration of Independence and The Articles of Confederation. -
Battle of Saratoga
On September 9, 1777 England and the colonies engaged in a battle because England's army was trying to separate New England from the rest of the colonies. The colonies had fought for around 5 hours before they had defeated the British. -
Second Battle of Saratoga
After the British were defeated during the first Battle of Saratoga, Burgoyne was waiting for reinforcements to attack the colonies. Burgoyne grew impatient and decided to attack without reinforcements. The battle only lasted for about 2 hours before the colonies defeated the British yet again. The colonies were secretly receiving aid from the French, but after they heard about how they won the battle they openly came forward about assisting the colonies. -
Yorktown
The rebels found out that Lord Cornwallis was awaiting supplies and more soldiers in Yorktown. The rebels decided to take the opportunity to attack Cornwallis’s army. They fought for a grueling 3 weeks, taking significant losses and being largely outnumbered by the rebels, before Lord Cornwallis surrendered. -
Treaty of Paris
After the rebels won the Battle of Yorktown, the U.S. went to Paris to sign a treaty with England. This document recognized the U.S. as an independent nation. This ended the war of the American Revolution. -
Washington Retires
Washington retired retired in 1796. He established the president of only a two year term presidency. This later becomes the 22nd amendment in 1951. -
Shays Rebellion
After the American Revolution, the country was in debt so they implemented taxes on farmers to get out of debt. The farmers along with war veteran Daniel Shays rebelled against the government. This showed how weak the Articles of Confederation were. -
French Revolution
The French Revolution occurred because the French people overthrew the french monarchy by killing King Louis XVI. The US refused to get involved in the war. The Revolution lasted 10 years. -
Federal Judiciary Act
In Article III it never went over how exactly the court system would be developed. The first Congress established the Judiciary Act. The act covered how the court system would be developed. It established the federal court system from the state court system. -
Establishment of Presidential Cabinet
The cabinet was established because of Article II. It established the role to advise the president on any subject that involves the other duties of the members. They would help him make proper decisions if he ever needed help. -
Hamilton's Financial Plan
Hamilton’s plan was to help the country’s economy get out of debt. He wanted to combine all of the states debt so each state would equally pay the government to pay it off. He wanted to start the first national bank where the government put all their money. -
Whiskey Rebellion
The government put a tax on whiskey to help get money. A lot of farmers made whiskey to make some extra money. This caused an uprising about the tax. -
Pinckney's Treaty
Spain gave the Americans the right to freely travel on the Mississippi river. They also allow them to use the port of New Orleans. This secured the right to use the Mississippi river for the Americans. -
Alien, Sedition, Naturalization Acts
July 14, 1798 the three acts that are called alien sedation and naturalization acts were put in place. The naturalization act in increased the amount of time immigrants had to live in the US before they could become citizens. It changed from five years to 20 years. The alien act allowed the president to report. Any alien considered dangerous. The sedation made illegal for newspapers to print any material that is critical of the president. -
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions were laws passed by the governments of the two states in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts. Kentucky and Virginia were largely Anti-Federalists, so they didn't support Adams' attempt to seize power. The Resolutions introduced the idea of nullification, the idea that states had to power to declare Federal laws null and void. Although in this case nullification was used on a terrible law, it would later create an issue during Andrew Jackson's presidency. -
Revolution of 1800
The election of 1800 is sometimes referred to as the Revolution of 1800 because it was the first time that a party was democratically overthrown in US history. Since Adams pretty much had no chance of winning, it came down to if the election would result in a peaceful transfer of power. After the election, Jefferson was labelled as the victor and became President in a seemingly perfect transfer. However, behind the scenes, Adams had tried to create one more grab at keeping Federalist power. -
Jefferson Presidency
Jefferson won the election of 18 oh1 and this ended the federalist era. It began the Jeffersonian era. This victory in the resulting change in political ideology is known as the revolution of 1800. -
Louisiana Purchase
