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1800 – The White House
The construction of the White House began in 1790s. It was until 1800 that an American President came to live in it for the first time. Although it was still unfinished at the time, President John Adams and his wife Abigail Adams took up residence in the White House. Thus began the long tradition of White House becoming the seat of U.S. presidents. -
1800 – Washington D.C. becomes the capital of USA
In 1800, President John Adams took up his seat at the White House in Washington D.C. At the same time, Washington also became the new capital of USA. -
1800 – Library of Congress is established
In 1800, the parliament and government buildings were being moved to the new capital of Washington D.C. At the same time, Congress decided to establish a library as well. A new legislation was approved by President John Adams which set aside a sum of $5000 to purchase the books for the establishment of the library. -
1801 – Thomas Jefferson becomes the 3rd President of USA
Thomas Jefferson was one of the most famous Founding Fathers of USA. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence which first spoke of an independent country for the American states. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson became the 3rd President of United States. -
1803 – Louisiana Purchase doubles the size of USA
The Louisiana Territory was a large piece of land in the centre of modern-day USA. It stretched from the Mississippi River in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west and from the Canadian border in the north all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. The USA originally wanted to buy the New Orleans port located at the mouth of the Mississippi River on the Gulf of Mexico. -
1804 – The Lewis and Clark Expedition begins
President Thomas Jefferson decided to send an expedition into the lands west of the Mississippi river. This expedition became known as Lewis and Clark Expedition. It was so named because it was led by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Lieutenant William Clark. The expedition would take more than a year to complete. -
War of 1812 starts
In 1812, Britain was fighting a war with the French Empire. The British Royal Navy blockaded France to stop it from trading with other countries, including America. This angered some people in USA. -
1812 – Louisiana becomes the 18th state of USA
By 1812, the population was large enough so that a new state was established west of the Mississippi River. This became known as the state of Louisiana. It became the first state to be established west of the Mississippi River and became the original boundaries of the USA. -
1813 – Battle of Thames is fought
War of 1812 was still ongoing in 1813. The Battle of Thames was fought in Chatham, Ontario. It was fought between American troops and an alliance of British and Indian forces. The Indian tribes were organized under the famous Native American leader Tecumseh. American forces gained a decisive victory in the battle and Tecumseh was killed. -
1815 – Battle of New Orleans takes place
The Battle of New Orleans took place on January 8, 1815. Major General Andrew Jackson, was later became the U.S. President, led the American troops. The battle resulted in a decisive American victory with heavy losses on the British side. -
1816 – Indiana becomes the 19th state of USA
American settlers had been settling in the lands of modern-day Indiana by the early 19th century. This led to many conflicts with the local Native American tribes. After many battles, the American forces stood victorious and white settlers became secure in their land ownership. This finally led to the establishment of the state of Indiana in 1816. It effectively became the 19th state of USA. -
1819 – Missouri Compromise is reached
By 1819, USA had 22 states. These include 11 free and 11 slave states. There was bitter rivalry in the Congress between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions. In 1819, Missouri sought to be admitted as a new state. It was a slave state, so admitting it would have given slave states a majority in the Congress. -
Economic crisis known as ‘Panic of 1819’ occurs
The Panic of 1819 was a widespread economic crisis that hit USA in 1819. During the previous decade or so, many Americans had gone into the west, settled, built farms and houses and started businesses. They took loans from state banks but were unable to repay these loans later. This, and many other factors, contributed to the Panic of 1819. The economic crisis continued until 1821 although the American economy didn’t fully recover until 1824. -
1823 – The Monroe Doctrine is put forward as an official US policy
1823, President James Monroe announced a new policy. According to this policy, European colonial powers were barred from colonizing any part of the American continent in the future.
