Presidential terms

By s1761814

  • Inauguration

    With this inauguration, the executive branch of the United States government officially began operations under the new frame of government established by the 1787 Constitution.
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    George Wasington

    He's from born at his family's plantation on Popes Creek in Westmoreland County, Virginia.
    He attended a local school in Fredericksburg.
    He has military service for French and Indian War, American Revolutionary War, and the Quasi-War with France.
    No previous offices held.
    His wife is the first first lady of the United States and spent about half of the Revolutionary War at the front with General Washington.
    He fought in American Revolution and started United States.

  • Moving the capital

    As part of a plan to appease pro-slavery states who feared a northern capital as being too sympathetic to abolitionists.

  • Ratifying the Constitution

    While the Constitution was not perfect, it created a stronger central government that included a Congress with the power to tax, a President who would act as the nation's chief executive, and a national court system.

  • Creating a national bank

    The Bank would be able to lend the government money and safely hold its deposits, give Americans a uniform currency, and promote business and industry by extending credit.

  • Ratifying the Bill of Rights

    The first 10 amendments to the Constitution gave citizens more confidence in the new government and contain many of today's Americans' most valued freedoms.”

  • Proclaiming neutrality

    The most immediate effect of the Proclamation of Neutrality was that it kept the United States out of a war it wasn't prepared for.

  • Hamilton resignation

    Under personal financial pressure.

  • Receiving french envoy

    Washington cautiously receives France's envoy to the United States, Edmond Charles Genet.

  • Ratifying the Jay Treaty

    Washington did not want American ships to be constantly attacked and captured by the powerful British navy.

  • Washington says farewell

    President Washington decided it was time to retire from public life.
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    John Adams

    Born in Braintree, Massachusetts.
    Education: Harvard College.
    Military service as the head of the War and Ordnance Board.
    As a minister to Great Batian and Netherlands.
    Vice president.
    Samual and Abigiail Adams as his cousins.
    He was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain.

  • Negotiating with France

    President Adams ultimately wanted to avoid a major war.

  • XYZ Affair

    Resulted in a limited, undeclared war known as the Quasi-War.

  • The Eleventh Amendment

    The Eleventh Amendment restricts the ability of individuals to bring suit against states of which they are not citizens in federal court.

  • Mississippi Territory

    Mississippi's territorial period laid the foundation for the state's early growth, established slavery as central to the state's economy, and is crucial to understanding the state's past.

  • Alien and Sedition Acts

    Alien and Sedition Acts tightened restrictions on foreign-born Americans and limited speech critical of the government.
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    Thomas Jefferson

    From Shadwell, VA.
    Education: College of William & Mary
    Responsible for providing militia soldiers as replacements for the Virginia regiments of the Continental Army.
    Previous offices: Governor of Virginia, Vice President.
    Wife: Martha Wayles with 6 children.
    Authoring the Declaration of Independence.

  • Tripoli declares war

    Yusuf Karamini, pasha of Tripoli, declares war on the United States by symbolically cutting down the flagpole at the U.S. consulate. This action came after the United States refused to pay more tribute to the Tripolitans in exchange for protection from piracy against American ships. Included a ransom for American prisoners in Tripoli, but no provisions for tribute.

  • War with Tripoli

    Congress recognizes the War with Tripoli, authorizing the arming of merchant ships to ward off attacks. It established much of the early U.S. Navy's reputation and set the stage for American involvement in the Mediterranean for decades to come.

  • Enabling Act

    Allows the Reich government to issue laws without the consent of Germany's parliament, laying the foundation for the complete Nazification of German society.

  • Marbury v. Madison

    It establised a decision created the doctrine of judicial review and set up the Supreme Court of the United States as chief interpreter of the Constitution.

  • Louisiana Purchase

    The Louisiana Purchase eventually doubled the size of the United States, greatly strengthened the country materially and strategically, provided a powerful impetus to westward expansion, and confirmed the doctrine of implied powers of the federal Constitution.

  • Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific

    Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific after a perilous journey of nearly eighteen months and 4,000 miles. It contributed significant geographic and scientific knowledge of the West, aided the expansion of the fur trade, and strengthened U.S. claims to the Pacific.

  • Prohibiting British imports

    In protest against the seizure of American ships and the impressment of American sailors by Britain, Congress passes a law prohibiting the importation of many British products into the United States.

  • Aaron Burr arrested

    Aaron Burr is arrested near Fort Stoddart, Alabama, in connection with his alleged conspiracy against the government. While Burr was ultimately acquitted of treason due to the specificity of the US Constitution, the fiasco further destroyed his already faltering political career.

  • Importation of slaves prohibited

    At Jefferson's behest, Congress passes a law prohibiting the importation of slaves into any place within the jurisdiction of the United States after January 1, 1808.

  • The Embargo Act

    The Embargo Act was one of the major factors leading up to the War of 1812 as it ended up increasing the hostilities that already existed between America and Britain.
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    James Madison

    Born in Port Conway, Virginia.
    Education: College of New Jersey (BA)
    Military service: Orange County Regiment, Virginia Militia.
    Previous offices: Secretary of State, Representative.
    Parents: James and Nelly Madison
    He was part of the Marbury vs Madison case that established the doctrine of judicial review.

  • Secretary of Treasury

    Madison persuades Albert Gallatin to remain secretary of treasury in the face of strong congressional opposition and discord within Madison's cabinet. The Secretary of the Treasury serves as a major policy advisor to the President, has primary responsibility for formulating and recommending domestic.

  • Fletcher v. Peck

    John Marshall overrules state legislation in Fletcher v. Peck, finding attempts to rectify the Yazoo land fraud scheme a violation of contract rights. It invalidated a state law as unconstitutional for the first time and determined states could not enact legislation that violated contracts to which states were parties or guarantors.

  • Occupation of West Florida

    Madison issues a proclamation authorizing occupation of West Florida, also claimed by Spain, as part of the Louisiana Purchase.

  • Growing the armed forces

    The House Committee on Foreign Relations recommends legislation to bring the Army up to full strength, establish a second regular army of 10,000, enable the President to organize 50,000 volunteers, strengthen the Navy, incorporate militia units into national service, and arm merchantmen.

  • Declaration of war

    The American war declaration, opposed by a sizable minority in Congress, had been called in response to the British economic blockade of France, the induction of American seaman into the British Royal Navy against their will, and the British support of Indian tribes along the Great Lakes frontier.