in 1803 Jefferson sons, James Monroe to negotiate the purchase of New Orleans for $3 million. The bully was interested unless they would take the entire Louisiana territory for $15 million. Jefferson decides to go forward with the purchase which doubles decides the country. The purchase also secures New Orleans in the Mississippi river for the US along with 828,000 square miles. -
Marbury v Madison
The night before Jefferson's inauguration as the president, Adams and the Federalists created a number of new courts that were to be filled with Federalist judges, a way to hold power. A letter to one of these judges, Marbury, was discovered by James Madison, who took it to Jefferson. Marbury attacked Madison in court stating that he had the right to the commission. In the end, Marbury won, and the Supreme court created the idea of judicial review, an idea that is instrumental to our government. -
Embargo of 1807
Great Britain and France were war again, and the US finally has a decent trading relationship with both of them so Jefferson wants to remain neutral. England wants the US to trade with France, but France also wants the US to stop trade with England. Jefferson imposes, and embargo on all four in trade. The embargo act is very unpopular among merchants traders in the business community, because this does a great damage to the American economy. -
War of 1812
It was a war between the UK and the US. The UK was taking American sailors and forcing them into service on British ships. The British army was using Native American resistance against the US. The UK provided the Natives with training and weapons. It ended in a tie. -
Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans was the last battle of the War of 1812, since the war ended prior to the battle. The American troops were led by Andrew Jackson and they had the goal of repelling a British invasion of New Orleans. Using pretty ingenious tactics of a trench wall around the only place the British could attacking and having everyone reload while only the best shots actual did the shooting, the battle was an American victory and propelled Jackson into popularity. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine was a US policy regarding Europe's affairs in the Western Hemisphere. Wanting to protect US influence in the Caribbean and Latin America, James Monroe created what would be known as the Monroe Doctrine, in simple terms stating that Europe should stay out of North and South America or else. This philosophy would dominate US foreign policy for a long time, and would be the basis of imperialism in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. -
Election of 1828
The candidates were Henry Clay,John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, William Crawford.No candidate received a majority of the electoral votes and the 12th amendment is a vote goes to the house of representatives,if none of the candidates receive a majority electoral votes.Henry is a speaker of the house so he drops out of the race, because he wasn’t in a distant third place. We had a meeting and no one knows what was discussed in the days following the meeting play publicly supports Adams. -
Tariff of Abominations
The Tariff of Abominations was called that by many Democrats and Southerners because of how much it hurt the Southern economy. Passed under John Quincy Adams, its goal was to support the Northern and Western economies by making the country more reliant on their goods. However, it ended up making it very expensive to live in the South and was one of the reason why John Quincy Adams' Presidency was despised by many of time, leading to Jackson's victory in 1828. -
Trail Of Tears
In 1830, the Indian Removal Act was enforced by the United States; forcing all Indian tribes to be moved east of the Mississippi River. By 1838, the US Government moved over 16,000 Cherokee Indians from their homes to a western location which now known as Oklahoma. This resettlement devastated both Indian civilization and Indian culture and was an addition to Indian resentment toward American’s; one crucial addition to any feelings of war. -
Transcontinental Railroad
The Transcontinental Railroad began in 1862 and was built to connect the East and West together. In 1869, the two sides being built finally met in Utah. This success brought America to a whole new level industrially and also made transportation much easier. The Transcontinental Railroad inspired many new transportation ideas and also allowed for migration to the Frontier; which led to violence and commotion between Americans and Indians. -
Battle of the Alamo
Texas, a state of Mexico, had recently opened its borders to any US citizen that wanted to live there. Mexico was hoping that they could increase the productivity of the region. However, the American population eventually got fed up with the requirements to live in Texas and revolted. The Alamo was a stronghold defended by Texan troops and some American heroes, all of which were killed in the battle. The result was that the US would join the war on the Texan's side, winning their independence. -
