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Aug 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus
In 1492 Columbus sail the alantic ocean with three ships and spain on his side. Queen isabella gave him these ships along with an army of men. -
Jan 1, 1500
Americo Vespucci
This was the year he traveled the seas and up the coast of South America. He brought back to his country, the idea that the Americans were new Continents. -
Education
In Massachusetts the law required that every town own a school. The year that the first american college, harvard, was build was 1636. Typically only whites went to school, not blacks or indians. -
Bacon's Rebellion
In 1675 a conflict between Nathaniel Bacon and William Berkeley erupted. Bacon didn't agree with Berkely, he refused Bacon a piece of the Indian fur trade. -
The Enlightenment
The product of great scientific and intellectual discoveries. This time period encouraged men and women to look to themselves and there own intellect, not just God. -
Spread of Science
In this year Benjamin Franklin demonstrated using a kite, that lightning and electricity were the same thing. The spread of science was one of the greatest influences in the enlightenment. At this time Puritans believed by infecting people deliberately with a mild case of small pox they would become immuned. -
Revolutionary War
This date was the date of Bunker Hill which is one of the battles of the war. This war start with a small battle at Lexington between the British and american settlers in 1775. At the war at Bunker Hill the patriots suffered severe casualties and retreated. -
The Great Compromise
This was the date the convention created a grand comittee. This compromise created a two house legislature. They agreed that slaves would only be represented by 3/5's aperson. -
The Constitution of 1787
On this date in history, thirty-nine delgates signed the Constitution. This document included the idea of checks and balances and popular sovereignty. James Mason was the biggest influence towards the Constitution. -
Federalists
This is the date which Rhode Island elected delegates to ratifying coventions. But even before the conventions started a national debate about the convention between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists had already existed. The Federalists were the party to agree with the Constitution. -
Anit-Feferalists
On this day the Anti-Federalists were in disagreement against the Federalists. The Anti-Federalists declared that their rivals had nothing to offer except opposition. Consisted of Patrick Henry and Samuel Adams. -
The Industrial Revolution
This was the year that Eli Witney produced the cotton gin. The Industrial Revolution brought more modernized techniology to America. -
The Election of 1800
This was the election betwee Jefferson and John Adams. Adams accused Jefferson of being a dangerous radical and Jefferson accused Adams of being a tyrant. Jefferson won the Republican party over Aaron Burr on the 36th ballot. -
The Louisiana Purchase
On this day Livingston and Monroe signed an agreement with Napoleon over the Louisiana Territory. The United States agreed to pay $15 Million for the land. -
The War of 1812
On this date American forces seized control of Lake Erie. This was all thanks to Oliver Hazard Perry who engaged and dispersed a British fleet at Put-in Bay. In the summer of 1812 American forces invaded canada through Detroit. -
The Monroe Doctrine
James Monroe announced a policy that would be known as the Monroe Doctrine. This document established the idea of the United States as the dominent power in the western hemisphere. -
Andrew Jackson
Thousands of Americans from around the region crowded before the capitol to witness the inauguration of Andrew Jackson. He was known for embracing the theory of democracy. -
Telegraph
Samuel Morse began experimenting with the telegraph and was fascinated by the possibilities so he developed the Morse Code. The telegraph was a dramatic advancement over other traditional methods of communication. -
Salvery
In this year about 400 slaves were freed from John Randolph. Over 250,000 free blacks lived in the slaveholding states by the beginning of the civil war. -
Education
In 1837 the Massachusetts Board of Education was created and ran by Horace Mann. By the 1850's the principle of tax supported elementary schools was established in every state. -
Fredrick Douglass
He was Born in 1838 and escaped to Massachusetts. He was one of the greatest African American abolishionists of all time and one of the most electrifying orators of his time. -
Immigration
The growth of cities accelerated dramatically starting on this date until 1860. New York grew from 312,000 citizens to 805,000. Most immigrants were either German or Irish. -
Medical Science
William Morton experimented with sulphuric ether. After that experiment John Warren, a boston Surgeon, started using ether to sedate surgical patients. -
Edgar Allen Poe
This year was when Poe published his most famous poem "The Raven". He was a southern writer who produced stories and poems that were typically sad. -
The Mexican War
Congress declared war 40 to 2 in the senate and 174 to 14 in the house. After the Americans won Mexico agreed to give us California and New Mexico. They also agreed to acknowledge that the Rio Grande is the boundry line of Texas. -
John Brown
On this day John Brown went on a rampage in what was called the Pottawatomie Massacre, which led to more civil strife in Kansas. John Brown was a fierce abolishionist who tried to abolish slavery in Kansas. -
The Dred Scott Decision
The United States Supreme Court found itself in one of the most controversial court hearings off all time. Dred scott tried to plead freedom from his master's widow but the courts out ruled him because officially he was not a citizen but a slave. -
Industrial Revolution
In 1860 it was estimated that 70,000 manufacturing establishments were in the north east. Along with immigration the American indusrties also grew dramatically between 1840 and 1860. -
Robert E. Lee
On this date Robert Lee launched a new offensive effort call the battle of the Seven Days War. It lasted until June 1st. The effort was to cut off McClellan from his base on the New York river. -
The Reconstruction Period
The month the Freedmen' Bureau was established. To many white southerners the reconstruction period was a viscious and destructive experience. The northerners believed that without this reconstruction period the south would go back to the same society it was before the war. -
The Fourteenth Amendment
The Joint Committee on Reconstruction proposed the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constituton. It offered the first Constitutional definition of citizenship.