  • Amendment for national bank

    James Jackson of Virginia introduces a constitutional amendment in the House authorizing the establishment of a national bank, but Congress postpones consideration.

  • Napoleon's European empire collapses

    Napoleon's European empire collapses. Learning of Napoleon's defeat, Madison calls for an immediate repeal of the trade embargo with neutral nations, signaling a major reassessment of American war aims and strategy. He signs the bill into law on April 14. The British, meanwhile, can now turn their complete attention to war with the United States.

  • Invasion of Canada

    Madison inades Canada. It provide some compensation for America's commercial, material, and manpower losses.

  • British burn Washington

    It symbolized that the young nation that was built upon democracy and freedom was able to take a major world power head-on and come out victorious.

  • Treaty of Ghent

    Great Britain agreed to relinquish claims to the Northwest Territory, and both countries pledged to work toward ending the slave trade.
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    James Monroe

    Born in Monroe Hall, VA.
    Education: College of William & Mary
    Military: Third Virginia Infantry
    Prev. Offices: Governor of Virginia and US Secretary of War
    Family. Elizabeth Kortright, Eliza Kortright.

  • Seminole Indian uprisings

    Secretary of War John C. Calhoun orders General Andrew Jackson to quell Seminole Indian uprisings in the Floridas and southern Georgia; Jackson also receives a private letter from Monroe urging such action. In March 1818, Jackson pursues the Seminoles into Spanish Florida takes the fort of St. Marks on March 6, forces the surrender of Fort Carlos de Barrancas, and executes, among others, a Scot Indian trader and a British lieutenant

  • Jackson, Florida and Spain

    Monroe learns of Jackson's exploits and, along with his cabinet (except John Quincy Adams), disapproves of Jackson's actions. Following protests from the ministers of Britain, Spain, and France, Monroe concedes that Jackson's behavior in Pensacola amounted to acts of war. The President repudiates Jackson and orders that Pensacola be handed back to Spain.

  • Anglo-American Convention

    British and American diplomats meet at the Anglo-American Convention and conclude a treaty resolving some, but not all, of the outstanding issues from the War of 1812. It reflected the easing of diplomatic tensions that had led to the War of 1812 and marked the beginning of Anglo-American cooperation.

  • The Panic of 1819

    A sharp decline in real estate values and a severe credit contraction (an inability to secure bank loans) inflates the currency and causes imports and prices to fall. The conservative policies of the Second Bank of the United States, founded in 1816, accelerates the crisis, which ends around 1823.

  • McCulloch v. Maryland

    In a unanimous decision, the Court finds that states cannot tax federal agencies. The ruling establishes a precedent of broad federal power, marking a blow to states' rights.

  • Missouri Compromise

    It maintained a delicate balance between free and slave states.

  • Military Establishment Act

    Monroe signs the Military Establishment Act, forwarded by Secretary of War Calhoun, to reduce the Army's manpower by 40 percent to 6,126 men. The move reflects a shift in national priorities toward commerce and negotiation, and away from intimidation, as the primary tool of foreign policy.

  • Monroe vetoes Cumberland Road bill

    In his last day in office, Monroe vetoes the Cumberland Road bill, which would extend construction of the interstate artery to Zanesville, Ohio. Monroe is concerned about the bill's constitutionality. Construction of the first federally financed interstate road began under Jefferson in 1811 and will continue under Adams's administration.

  • Monroe Doctrine

    The doctrine warns European nations that the United States would not tolerate further colonization or puppet monarchs.

  • Monroe concedes to Indian removal

    Unable to alter the demands of the Georgia congressional delegation, Monroe concedes that the only way to mitigate Indian concerns is through their removal west of the Mississippi. This position conflicts with his earlier recognition of Cherokee claims.
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    John Q. Adams

    Born in Braintree, MA
    Edu.: Harvard University
    No military.
    Prev.: Secretary of state. Massachusetts State Senator.
    He is the 2nd president's son.
    None important before presidency.

  • Tennessee Legislature nominates Jackson

    The Tennessee legislature nominates Andrew Jackson their presidential challenger for the 1828 election.

  • Erie Canal

    The completion of the Erie Canal spurred the first great westward movement of American settlers, gave access to the rich land and resources west of the Appalachians and made New York the preeminent commercial city in the United States.

  • Proposed sale of U.S. Bank stock

    Nicholas Biddle of the Bank of the United States implements the sale of government securities to curtail the outward flow of specie. This policy results in propositions by Congress for the public sale of United States Bank stock.

  • Mexican Boundary settlement

    Joel Poinsett accedes to a Mexican boundary settlement on behalf of the United States. This concludes a slew of unsuccessful efforts by Adams to negotiate more favorable borders than the existing Sabine River.

  • Nicaraguan Canal is proposed

    Antonio José Caóaz, Guatemalan minister to the United States, proposes the construction of a canal adjoining the Pacific and Atlantic through Nicaragua. The United States is receptive, spearheading a flurry of American and international bids for surveying, building, and operation contracts. Although local instability derails the experiment, the effort is an important demonstration of the supremacy of the United States's influence in Central America.
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    Andrew Jackson

    Born in Waxhaw Settlement between North Carolina and South Carolina, British America
    Edu: none.
    Military: He was commissioned a major general in the Regular Army of the United States.
    Previous Office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, United States Senator
    from Tennessee.
    Parents: Severn Donelson and Elizabeth Rucker Donelson.
    In 1814 Jackson was commissioned a major general in the Regular Army of the United States to fight the British at Pensacola before in Office.

  • Tensions between Jackson and Calhoun

    The issue of nullification divided the White House as Vice President Calhoun staunchly supported states' rights and served as a spokesman for nullification by revealing he wrote “Exposition and Protest.” Jackson, on the other hand, supported states' rights, but not at the expense of the Union.

  • Indian Removal Act

    Congress passes the Indian Removal Act, sanctioning the forcible relocation of Creek, Chickasaw, Cherokee, Choctaw, and Seminole tribes to land allotments west of the Mississippi river. Ninety-four removal treaties follow the bill's enactment. From 1835 to 1838, Cherokee and Creek are forcibly removed from the Southeast onto reservations. Nearly one quarter die along what became known as the “Trail of Tears.”

  • Jackson opposes Second Bank of the United States

    Jackson's distrust of the Bank was also political, based on a belief that a federal institution such as the Bank trampled on states' rights.