Gag Rule
The gag rule was an official rule of the US House of Representatives and Congress to never bring up the issue of slavery. This was because slavery was such a debated issue during this time that any mention of it would create so much tension that a brawl or massive argument would ensue. The gag rule hoped to keep Congress from breaking out in pure pandemonium and kicked actually trying to solve the problem even further down the road. -
Mexican Cession
The Mexican Cession of 1848 was due largely to dispute of over boundaries in Texas, in 1846. Congress eventually declared war with Mexico because a compromise was not being made. America and Mexico fought for over a year, when in 1848 the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo was recognized. This resulted in the expansion of America, and much conflict over slavery; which eventually led to the Civil War. -
Seneca Falls Convention
The Seneca Falls Convention was a meeting for the purpose of the women's suffrage movement and the official start of it. The goal of the Convention was to create a group that would try to change the inequality that women faced at that time. The convention was a success, but it wasn't so much for the abolition movement. Many supporters of abolition were also supporters of women's rights, but the convention caused a rift between those who prioritized freeing slaves or women's suffrage. -
Reservation Policy
In 1851, federal government began to assign Indian tribes large areas of land, which were referred to as reservations. These lands were made to specify Indian boundaries. The new policy, however, was ignored by most Indians, and they continued roaming freely. This policy led to Indian Wars and eventually the Dawes Severalty Act which limited land even more than the current policy. -
Dred Scott v Sandford
The Dred Scott case was one of, if not the worst, Supreme Court decision in history. The case was started by Dred Scott when his and wife, both slaves at the time, were moved to Minnesota by their owner. Despite the fact that Minnesota was a free state, they were still slaves, and this was their basis for the legal attack. The Court's decision was in favor of Sandford, stating that no slave was ever free, even if they go to a free state. -
Comstock Lode
The Comstock Lode was the first major silver discovery in American history. The discovery took place in Nevada, in 1859. This initial discovery led to the “Rush to Washoe”, and the event lasted for the next 20 years in the United States. The Comstock Lode led Nevada to finally gain statehood within the Union because it rapidly populated the state. However, by 1882 when the Comstock Lode ended, many left Nevada, and the state became an “economic and social wreck”. -
Battle of Fort Sumter
The Battle of Fort Sumter was the first true battle of the Civil War. The fort was positioned on South Carolina's coast, who had recently seceded from the Union. Fearful that the Union would use the Fort as a way to invade the state, the South Carolinian army attacked the Fort. The Battle was over fairly quickly, as the troops defending did not have any way to reinforce or supply themselves. The Battle had little significance towards the outcome of the war, but is important for being the first. -
Battle of Bull Run
The Battle of Bull Run was the first major battle of the Civil War and a major shock to the Union. They had gone into this battle believing that it would be an easy win and that the war would be over very quickly. However, the Confederate army manage to surprise the Union forces by fighting very well and managed to win the battle, forcing a Union retreat. The takeaway from the battle was that the Civil War would not be a quick and easy win for the Union, and showed the weakness in the Union army -
Homestead Act
he Homestead Act which was signed by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War in 1862, encouraged western migration by guaranteeing each citizen 160 acres of public land so long as they pay a small fee and complete a five-year residency on the land. This act led to the “distribution of 80 million acres of public land by 1900.” This newly granted land gave all citizens a fair chance and encouraged migration to the West. -
Emancipation Proclamation
With the Civil War finally turning toward a Union victory, Lincoln found it the right time to declare the official meaning of the war to be about freeing the slaves. The Proclamation made it so that any slave that was in captured territory prior to the proclamation was free, although it didn't free slaves in already captured territory. This did two things. One, it freed a lot of the slaves and led the border states to do the same thing. Two, it made sure foreign powers would intervene in the war -
Sand Creek Massacre
In 1864, Col. John Chivington led a small militia to attack Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians in Sand Creek, Colorado. While Indians had only just ventured to Sand Creek in order to escape American Military campaigning, over 250 Indians were murdered during on this day. This massacre was the beginning of war between Indians and Americans. -
