1900-1920

By jillianyuan

  • The formation of United States Steel

    J.P Morgan oversaw the formation of United States Steel. The merger of Andrew Carnegie's Carnegie Steel Company and Elbert H. Gary's Federal Steel Company and seven other leading steel companies to become the world's first billion dollar company.

  • Meat Inspection Act and Pure Food and Drug Act

    Inspired by Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, which exposed the horrific and unsanitary meatpacking factories. The Act set certain standard sanitary precautions for consumer safety and to make sure factories were not sending out tempered meats and goods.

  • Henry Ford invents the Model T engine

    When Ford invented the Model T engine, he revolutionized the car industry. He was able to sell his car for cheaper then the cars before its time, which allowed the majority of American households to own a car

  • Triangle Shirtwaist Factory

    In 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory caught on fire. The doors were chained shut by the managers to prevent unauthorized breaks by the employees. While the managers quickly escaped, they left the employees to die, which 146 of them did. This spurred reform among the working class.

  • Ford invents the assembly line

    Ford was the first man to invent the moving assembly line which revolutionized the car-producing world. It allowed Ford's company to produce cars in more than half the time it took to produce by hand.

  • World War I

    When Archduke Ferdinand and Grand Duchess Sophie were assassinated, Austria secured the promise of aid from its German ally and issued a list of ten ultimatums to Serbia. When Serbia refused to meet the demands Austria made a declaration of war on Serbia, beginning World War I.

  • America joins WWI

    When Germany sank the RMS Lusitania killing many American soldiers, along with ongoing submarine warfare and the Zimmerman Telegram, Congress decided it was best to declare war on Germany, thus entering World War I.

  • The Fourteen Points

    Wilson presented the Fourteen Points to Congress, dealing with territorial issues but offered principles on which a long term peace could be kept. Form the Fourteen Points stemmed the League of Nations, which was charged with keeping a worldwide peace. Congress shot the League of Nations down, thus making the U.S the only nation not joining the League.

  • The Nineteenth Amendment ratified

    The battle for women's suffrage had been waging for awhile. Women desired better pay and the vote. In 1918, Wilson announced his support for the women's suffrage amendment and it was ratified in 1920. This amendment gave women from all backgrounds the vote