  • Force Bill

    The Force Bill was a law passed in 1833 at the urging of President Andrew Jackson during the Nullification Crisis of 1832. This bill allowed the President of the United States to use military force against states that refused to comply with federal tax and tariff laws.

  • Jackson terminates national debt

    Jackson announces he will terminate the national debt, freeing the United States of foreign and domestic obligations beyond the reserves of the Treasury.

  • Texas declares independence

    In Washington, D.C., the delegates of the people of Texas officially and unanimously declare their independence.

  • Specie Circular

    The Specie Circular, by seriously curtailing the use of paper money, was highly deflationary and at least in part produced the ensuing credit crunch and the economic crisis called the Panic of 1837.

  • Jackson recognizes Texas independence

    Jackson recognizes the independence of Texas but declines to address annexation in light of threats by Mexico and its concerns about security.

  • Martin Van Buren inaugurated

    Martin Van Buren is sworn in as the eighth President of the United States. His inaugural address serves largely as a commemoration of his predecessor, President Andrew Jackson.
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    Martin Van Buren

    Born in Kinderhook, New York.
    Formal Education
    No military service
    Prev.:United States Senator from New York, United States Senator from New York, 8th Vice President of the United States.
    Had Parents, Siblings, and children.
    Nothing important before office.

  • The Panic of 1837

    The Panic of 1837 begins in New York when banks first suspend payments of specie. Following the collapse of credit facility, banks can no longer redeem currency notes in gold and silver. Compounding the problem, a depression in England causes the price of cotton to drop and ends British loans to the United States. An already unstable economy now suffers from additional debts and unemployment.

  • Rebellion against British

    A rebellion erupts in Lower and Upper Canada against the British. It recommended that the Canadas be united into one colony.

  • Van Buren remains neutral

    Following the Caroline incident, Van Buren criticizes the British but maintains a neutral stance in the conflict. While Van Buren's peace appeals to the invading partisans and enjoys initial success, even the Neutrality Law of 1838 -- which provides for the arrest of people and the confiscation of arms, vehicles, and supplies flowing illegally across the border -- fails to deter additional incursions.

  • Ending the Aroostook War

    A treaty ending the Aroostook War, which begins in 1838, is signed between the United States and Canada. Lumberjacks in Maine and New Brunswick had disputed the border and disagreed on the ownership of trees in the Aroostook Valley. The British secured a right-of-way for their commercial interests to cross Maine to and from southern New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

  • Independent Treasury Act

    The system was designed to be a long term replacement for both the Second Bank of the United States, which Jackson had "killed," and a remedy for the ensuing wild speculation resulting from Jackson's policies that contributed to the major depression of the late 1830s.
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    William Henry Harrison

    Born in Charles City County, Virginia, British America.
    Education: Hampden–Sydney College, University of Pennsylvania
    Military: Led a military force against Tecumseh's confederacy at the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811.
    Previous: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
    from Ohio's 1st district, United States Senator
    from Ohio.
    He had a Dad, a wife, and 10 children.

  • United States v. The Amistad

    In United States v. The Amistad, the Supreme Court rules 7-1 that the Africans on the ship Amistad were not slaves, but had been kidnapped, and the Africans were therefore legally free.

  • Dies of pneumonia

    Dies of pneumonia, the first president to die in office. There is great constitutional uncertainty regarding vice presidential succession and the legitimate role assumed by Vice President Tyler.
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    John Tyler

    Born in Greenway Plantation, Charles City County, Virginia, U.S.
    Alma meter: College of William & Mary
    Military services: Charles City Rifles in War of 1812.
    His first wife was Letitia Christian , with whom he had eight children: Mary , Robert , John (1819–1896), Letitia (1821–1907), Elizabeth (1823–1850), Anne (1825–1825), Alice (1827–1854) and Tazewell (1830–1874).
    Tyler tried to avert the conflict by chairing a "Peace Convention" between north and south, but no agreement could be reached.

  • Commonwealth v. Hunt

    The Massachusetts Supreme Court establishes the legality of labor unions, including the right for workers to strike, in the case of Commonwealth v. Hunt.

  • Webster-Ashburton Treaty

    The signing of the Webster-Ashburton Treaty normalizes U.S.-British relations by adjusting the Maine-Brunswick border, settling boundary issues around western Lake Superior, and resurveying numerous smaller borders.

  • The Democrats gain majority

    In the congressional elections, the Democrats gain a majority over the Whigs in the House of Representatives, while at the same time defending their majority in the Senate.

  • The Texas Annexation Treaty

    The Texas Annexation Treaty is signed by the United States and the Republic of Texas.

  • The Texas Annexation Treaty fails

    The Texas Annexation Treaty fails to gain the required two-thirds majority in the Senate amid controversy over the western expansion of the nation.
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    James K. Polk

    Born in Pineville, North Carolina
    Education:
    University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (AB)
    Military service: Tennessee militia, Maury County Cavalry
    Previous: 9th Governor of Tennessee, 11th President of the United States.
    Had a Father and a wife.

  • "Manifest Destiny"

    New York Jacksonian Democrat, John L. O'Sullivan, accuses opponents of Texas annexation of “limiting our greatness and checking the fulfillment of our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions.” The term, “Manifest Destiny,” quickly becomes the label used to encapsulate the belief among Americans in their country's God-given right to expand its territory and institutions.

  • Texas becomes a state

    Texas is admitted as a slave state, making it the twenty-eighth state in the Union.

  • War with Mexico

    Congress declares war on Mexico after American troops, under General Zachary Taylor, clash with Mexican troops on the north bank of the Rio Grande. It paved the way for so many other important events, from the expansion and dispossession of indigenous people, the California Gold Rush, and American Civil War.

  • The Oregon Treaty

    The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as the border between British and American claims to the Oregon Territory, granting the United States clear title to present-day Idaho, Washington, Oregon, and Montana, while granting to Britain territory above the 49th parallel and full control over Vancouver Island.

  • Mexico defeated

    General Zachary Taylor defeats the Mexicans under General Santa Anna at the Battle of Buena Vista. Taylor's victory cements his growing acclaim as a national hero and helps propel him to the 1848 Whig nomination for President.
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    Zachary Taylor

    Born in Barboursville, Virginia
    Education: Basic; no college
    Served in the War of 1812, Black Hawk War, and the Second Seminole War.
    No previous offices
    John Taylor Wood is his son who served in the U.S. Navy and the Confederate Navy.