13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment was the law that finally outlawed slavery in the United States. At this point the war was as good as over, and the Emancipation Proclamation had done its fair share when it came to freeing the slaves. The 13th was the nail in the coffin for slavery that ended it everywhere in the US, even if the state laws still allowed for slavery. Despite its success, the 13th did not help with making sure the new free blacks had any way to start their new life, leaving them on their own. -
Surrender at Appomattox
The Surrender at Appomattox was pretty much the end of the Civil War, even though some minor battles were fought here and there. The Battle of Appomattox was between the Union forces led by Grant and the Confederates led by Lee. Lee's army was severely outmatched by the Union forces, and so the Battle was over fairly quickly with Lee surrendering at the Appomattox Courthouse. With Lee's army out, the Confederacy had no hopes of fighting back, and the attempt at secession was over. -
Chisholm Trail
The Chisholm Trail was a route in Texas used for livestock. Its use began in 1867, and ended in 1884. It provided a source of steady income to Texas, which helped the state due to the recent Civil War. The trail inspired the cattle industry, which brought about the new settlement of cowboys. -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment was the follow up to the 13th Amendment that tried to help the new freed population out a little bit. After slavery was outlawed, many in the South feared that the new black voting population would lead to a "Colored Empire". White supremacists groups started killing blacks and those in power passed Black Codes that limited the right to vote and was pretty much slavery in everything but name. The 14th made it so that no law could limit the rights of anyone born in the US. -
15th Amendment
The 15 Amendment was another amendment created to try and protect blacks in the South. This Amendment states that no law could limit any man's right to vote. It was popular with freedmen, but garnered controversy among women, who believed that it would be very easy to grant them to right to vote as well through this Amendment. However, many man in power believed that it was best for women if they did not vote, and they would have to wait another 30+ for that right. -
Crime of 1873
The Crime of 1873 was another bill that led to an economic collapse. Previously, the country's currency was based on silver coins, but this law changed that and instead based the country's currency on the gold standard. It outlawed the use of silver as currency and made every dollar based instead on gold reserves that the country had. This bill was obviously met with backlash, hence the name, and resulted in one of the worst economic depressions in history. -
Little Big Horn
Little Big Horn Battle was fought on Little Big Horn river in central Montana. In 1876, Sitting Bull (Chief) and the rest of his Lakota Sioux tribe, as well as Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes fought against the 7th regiment of the US cavalry, under control of George Armstrong Custer and Major Reno. This battle was due to their cultural differences and many past disputes over territory. This battle resulted in a short victory to Sioux and Cheyenne tribes. -
Arrest of Boss Tweed
In the middle of the 19th century, the political machine known as Tammany Hall, run by Boss Tweed, was the largest in the country and controlled the political system of New York. However, this power came crashing down with the embezzlement of funds for the reconstruction of the NYC Court House. The fraud was exposed by the New York Times and political cartoonist Thomas Nast, and in 1976, Boss Tweed was arrest and Tammany Hall shut down, showing the populace no longer supported political machines -
Nez Perce War
This was yet another event where the U.S. tried to limit Indian rights. This event proves however, that Indians had the ability to fight back toward U.S. forces. Although the U.S. Army was able to take complete control over Indians, this war proved that Indians were able to fight back and to rebel against stronger forces. By not giving up, the non-treaty Nez Perce were able to inspire other Indians to stand up for themselves. -
Carlisle School
Richard Henry Pratt founded the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, 1879. Pratt’s purpose of this new school was to give Indians the ability to read- and to teach them how wrong “white-men” can be when the create new treaties, and indeed, that is what it did. -
Invention of the Edison Light Bulb
Although not the invention of the light bulb itself, Edison's bulb was the first long lasting and commercially viable light bulb. This invention was just one of the many inventions created by Thomas Edison out of his workshop in Menlo Park, which employed other inventors like Nikola Tesla. The long lasting light bulb itself is a great invention and changed the way that life was lived. Now, large parts of cities could be lit at night and people could easily and safely light up their homes -
