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mt. st. helens erupts
The eruption of Mt. St. Helens was triggered by an earthquake that struck below the north face of Mt. St. Helens in Washington state. This earthquake attributed to the largest landslide recorded in history and a volcanic eruption that scattered ash atop dozens of states surrounding Washington. This eruption is recognized as the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in U.S. history. -
challenger disaster
The "Challenger Disaster", the explosion of the U.S. space shuttle by the name "Challenger" shortly after its launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, taking seven astronauts lives. -
black monday
The term "Black Monday" refers to one of the greatest stock market crashes known to date in the history of the United States. Beginning in Hong Kong, then the United Kingdom, and then in the United States, this stock market crash sparked feelings of panic and fear to reside globally. -
gulf war
Saddam Hussein, an Iraqi leader, Iraqi had ordered the invasion and occupation of neighboring Kuwait. The United States and other western nations were called to intervene by powers such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The Persian Gulf War began with Operation Desert Storm, a massive U.S.-led air offensive. After weeks of relentless attacks by the allied coalition in the air and on the ground, U.S. President George H.W. Bush declared a cease-fire. -
oklahoma city bombing
The Oklahoma City bombing took place when a truck packed with explosives was detonated outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, taking 168 lives and injuring hundreds more. The blast was set off by Timothy McVeigh, an anti-government militant who was later executed for his crimes. Terry Nichols, his co-conspirator was sentenced to life in prison. The Oklahoma City bombing was the worst terrorist attack to take place in the U.S at the time. -
Monica Lewinsky scandal
The Monica Lewinsky scandal was a political sex scandal involving President Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, a White House intern. Lewinsky had confided in coworker at the Pentagon, Linda Tripp, about her affair with the President in which Tripp had secretly taped. When news of the affair became public, Clinton denied the relationship before later admitting to “inappropriate intimate physical contact” with Lewinsky. The HOR had impeached the president but he was later acquitted by the Senate. -
columbine shooting
The shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado prompted a national debate on gun control and school safety. Two teens, Eric Harris, 18, and Dylan Klebold, 17, had gone on a shooting spree. As a result, they took the lives of thirteen people and wounded more than twenty others before turning their guns on themselves and committing suicide. The Columbine shooting was, at the time, the worst high school shooting in U.S. history. -
9/11 terrorist attacks
Hijacking four airplanes, a number of members of the Islamic extremist group al-Qaeda carried out suicide attacks against major targets in the United States. Two of the planes were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and the third plane hitting the Pentagon, just outside of Washington, D.C. Nearly 3,000 people were killed. defining the presidency of George W. Bush and triggering major U.S. initiatives to demolish terrorism.