  • Compromise of 1850

    Congress discuss solutions of the issue of slavery's possible expansion into the territories from the Mexican War. Henry Clay proposed this to against the measure's opponents who coalesce around John C. Calhoun of South Carolina.

  • Zachary Taylor dies

    Zachary Taylor dies of “cholera morbus,” making him the second President to die in office and vaulting Vice President Millard Fillmore into the White House.
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    Millard Fillmore

    Born in Moravia, New York
    No education
    Military Service: New York Militia New York Guard
    Previous Offices: Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, 12th Vice President of the United States.
    Family: 1 Wife, 2 children.
    He became prominent in the Buffalo area as an attorney and politician, and was elected to the New York Assembly in 1828 and the House of Representatives in 1832.

  • California becomes a state

    As one of the recommendations of the compromise, California enters the Union as the thirty-first state. As a “free” state, its admittance gives non-slaveholding states a majority in the Senate. Simultaneously, the Texas and New Mexico Act establishes boundaries between the two. As a concession to the South, New Mexico's status -- free or slaveholding -- will be dependent on how its constitution reads at the time of admittance to the Union.

  • Fugitive Slave Bill

    The act required that slaves be returned to their owners, even if they were in a free state.

  • National women's rights convention

    Headed by feminists and abolitionists, a national women's rights convention is held in Worcester, Massachusetts, and is attended by delegates from nine states. It granted women the right to vote in 1920.

  • Treaty with El Salvador

    Acting on long-held interest in gaining influence in Central America, the United States ratifies its first commercial treaty with El Salvador.

  • Democrats gain seats

    Democrats gain three Senate seats for a 38-22 majority over the Whigs. The Democrats also pick up 19 seats in the House for a 159-71 majority. The emergence of both the Know-Nothing (1853) and Republican (1854) parties, coupled with the 1852 deaths of Whig leaders Henry Clay (June) and Daniel Webster (October), eventually lead to the party's demise.
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    Franklin Pierce

    Born in Hillsborough, New Hampshire
    Education: Bowdoin College (BA), Northampton Law School
    Military service: New Hampshire Militia
    United States Army
    Previous Offices: Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives from Hillsborough, United States Senator from New Hampshire.
    His mother was Anna Kendrick Pierce and his dad was Benjamin Pierce.

  • Treaty of Kanagawa

    The outcomes of the treaty included opening trade with American vessels in some Japanese ports, protection for American sailors and vessels in Japan, and the formation of a US consulate in Japan.

  • Kansas-Nebraska Act

    The Kansas-Nebraska Act repealed the Missouri Compromise, created two new territories, and allowed for popular sovereignty.

  • Republican Party founded

    The Republican Party emerged to combat the expansion of slavery into American territories after the passing of the Kansas–Nebraska Act. The early Republican Party consisted of northern Protestants, factory workers, professionals, businessmen, prosperous farmers, and after the Civil War, former black slaves

  • Topeka Constitution

    It established an antislavery territorial government in opposition to the existing proslavery territorial government in Kansas.

  • Whig National Convention nominates Fillmore

    The State of Disunion Convention, contemplating the peaceful separation of North and South, is held in Worcester, Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Society supports this gathering. William Lloyd Garrison delivers a speech avowing “No union with slaveholders.”
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    James Buchanan

    Born in Cove Gap, Pennsylvania
    Education: Dickinson College
    Military service: Pennsylvania Militia on War of 1812
    Previous office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania, United States Senator from Pennsylvania, 17th United States Secretary of State.
    Buchanan was the second of eleven children with six sisters and four brothers.

  • Dred Scott Decision

    The United States Supreme Court upheld slavery in United States territories, denied the legality of black citizenship in America, and declared the Missouri Compromise to be unconstitutional.

  • Congress Votes on Admitting Kansas

    The Senate votes to accept Kansas into the Union under the Lecompton Constitution after it has already been rejected in Kansas. The House votes to resubmit the Constitution to popular vote.

  • Harper’s Ferry Raid

    It electrified the South—already fearful of slave rebellions—and convinced slaveholders that abolitionists would stop at nothing to eradicate slavery.

  • Crittenden Compromise

    The Crittenden Compromise is put forth as a last attempt to persuade Southern states to remain in the Union. Kentucky senator John Crittenden proposes constitutional amendments that would extend the Missouri Compromise line across the country, allowing slavery south of the line. Lincoln opposes the plan, affirming that he will not compromise on the issue of slavery, as stated in his Cooper Union address.

  • Confederate Flag Created

    The Confederate “stars and bars” flag, containing seven stars and three stripes, is established and adopted at a convention. During the Battle of Bull Run, the Confederate flag becomes confused with the Union flag, resulting in the creation of a new battle flag, a red field with the blue cross of St. Andrew holding thirteen stars.
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    Abraham Lincoln

    Born in Sinking Spring Farm, Kentucky
    Education: Did not go to college.
    Miltary service: Illinois Militiaz at

    American Indian Wars.
    Previous Office: Member of the
    Illinois House of Representatives
    from Sangamon County, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
    from Illinois's 7th district.
    Family: Thomas Lincoln and Nancy Hanks.
    Before office, he was a captain in the Black Hawk War, spent eight years in the Illinois legislature, and rode the circuit of courts for many years.

  • Fort Sumter

    South Carolina's Confederate batteries, under the command of General P.G.T. Beauregard open fire on the federal arsenal. It started the Civil War.

  • Emancipation Proclamation

    Issued by Lincoln, Lincoln frees all slaves in Confederate, but no in union control. It added moral force to the Union cause and strengthened the Union both militarily and politically.

  • Battle of Gettysburg

    The Battle of Gettysburg, the war's greatest engagement, occurs. In his invasion of the North, Lee makes a bid to smash through Union forces and take Washington, D.C., from the west with 75,000 troops. The battle involved the largest number of casualties of the entire war and is often described as the war's turning point.

  • Thirteenth Amendment

    The House of Representatives approves the Thirteenth Amendment that abolished slavery.

  • Abraham Lincoln dies

    Lincoln got shot by John Wilkes Booth, and he's dead. It dramatically changed the Reconstruction era.
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    Andrew Johnson

    Born in Raleigh, North Carolina
    No Education.
    Military service: United States Army at the Civil War.
    Previous offices: 15th Governor of Tennessee, United States Senator
    from Tennessee, 16th Vice President of the United States.
    Has a wife.

  • Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Act

    Johnson vetoes the Civil Rights Act, a second attempt by Congress to provide freedmen with federal citizenship after the failed Freedmen's Bureau bill. The act sanctions the employment of federal troops for enforcement. The Senate overrides Johnson's veto on April 6. Three days later, the House of Representatives also overrides the veto.

  • Fourteenth Amendment

    It granted citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans and enslaved people who had been emancipated after the American Civil War.

  • First Reconstruction Act

    It outlined the terms for readmission to representation of rebel states.

  • "Seward's icebox"

    It bought Alaska to be part of the US from Russia.

  • Johnson violates Tenure of Office Act

    Johnson formally removes Stanton and gives control of the War Department to General Lorenzo Thomas. Stanton, however, refuses to adhere to Johnson's decision and barricades himself in his cabinet office for roughly two months.
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    Ulysses S. Grant

    Born in Point Pleasant, Ohio
    Education: United States Military Academy
    Military service: United States Army
    Previous: President of the National Rifle Association, Acting United States Secretary of War, Commanding General of the U.S. Army.
    Had wife and kids.
    Before presidency, he led the Union Armies to victory over the Confederacy in the American Civil War.

  • Transcontinental railroad completed

    The first transcontinental railroad is completed at Promontory Point, Utah, through the work of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific track crews, and it is one of our country's biggest achievements and one of mankind's biggest accomplishments.

  • “Black Friday” financial panic

    Takes place in New York. A suspicious Grant finally orders a large sale of $4 million in gold, ruining many speculators. It harm the economy for Grant's presidency.

  • Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge begins

    Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge begins. It will be the longest suspension bridge in the world when completed thirteen years later.

  • Fifteenth Amendment

    It let's black men have the right to vote, but whites use discriminatory laws and taxes to disenfranchise black men.

  • Ku Klux Klan Act

    The act was the last of three Enforcement Acts passed by the United States Congress from 1870 to 1871 during the Reconstruction Era to combat attacks upon the suffrage rights of African Americans.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1875

    Guaranteeing black Americans equal rights in public places and prohibiting their exclusion from jury duty.

  • "Whiskey Ring Scandal"

    Distillers had bribed Treasury officials to evade the taxes. Grant's private secretary. It contributed to a national weariness of Reconstruction, which ended Grant's presidency with the Compromise of 1877.

  • Against third terms

    A resolution against third presidential terms receives overwhelming support in the House and is directed at Grant. The President, however, has already stated in May that he does not intend to run for reelection.

  • Custer and Little Bighorn

    General George A. Custer and 265 men of the Seventh Cavalry are killed in a battle with Sitting Bull's Sioux Indians at Little Big Horn. It marked the most decisive Native American victory and the worst U.S. Army defeat in the long Plains Indian War.

  • Compromise of 1877

    Under the compromise, Democrats controlling the House of Representatives allowed the decision of the Electoral Commission to take effect, securing political legitimacy for Hayes's legal authority as President. It settled the intensely disputed 1876 U.S. presidential election.
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    Rutherford B. Hayes

    Born in Delaware, Ohio
    Education: Kenyon College, Harvard University
    Military service: Union Army
    Previous Office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio's 2nd district, 29th and 32nd Governor of Ohio.
    Family: A wife and children.

  • Great Railroad Strike of 1877

    Lacking organization, the strikes frequently degenerate into mob activity. The common public worker realized they did have power over the giant corporations, the unions became stronger, and the federal government started monitoring large corporations.

  • Knights of Labor

    It is the first labor union to attempt to organize all workers and hopes to establish a worker-owned factory system. With rapid growth in the 1880s, the Knight membership peaks in 1886 and then goes into rapid decline. The Knights also sought to end child labor and convict labor.

  • U.S.-Samoa Treaty

    In 1878 the United States signed a treaty for the establishment of a naval station in Pago Pago Harbor.

  • Investigating the election

    House Democrats begin an investigation of the controversial presidential election of 1876, much to the chagrin of Hayes, who fears that the investigation may be an attempt to replace him with Tilden.

  • Senate approves Customhouse appointment

    After a political struggle between Hayes and Senator Conkling, the Senate approves Hayes's appointments for the New York Customhouse. Although these fail to end inefficiency in the civil service system, the country largely supports Hayes's commitment to reform.
  • Period: to

    James A. Garfield

    Born in Moreland Hills, Ohio
    Education: Hiram College, Williams College
    Military service: Union Army at Civil War
    Previous offices: Member of the Ohio Senate
    from the 26th district, Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio's 19th district.
    Family info: President James A. Garfield and his wife Lucretia had seven children.

  • Garfield selects his cabinet

    Garfield completes his slate of cabinet members, naming James G. Blaine as Secretary of State and Abraham Lincoln's son, Robert, as Secretary of War. Garfield angers Conkling with his nomination of William Windom of Minnesota, a non-Eastern man, as Secretary of Treasury. Further, Garfield denies Conkling influence in New York politics by appointing William H. Robertson as collector of the port of New York and Thomas L. James postmaster of New York.

  • American Association of the Red Cross

    Clara Barton organizes the American Association of the Red Cross, modeled after the International Red Cross, in Washington, D.C. Barton serves as the organization's volunteer president until 1904. It served as the universal symbol of neutrality and protection in armed conflict.

  • Garfield Shot

    Garfield got shot by Charles Julius Guiteau. It instrumental to the passage of the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act.
  • Period: to

    Chester A. Arthur

    Born in Fairfield, Vermont
    Education: Union College, State and National Law School
    Military service: New York Militia at Civil War.
    Prev. Offices: 21st Collector of the Port of New York, 10th Chairman of the New York Republican Party, 20th Vice President of the United States.
    Before Presidency, he joined the state militia principally out of a desire for companionship and political connections.

  • Guiteau Trial Begins

    The murder trial of Charles Guiteau begins. He will be convicted on January 25, 1882, and executed on June 30, 1882.

  • Chinese Exclusion Act

    It was the first significant law restricting immigration into the United States. Arthur vetoes the first Chinese Exclusion Act and it was revised.

  • Physician keeps President’s disease secret

    Arthur had been diagnosed that year with Bright's disease, a fatal kidney ailment; his health will deteriorate rapidly while being kept secret from the general public.
    Physician keeps it secret.