Haymarket Square Riot
This riot started as a protest headed by leaders of the Knights of Labor union. As the days went on and the ground grew larger, the speakers and protesters themselves started to morph the ideas of the protest into more pro-socialist and anarchist views. As this happened, the crowd started to become more violent, and the Chicago police stepped in. The riot ended with 7 dead police officers and a large decline in the public image of unions since they were now seen as anarchists and violent -
Dawes Act
The Dawes Act was created in 1887, named after Henry Dawes, the author of the Act. This law allowed for the president to divide reservation land into small allotments for Indian families in Western territories. Indians were forced to practice the Agrarian culture now, which led to many deaths due to poverty, and disease. -
Ghost Dance Movement
Jack Wilson was then responsible for the new Ghost Dance phenomenon, which told people that as long as they all act reasonably and well (Don’t sin) then they would finally be granted equality and they would be granted happiness. Eventually, a new meaning was again added by the Plains Indians, which made Indians think they needed to drive American’s out of lands that were once theirs; eradication of whites. This movement led to even more dissatisfaction between Indians and Americans. -
Hull House Opens
Hull House was a settlement house in Chicago founded by Jane Addams. Settlement houses were communal buildings that often offered basic luxuries to the homeless, the poor, and/or immigrants that came to the US with very little possessions. These offerings included things like food, a gym, a small library or school, or even a place for staff or visitors to sleep. What made Hull House special was that it did not discriminate based on ethnicity, gender, or religion, making it truly diverse. -
Wounded Knee Massacre
On December 15th, Sitting Bull was shot by American forces. Chief Big Foot, being next on the list, led his people south to find safety. This battle ended the practice of the Ghost Dance Movement, as well as ended Indian Wars due to its brutality. -
"Cross of Gold" Speech
Given by William Jennings Bryan at the Democratic National Convention, the Cross of Gold speech was a rallying cry in favor of free silver and opposed to the idea of the Gold Standard Act, which was eventually passed by McKinley in 1900. This speech was in favor of bimetallism and supported the use of both silver and gold as acceptable forms of currency, which was being supported by the Bland-Allison Act. Bryan feared that switching to the gold standard would "crucify" America on a cross of gold -
Sinking of the USS Maine
The USS Maine was a US battleship stationed off the coast of Cuba to try and force Spain to stop putting down Cuban protests. However, one night, it mysteriously exploded, and with war and imperial fever at an all time high, along with yellow journalists like William Hearst, the American populace used the phrase "Remember the Maine! To hell with Spain!", leading to a war that would end with the US's first foray into imperialism with the Philippines and its growth into a major world power. -
Assassination of President McKinley
Done by a Polish-American anarchist, the assassination of President McKinley was important because it put then vice president Teddy Roosevelt in charge. Under McKinley, the Republican party was very accepting of big business and often took large donations and rarely took action to stop large trusts from forming. However, with Teddy Roosevelt now in charge, someone the Party feared as being uncontrollable, the Progressive Era began, bringing with it lots of social and political change. -
Anthracite Coal Strike
Shortly after taking office, TR had to deal with a large coal strike at a mine in Pennsylvania. Neither the workers nor the mine owners wanted to compromise and thus the strike continued for months and got bad enough that TR felt that he had to step in. However, for the first time, TR decided to support the workers instead of the business, showing his progressivism. He threatened to use the military to take over the mine if no compromise was found, which could be seen as a abuse of federal power -
Roosevelt Corollary
The Roosevelt Corollary is an addition to the Monroe Doctrine that stated that the US would intervene in the internal affair of Latin American countries if they have any internal issues that would put US influence at risk. As an example of Big Stick Diplomacy, it was often used as a means of protecting Latin America from European countries trying to collect debts, but at the same time protecting US investors and interest by threatening foreign powers with military force if they didn't mediate. -
The Jungle's publication