The policy aimed to put an end to the European ambitions in Central and Latin America. -
1828 – Andrew Jackson becomes the U.S. President
In 1828, Andrew Jackson was elected the 7th President of the United States. His presidency marked the rebirth of the Democratic Party in American politics. During his term, Jackson played a major role in relocating the Native Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi river. This relocation eventually became known as the Trail of Tears. -
1830 – The Oregon Trail is established
In the 1830, American settlers started traveling to the Oregon Territory. This was a very long journey and the route that was popularly used for making the journey famously became known as the Oregon Trail. The trail was first followed and established by settlers in 1830. It ran for around 2,000 miles, starting in Missouri and culminating in Oregon. -
1830 – Indian Removal Act is passed
In 1830, the Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson. This law gave him the power to relocate Indian tribes living east of Mississippi river to the western territories. -
1832 – Black Hawk War takes place
1832, large numbers of American settlers were arriving in Illinois. The Native Americans who lived in the area resented them because they took their lands.Sauk Native Americans under Black Hawk attacked the settlers and fought them. Then in 1832, a U.S. army arrived in the area and this led to a war between the two sides. The war lasted for 15 weeks. It resulted in the defeat of the Sauk warriors and Black Hawk was taken prisoner. -
1835 – Texas Revolution begins
1835, Texas was still a part of Mexico. Mexico, which had previously been ruled by Spain, was now an independent nation under the dictatorship of General Lopez de Santa Anna. Although the American settlers in Texas were relatively independent, Santa Anna now wanted to impose his control over them. This led to a conflict. -
1836 – Battle of the Alamo is fought between Mexican troops and Texians
Battle of Alamo was fought as a part of the Texas Revolution. It took place in February, 1836. The Texan volunteer soldiers had taken control of the fort of Alamo. This fort was previously in control of the Mexican forces. -
1836 – Republic of Texas is established
Battle of the Alamo, the Texans decided that they could no longer live under the rule of General Santa Anna. So they met in a convention in March, 1836. At the convention, Texas was declared as independent from Mexico. The Republic of Texas was established at the same time. -
1836 – Battle of San Jacinto takes place
The Battle of San Jacinto took place as a part of the Texas Revolution. It was fought between the Texas militia and a large Mexican army under General Santa Anna. The Mexican army was decisively defeated and General Anna was taken prisoner. He was later released when he signed a treaty and recognized the independence of Texas. -
1837 – US Economy is hit with the Panic of 1837
1830s, the policies of the U.S. government under President Andrew Jackson created an economic crisis. This economic crisis became known as the Panic of 1837. During this crisis, unemployment rates increased while profits became low and prices went up. The crisis lasted until the mid 1840s. -
1845 – Great New York City Fire burns down most of the city
1845, an accidental fire broke out in New York City. The fire started in a dense part of Manhattan and quickly consumed a large number of buildings, especially the ones which had wooden components. After the fire, the city administration decided to impose building codes more strictly. The new codes restricted the use of wooden frames or structures in the building in denser parts of the city. -
1846 – Mexican-American War begins
President James K. Polk wanted to take these lands and make them a part of USA. So he moved American soldiers in a border area of Mexico. Mexico responded by attacking these soldiers. USA then declared war, defeated the Mexican army in a number of battles, and occupied one-third of Mexico. By 1847, US forces had captured Mexico City, the heart of the Mexican Republic. -
1848 – The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo is signed
The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo marked the end of the Mexican-American War. According to this treaty, Mexico gave up all its land possessions north of the Rio Grande River, significantly increasing the size of USA. The new land later became the states of Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, California, Arizona and Colorado. -
1848 – California Gold Rush begins
In 1848, gold was discovered in California. At the time, very few people lived in the area. The news of the discovery of the gold spread quickly. -
1854 – Gadsden Purchase is made
In 1854, USA signed a treaty with Mexico. According to this treaty, USA purchased 29,670 square miles of area in the southwest. This area comprises the modern-day southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. In exchange for the land, US paid $10 million to the Mexican government. -
1860 – Abraham Lincoln becomes the President
1860, there was a very strong disagreement between the slave and free states. The slave states in the south supported slavery and opposed Abraham Lincoln was who opposed to slavery.
Free states in the north support Abraham Lincoln and opposed slavery. In the 1860 Presidential Elections, Abraham Lincoln was elected as the President of the United States. The slave states didn’t like the outcome, so many of them started to leave the Union and declare independence. -
1861 – Confederate States of American break away from the Union
1861, a number of states had broken away from the Union. These states then joined together to become the Confederates States of America. Initially, the Confederacy comprised of 7 states. These included Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas. Later the same year, four more states joined the confederacy. These included North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia and Tennessee. -
1861 – American Civil War begins
1861, the free states were at one side and known as the Union. At the other side were the slave states which were known as the Confederacy. War began between the two sides on April 12, 1861. -
1861 – First Battle of Bull Run is fought
The First Battle of Bull Run was the first major battle in the American Civil War. It was fought in July, 1861. Nearly 35,000 Union troops fought with 20,000 Confederate soldiers. The Confederate army was able to defeat the Union troops who retreated back to Washington D.C. The battle was fought near a small river called the Bull Run. -
1862 – The Homestead Act is passed
In 1862, the Homestead Act was passed by the US government. This act said that any American citizen can go into the western territories and claim up to 160 acres of land if he can settle on the land and farm it for at least 5 years. Within the next few years, 15,000 people had gone into the west and established their claims. -
1863 – Battle of Gettysburg takes place
The Confederate army under General Robert E. Lee had just secured a major victory. This army ran into the Union’s Army of the Potomac on its way to Pennsylvania.
This resulted in the Battle of Gettysburg. The battle was hard fought and both sides suffered heavy losses. The Union army suffered around 23,000 casualties while the Confederates suffered around 25,000 casualties. The Confederates failed to break through the lines of the Union army and had to retreat, resulting in a Union victory. -
1863 – Abraham Lincoln delivers the Gettysburg Address
President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address which has since become the best-known speech in the history of USA.In this speech, Lincoln spoke about the principles of equality and humanity. He also use the famous phrases – the government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.