  • Brooklyn Bridge opens

    President Arthur and New York Governor Grover Cleveland attend the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge. The Brooklyn Bridge was the first fixed crossing of the East River.

  • Bureau of Labor established

    The United States Bureau of Labor is created within the Department of the Interior. It is the principal fact-finding agency in the broad field of labor economics and statistics.
  • Period: to

    Grover Cleveland 22nd presidency

    Born in Caldwell, New Jersey
    Education: No College
    No Military service
    Previous Office: 17th Sheriff of Erie County, 35th Mayor of Buffalo, 28th Governor of New York.
    He opened the Brooklyn Bridge with Chester A Aurthur.

  • Presidential Succession Act

    An Act To provide for the performance of the duties of the office of President in case of the removal, resignation, death, or inability both of the President and Vice President.

  • Accepting the Statue of Liberty

    Cleveland accepted France's gift, and it became America's iconic landmark to be ever presented.

  • Dawes Act

    Cleveland sign this act that authorized the President to break up reservation land, which was held in common by the members of a tribe, into small allotments to be parceled out to individuals.

  • Tenure of Office Act of 1867

    The Tenure of Office Act of 1867 is repealed after Cleveland challenges its constitutionality. The act had required that the President gain Senate approval to remove from office any individuals who had received Senate confirmation upon appointment. Congress had passed the bill in order gain control over President Andrew Johnson.

  • Cleveland Signs Chinese Exclusion Act

    President Grover Cleveland signed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which restricted Chinese immigration to the United States. The law prohibited Chinese immigrants who returned to China from coming back to the United States.
  • Period: to

    Benjamin Harrison

    Born in North Bend, Ohio
    Education: Farmer's College, Miami University
    Military service: Union Army at American Civil War
    Previous offices: United States Senator
    from Indiana
    Family: He married his dead wife's niece, Mary Dimmick Harrison
    Before Presidency: Harrison entered into a law partnership with William Wallace to form the law office of Wallace and Harrison.

  • Berlin Conference

    The Berlin Conference established the legal claim by Europeans that all of Africa could be occupied by whomever could take it.

  • Roosevelt visits the White House

    Harrison invites Theodore Roosevelt to the White House and appoints him Civil Service Commissioner on May 7. Roosevelt, a reform Republican from New York, heads the department until 1895.

  • First Pan-American Conference

    It increases U.S. commercial interests in Latin America and adopted a formal resolution called the Act of Chapultepec which proclaimed the principle of collective self-defense through regional pacts.

  • Sherman Anti-Trust Act

    It prohibits activities that restrict interstate commerce and competition in the marketplace.

  • New Orleans lynchings

    A mob in New Orleans lynches eleven Italian immigrants from Sicily, resulting in Italy severing its diplomatic ties to the United States and threatening war. It was the largest single mass lynching in American history.
  • Period: to

    Grover Cleveland 24th presidency

    Born in Caldwell, New Jersey
    Education: No College
    No Military service
    Previous Office: 17th Sheriff of Erie County, 35th Mayor of Buffalo, 28th Governor of New York.
    He opened the Brooklyn Bridge with Chester A Aurthur.

  • "Army of the Commonwealth of Christ"

    Owned by populist Jacob Coxey. They protest the unemployment caused by the Panic of 1893 and to lobby for the government to create jobs which would involve building roads and other public works improvements

  • Pullman railway strikes

    Eugene Debs organizes a strike by employees of the Pullman railway car company. Company workers find themselves forced to live in the company town where it is expensive. The strike spreads throughout the West and halts rail service. It demonstrated the power of the labour movement.

  • Wilson-Gorman Tariff Bill

    The Wilson-Gorman Tariff Bill becomes law without Cleveland refusing to veto or sign the measure. The law includes an income tax of 2 percent on all personal income greater than $4,000 and on all corporate income above operating expenses.

  • Cuba revolts

    Cleveland adopts a policy of neutrality. American sympathy lies with the rebels. It was a a crucial turning point in U.S.-Cuban relations.

  • "Gold Democrats"

    Democrats unhappy with Bryan's nomination meet in Indianapolis and form the “Gold Democrats.” They ask Cleveland to run again for President. When Cleveland turns down their appeal on September 3, the Gold Democrats nominate Senator John M. Palmer.
  • Period: to

    William McKinley

    Born in Niles, Ohio
    Education: Allegheny College, Mount Union College, Albany Law School
    Military service: Union Army
    Previous Office: Member of the
    U.S. House of Representatives
    from Ohio, Chair of the
    House Ways and Means Committee, 39th Governor of Ohio
    Family: Spouse Ida Saxton and 2 children.

  • Dingley Tariff Law

    President McKinley signs the Dingley Tariff Law, which raises custom duties by an average of 57 percent. Although American industries no longer needed such heavy protection against foreign goods, the tariff was raised nonetheless; imported woolen products, for example, faced a 91 percent rate. Republicans associate the high tariff with national prosperity while Democrats and progressives will blame the tariff for causing subsequent price increases.

  • American defense in Cuba

    The U.S. Battleship Maine arrives in Havana on a nominally “friendly visit.” Its true mission is to protect American life and property.

  • Maine explodes

    The battleship Maine explodes and sinks in Havana harbor, killing 266 Americans. It incited United States' passions against Spain, eventually leading to a naval blockade of Cuba and a declaration of war.

  • Congress declares war on Spain

    The United States Congress declares war on Spain. It led to Spanish-American War.

  • Annexing Hawaii

    President McKinley signs a joint congressional resolution providing for the annexation of Hawaii. They overthrow Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani.
  • Period: to

    Theodore Roosevelt

    Born in New York
    Alma mater: Harvard University, Columbia University
    Military service: United States Army, Spanish–American War
    Previous Office: Member of the New York State Assembly from the 21st district, 5th Assistant Secretary of the Navy, 33rd Governor of New York, 25th Vice President of the United States
    FDR is his 5th cousin.
    He served as the 25th vice president under President William McKinley for six months in 1901, assuming the presidency after McKinley's assassination.

  • Crater Lake National Park

    The President establishes Crater Lake National Park in Oregon. It is the deepest lake in the United States, and the seventh deepest in the world.