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, was a book written foremost to promote communism and to show the brutality of the workplace. However, the book's effect was that readers were given an extremely descriptive and disgusting view of the meat packing industry. This effect was realized and double-checked by TR, who then worked to get the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act, which were made to clean up the industry and created the FDA, an important administration even in modern times. -
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
One of the deadliest industrial disasters in US history, the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire started in a trashcan under a machine and flared up, killing 146 people, aged 14 to 46. More than just a terrible disaster, the fire showed to many the cruelty of the factory owners and their unwillingness to give rights or proper workplace safety to their workers, as many deaths could have been saved if the factory had a proper fire escape. Following this, workers' and women's' groups grew in size and activity -
Federal Reserve Act
The Federal Reserve Act created the Federal Reserve, hence the name, whose goal was to create a better and more flexible form of currency and to try and stop financial crisis by raising interest rates. The Federal Reserve accomplished its goals and provided a lot of much needed confidence in the banking system. Much like the Pure Food and Drug Act and the FDA, the Federal Reserve was very important then and continues to support the dollar and raise interest rates to stop inflation and crisis. -
Panama Canal is finished
The Panama Canal was started in 1904 following Panama's split from Colombia. The US had wanted a canal in Panama, which Colombia owned, and when they refused, the US funded the Panamanian rebels. After the split, Panama gladly accepted the building of a canal with the promise that the canal would be open to everyone, not just the US. This canal would prove to be extremely important for military and of course economic reasons and was the perfect showing of US influence in Latin American affairs. -
Sinking of the Lusitania
With the war raging in Europe, the US stayed committed to isolationism. However, many investors had put a lot of money in the Allies and it benefitted the country to see them win. To help, goods and materials were transported to the Allies on ships, including passenger ships. To combat this, Germany used unrestricted submarine warfare, resulting in the sinking of the Lusitania, and the death of 123 Americans. This soured US-German relations and Germany was forced to stop unrestricted sub warfare -
Wilson's 14 Points
Wilson's vision for the treaty that would end the war resulted in his 14 points, and including ideas like banning secret treaties. The main themes of the speech were that no one country should be blamed for the start of the war and that the fate of countries should be left to self-determination. His idea was to avoid Britain and France putting to harsh of conditions on Germany, like they ended up doing. The last point was the creation of a League of Nations that would work to stop future wars. -
18th Amendment
Similarly to the Women's Suffrage Movement, Prohibitionists had been fighting, sometimes literally with hatchets, for a ban of alcohol in the US for quite some time. With WW1 having put a massive reduction on alcohol's production and with many women and prohibitionists gaining rights and support in Congress, the 18th Amendment was created, starting Prohibition. Although a good idea on paper, the ban of alcohol was largely hated and rarely followed, leading to the growth of organized crime. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles was the treaty that officially ended WW1. Despite Wilson's wishes, the British and French wanted Germany to pay heavily for the war, resulting in a massive amount of war reparations as well as almost completely demilitarizing them. Along with this, the League of Nations was created, but the US refused to ratify the treaty or join the League. Thus, it couldn't do much and the harshness of the treaty left Germany broken and perfect for the rise of fascism. -
19th Amendment
The 19th Amendment, along with the 18th and 14th, were some of the most fought for laws in American history. The 19th gave women the free right to vote. Political support for women's suffrage was finally realized due to the way that women stepped into the workforce during WW1. While many men were not supportive of women in the workplace, they proved to many that women were supportive and loving of their country. This made fears of voting women subside for the most part and the amendment passed. -
The Charleston premiers
The musical theme of the 1920's was without a doubt jazz. The idea of jazz had origins in the music of the slaves in the South, and with the Great Migration seeing a lot of movement of African Americans to the North to fill jobs during WW1, music like jazz and blues came to the big cities. After some time, the music become very popular with a lot of people. One of the most popular songs was The Charleston, a song that had its own very popular dance named after and set the tone of the decade. -