  • Anthracite Coal Strike

    Roosevelt summoned union leaders and mine operators to the White House, a significant gesture for both his presidency and for the development of his reform program, known as the “Square Deal.” The victory in the anthracite coalfields breathed new life into the American labor movement.

  • Champion v. Ames

    The Supreme Court hands down a decision in Champion v. Ames, making federal police power superior to that of the states. The ruling became the basis for the future federal regulation of food, drugs, and narcotics.

  • Hay-Buneau-Varilla Treaty

    The United States negotiates the Hay-Buneau-Varilla Treaty with Panama to build the Panama Canal. The treaty gives the United States control of a ten-mile-wide canal zone in return for $10,000,000 in gold plus a yearly fee of $250,000.

  • Sherman Anti-Trust Act

    It prohibits activities that restrict interstate commerce and competition in the marketplace.

  • The Niagara Movement and the NAACP

    A group of black intellectuals, including W.E.B. DuBois, meets near Niagara Falls to demand racial equality. This begins the Niagara Movement, a forerunner of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

  • Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act

    The legislation calls for both an honest statement of food content on labels and for federal inspection of all plants engaging in interstate commerce.

  • Reaching an agreement with the Dominican Republic

    The Dominican Republic and the United States sign a treaty empowering American agents to collect Dominican customs taxes for the purpose of satisfying the nation's creditors. The Senate ratifies the treaty on February 25; in 1905, it had refused to ratify a similar agreement.

  • Immigration Act of 1907

    The Immigration Act of 1907 mandated the exclusion of “imbeciles,” “feeble-minded” persons, individuals afflicted by a physical or mental disability that might impede their ability to earn a living, those with tuberculosis, children not accompanied by their parents, and individuals who admit to having committed a crime.

  • The Great White Fleet

    This fleet demonstrated US naval power, showing it was of comparable strength to other major powers and empires of the time.
  • Period: to

    William Howard Taft

    Born in Cincinnati, Ohio
    Education: Yale University, University of Cincinnati
    No military service
    Prev.: 1st Provisional Governor of Cuba, 42nd United States Secretary of War, 10th Chief Justice of the United States.

  • Roosevelt's "New Nationalism" speech

    Roosevelt made the case for what he called "the New Nationalism" in a speech in Osawatomie, Kansas. The central issue he argued was government protection of human welfare and property rights, but he also argued that human welfare was more important than property rights.

  • Dissolution of Standard Oil

    Standard Oil's breakup split the company into 34 separate companies. Standard Oil Company Dissolved.

  • Taft files suit against U.S. Steel

    Taft files suit against U.S. Steel for violating the Sherman Act. In papers filed for the suit, Taft alleges that Roosevelt in 1907 had mistakenly let U.S. Steel purchase the Tennessee Coal and Iron Company. This action damages the Taft-TR relationship irreparably.

  • Panama Canal Act

    Taft signs the Panama Canal Act, which exempts American coastwise shipping from paying tolls when transiting the Panama Canal. Many Americans, as well as Britons, consider this a violation of the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty of 1901.

  • Sixteenth Amendment

    Tart sign the Sixteenth Amendment. It grants Congress the authority to issue an income tax without having to determine it based on population.
  • Period: to

    Woodrow Wilson

    Born in Staunton, Virginia
    Alma mater: Princeton University, Johns Hopkins University
    Previous office: 13th President of Princeton University, 34th Governor of New Jersey.

  • Ford's Model T

    The Ford Motor Company institutes the first automobile assembly line to produce the Model T. Company founder Henry Ford breaks precedence and pays his line workers $5 a day, believing that higher wages would lead to greater worker productivity and loyalty.

  • Seventeenth Amendment

    It provided for the direct election of U.S. senators by the voters of the states.

  • Federal Reserve Act

    It provide the nation with a safer, more flexible, and more stable monetary and financial system.

  • Germany launches war on Belgium, France, and Britain

    Since that happened, the US declares its official neutrality as the Great War begins.

  • Sinking of the Lusitania

    A German U-Boat torpedoes the British passenger liner Lusitania off the coast of Ireland. It caused international outrage and helped turn public opinion against Germany, particularly in the then-neutral United States

  • National Defense Act

    Congress passes the National Defense Act in response to deteriorating relations between Germany and the United States. The act bolsters the standing Army to 175,000 and the National Guard to 450,000.

  • Declaration of War

    United States declares war on Germany leading to America getting in WW1. Cause by Germany's resumption of submarine attacks on passenger and merchant ships.

  • Selective Service Act

    Congress passes the Selective Service Act, requiring all men between the ages of 21 and 30 to register with locally administered draft boards for a federal draft lottery. It is the first conscription act in the United States since the Civil War.

  • Eighteenth Amendment

    This Amendment bans the sale, manufacture, or transport of alcohol except under special circumstances.

  • Nineteenth Amendment

    It allows women to vote. Women Sufferage was a success.
  • Period: to

    Warren G. Harding

    Born in Blooming Grove, Ohio
    Education: Ohio Central College
    Previous Office: Member of the Ohio Senate
    from the 13th district, 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio, United States Senator from Ohio.

  • Emergency Tariff Act

    In response to American public opinion, Harding and Congress pass the Emergency Tariff Act. Raising tariffs, especially on farm products, the temporary bill will be replaced one year later by the Fordney-McCumber Tariff Act, a permanent bill with even higher tariff rates. Designed to protect American products and end the post-war recession, such protectionist legislation ultimately destabilizes international commerce by heightening economic nationalism.

  • Budget and Accounting Act

    Harding signs the Budget and Accounting Act in order to better organize the federal government's accounts. The act establishes the Bureau of the Budget and the General Accounting Office under the Treasury Department.

  • The Teapot Dome Scandal

    Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall leases the Teapot Dome oil reserves to Harry Sinclair, setting in motion what comes to be known over the next two years as the Teapot Dome scandal. It permanently damaged the reputation of the Harding administration, already hurt by its handling of the Great Railroad Strike of 1922 and Harding's 1922 veto of the Bonus Bill.

  • Cable Act

    Allows women to maintain her citizenship of marrying an foreign person.

  • Harding suffers ptomaine poisoning, dies

    He died from ptomaine poisoning possibly from eating tainted crab meat while on board ship.
  • Period: to

    Calvin Coolidge

    Born in Plymouth Notch, Vermont
    Education: Amherst College.
    Previous office: Member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 1st Hampshire district, 16th Mayor of Northampton, Member of the Massachusetts Senate, President of the Massachusetts Senate, 46th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, 48th Governor of Massachusetts, 29th Vice President of the United States.