National Origins Act
The National Origins Act was an act passed under Silent Cal that dealt with what many called an immigration problem. Many Americans, especially on the East coast, were concerned with the growing number of "New Immigrants", immigrants from South-East Europe that were usually poor, non-Protestant, and didn't speak a lot of English. This Act limited the amount of these immigrants to 2% of that ethnicity's population already in the US per year, and completely banned Asian immigrants. -
Scopes Monkey Trial
The Scopes Monkey Trial was a perfect case of the changing social dimension of the US versus the old. With new, non-Christian doctrines on the rise in the country, Protestant political leaders wanted to put a stop to it,leading to a law in Tennessee that banned the teaching of evolution in schools. However one teacher, John Scopes, taught it anyway and was sued by the state. Although he was found guilty, the trail was riveting and sparked debate over the issue between the old and new generations -
Black Tuesday
Although the US economy was flourishing during the 20's, the prosperity was accompanied with large amounts of debt, or credit, that banks were lending out for people to buy stocks on margin. This worked well for a while, but once one piece came out and a bank went broke due to over lending, the whole system fell apart. In a very quick process over the course of just a month, culminating on Black Tuesday, the US economy dropped drastically, leading to the Great Depression of the 1930's. -
Bonus Army
Often called Cox's Army, the Bonus Army was protest by WW1 veterans demanding that they should get their payment the government promised to give them for fighting in the war. Although the government said they would pay it by 1945, the Great Depression had put a strain on the veterans, and many desperately needed the money. In response to the protesters, Herbert Hoover called in the US guard and dispersed them, denying them of the money and making him even more hated by the people than before. -
Election of 1932
With the Great Depression officially starting in 1929, many US citizens were left out of a job and with little to no money to support themselves or there families. In response, Herbert Hoover had done very little, believing that the economy would right itself based on the idea of the invisible hand. However, this got him the reputation as a Do-Nothing President, so when Democrat FDR ran against him promising the enact major reform to bring the US out of the depression, he won handily. -
National Recovery Act of 1933
This act, along with the subsequent creation of the National Recovery Association and Public Works Administration, did a lot of work to create a more balanced and fair industrial work setting. It's major goals were to reduce unemployment, create fair trade codes, and to ultimately regulate the industry to remove inequality and prevent another collapse. It set a minimum wage for many jobs as well as, more importantly, creating industry standard prices to keep companies in check. -
Social Security Act
The Social Security Act is one of the most influential New Deal Act for the modern world, since Social Security is still around, although evermore obsolete. However, at the time it was very beneficial. The act had one major effect: getting the elder out of their jobs. Since they got paid by the government for retiring, Americans over 65 could leave to work force, making more room for the young working age Americans who desperately needed it, essentially creating jobs by getting rid of others. -
Court Packing Scandal
Although the New Deal was helping out the American populace right-leaning politicians despised it, saying that it gave too much power to the federal government. This extended even to the Supreme Court, which overturned many New Deal Acts as unconstitutional. To try and get his way, FDR created an act that would let him add new judges for every current judge over 70. While it didn't pass, and became quite the stain on his term, he eventually did get to pack the court after some judges retired. -
Pearl Harbor
At this point, WW2 had been officially raging on in Europe and Asia for 2 years. The Japanese, allied with the Germans, wanted complete control over the Pacific, which meant that they would have to take over US islands like Hawaii. This culminated in the bombing of Pearl Harbor, a surprise air bombing of a US naval base. Prior to this, FDR supported the Allies, but many in the US and Congress didn't want a war. This was enough for FDR to convince Congress to declare war meaning the US was in WW2 -
Executive Order 9066
Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, anti-Japanese sentiment hit an all-time high. With many Americans fearing that many Japanese on the west coast were spies working for the Emperor, FDR passed Executive Order 9066 that forced Japanese citizens of the West Coast into Internment Camps for a majority of the war. This was devastating for many families, as they were allowed limited possessions and time to sell houses, meaning by the time the war was over they had no home or money to return to. -
Atomic Bomb
With the Manhattan Project complete, the US had the capability to destroy entire cities with the atomic bomb. The war in Europe had ended, and Japan was the only country still standing against the Allies. While they were losing, Truman realized that the only way to make them surrender was a complete invasion of the mainland. This would have costed the lives of a million American soldiers, and seeing it as the best option, he decided to drop the nuke on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the war. -
Truman Doctrine
Although the war was over, the US faced another problem: the USSR and the spread of communism. With Eastern Europe under the control of the USSR, the US feared that they would try to spread to other capitalist nations. A plan to stop this came up in the form of the Truman Doctrine, defined in a speech to Congress to convince it to give funds to support anticommunists in Greece and Turkey. Using the idea of containment, the US would use economic and military support to stop communism abroad. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan, like the Truman Doctrine, was a form of containment to stop the spread of communism into the free world. The idea of the plan was that by giving a ton a American money to the nations recovering from WW2, like Germany, Japan, and France, they will see that capitalism is what provides the funds to save the country and thus reduce the threat of communism. Overall, this plan saw billions given freely to recovering nations, who saw massive improvements in infrastructure and economy -
NATO is formed
Following the splitting of Europe between the capitalist west and communist east, the two sides were on edge about an attack. Many in the US feared that the Soviets would try to spread communism by attack smaller capitalist nations. To stop this possibility, much of western Europe agreed to create a defensive alliance, NATO, stating that an attack against one is an attack against all. While it may not have directly stopped a war it brought members closer together in the fight against communism. -
Rosenbergs Executed
With McCarthyism and the Second Red Scare in the front of people's minds,fear of spies and communists in government was very strong. This led to the arrests of the Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Julius had worked on the Manhattan Project and was charged with giving nuclear secrets to the USSR. It seemed to police that he was the leader of a circle of communist spies, as a series of confessions eventually led to him, although Ethel may have been the real brains. Both were executed via electric chair -
Brown v Board of Education Decision
After years of fighting segregation in court, Thurgood Marshall and other NAACP attorneys got their biggest case with Brown v BoE. The Browns had their daughter's access to school denied because it was an all-white school, and she was forced to go to a far away and worse quality black school. The decision was unanimously that the Board's actions were against the 14th amendment and unconstitutional, putting an end to the idea of "separate but equal" and leading to the desegregation of schools. -
Launch of Sputnik
The launch of Sputnik by the USSR is generally regarded as the start of the Space Race. This period would see a fight between the academics of the US and USSR to try and prove that one side was better than the other in terms of science and technology. While it has less than noble origins, the start of the space programs would prove to be greatly beneficial to technology and science as a whole, as well as being a source of great national pride whenever accomplishments were met before the other. -
First Televised Presidential Debate
The first televised presidential debate where both candidates were present at the debate was between Nixon and JFK. While televisions weren't new, the amount of them in the public was, and thus Nixon, a seasoned politician, was unprepared for the television's affect. JFK came prepared for it, and this lead to mix results where those who listened to the debate claimed Nixon won and those who watched it thought JFK did, leading to the idea that JFK won out the election because of the television. -
Soviet Missiles Discovered in Cuba
On a routine fly-over of Cuba, an American U2 spy plane took photographs that led many to believe that the Soviets were building missile bases in the country in order to attack the US. Another lower fly-over proved these ideas, starting the Cuban Missile Crisis, the closest the world has been to nuclear war. Following this, JFK took measures to stop the Soviet missiles from reaching Cuba, and a close two week standoff would end in the Soviets backing down and the leader of the nation removed.