  • Martial law and the KKK

    Governor J. C. Walton places Oklahoma under martial law in order to suppress the increasing terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan, which has reemerged in the South and Midwest in response to worsening economic conditions.

  • Dawes Plan

    The Dawes Plan is signed by the allied nations of WW1 to solve the German reparations problem and to end the occupation of the Ruhr by French and Belgium troops.

  • Scopes trial

    It represents a dramatic clash between traditional and modern values in America of the 1920s.

  • Air Commerce Act passed

    The Air Commerce Act is passed by Congress. While the federal government already subsidized airmail, this act gave the Commerce Department regulatory powers over sectors of the aviation industry, such as the licensing of pilots and aircrafts.

  • Naval depot explodes

    A naval ammunition depot at Lake Denmark, New Jersey, explodes after it is struck by lightning. With explosions continuing for several days, 31 dead, and $93 million in damages, it is the worst such disaster in the history of the U.S. military.

  • Sacco and Vanzetti executed

    Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti are executed in Massachusetts for their alleged 1920 murder of a factory guard, despite protests that the two men had been unfairly prosecuted for their radical beliefs.

  • U.S. recognizes nationalist Chinese government

    The United States recognizes Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang (KMT) nationalist government of China and signs a tariff treaty with the Chinese.
  • Period: to

    Herbert Hoover

    Born in West Branch, Iowa, U.S.
    Education: Stanford University
    Previous office: Chairman of the Commission for Relief in Belgium, Director of the United States Food Administration, 3rd United States Secretary of Commerce.

  • State Department intervenes for Standard Oil

    The State Department begins its effort to help Standard Oil of California (SOCAL) attain oil rights in Bahrain from the Gulf Oil Company. Since the 1880s, the Sheikhdom of Bahrain had been a British protectorate and by treaty was required to sell its oil to British companies. Through a Canadian subsidiary the two sides were able to agree to terms and by 1935, SOCAL would have 16 operating oil wells in Bahrain.

  • "Black Tuesday"

    On “Black Tuesday,” a record 16.4 million shares of stock are traded on the NYSE as large blocks of equities are sold at extremely low prices. The trading continues the sharp downward trend of the previous week. It is an abrupt change from the over-speculation of the previous months. By December 1, NYSE stocks will have lost $26 billion in value.

  • Bank of the United States closes

    The Bank of the United States in New York City, with 60 branches and 400,000 depositors, closes. It is merely the largest of the more than 1300 bank closings across the country as the economic depression worsens.

  • Lindbergh baby kidnapped

    In one of the most publicized crimes of the century, the twenty-month-old son of Charles Lindbergh is kidnapped. After paying a $50,000 ransom, the boy is found dead on May 12. The public outcry against the crime will help to make kidnapping a federal crime punishable by death.

  • Hoover Orders Bonus Army Dispersed

    On July 28, 1932, President Herbert Hoover ordered the United States Army to remove a group of protesting veterans from federal buildings in Washington, D.C. The troops and the veterans clashed in a violent confrontation. The aggressive removal of the Bonus Army marchers damaged Hoover's popularity as he began a difficult reelection campaign
  • Period: to

    Franklin D. Roosevelt

    Born in Hyde Park, New York
    Education: Harvard University, Columbia University
    Previous Office: Member of the New York State Senate
    from the 26th district, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, 44th Governor of New York.
    FDR is Theodore Roosevelt's fifth cousin, and FDR mary his niece, Eleanor Roosevelt.

  • First lady Eleanor Roosevelt holds the first

    First lady Eleanor Roosevelt holds the first First Lady press conference where only female reporters are invited to attend.

  • Roosevelt's “Hundred Days"

    During this period, Congress enacts many of the principal programs of FDR's “New Deal.” It passes the Emergency Banking Act on March 9, allowing banks to reopen as soon as they can prove they are solvent; within three days, more than 1,000 banks will reopen, helping to raise the nation's confidence almost overnight.

  • Agricultural Adjustment Administration

    It restricts the production of certain crops and pays farmers not to till their land. Roosevelt hopes that the AAA will reduce agricultural production, raise prices, and aid suffering farmers.

  • Securities Exchange Act and Corporate Bankruptcy Act

    SEC will license stock exchanges and determine the legality of certain speculative market practices. CBA, allowing corporations facing bankruptcy to reorganize if two-thirds of its creditors agree. Efforts at both prevention and prescription, the bills address some of the factors which led to the severity of the Great Depression.

  • Social Security Act

    It establishes the Social Security Board (SSB), one of the most far-reaching pieces of legislation in the country's history. The act guarantees pensions to Americans over the age of 65, establishes a system of unemployment insurance, and assists states in aiding dependent children, the blind, and the aged who do not already qualify for Social Security.

  • Neutrality Act

    FDR signs the Neutrality Act. It bans exporting arms and munitions to belligerent. Belligerents are require to pay with cash for certain non-military goods purchased in the United States and to provide for transport in their own ships, (AKA) “the cash-and-carry law.”.

  • FDR works to cement the U.S. alliance with Britain

    An alliance against the axis powers. Over these two weeks, he will ask Congress to repeal the arms embargo, revise the neutrality law, and end the trade agreement with Japan.

  • FDR signs the Neutrality Act of 1939,

    It repeals the general embargo on arms and allowing the sale of arms to belligerents on a “cash and carry” basis.

  • Office for Emergency Managemen

    FDR establishes the Office for Emergency Management, illustrating his belief in the increasing inevitability of U.S. involvement in the war.

  • Selective Training and Service Act

    Authorizing the first peace-time military draft in U.S. history and requiring all men between the ages of twenty-one and thirty-five to register for military training.

  • D-day

    The invasion of the continent takes place at a series of beaches in Normandy. By the end of the day, and despite heavy casualties, around 150,000 Allied troops have safely reached the beach and are dug in.

  • President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies

    President Franklin D. Roosevelt dies following a massive cerebral hemorrhage.
  • Period: to

    Harry S. Truman

    Born in Lamar, Missouri
    Military Service: United States Army at WW1
    Prev Off.: Presiding Judge of Jackson County, Missouri, United States Senator from Missouri, 34th Vice President of the United States.

  • Germany surrenders

    Germany surrenders, ending World War II in Europe.

  • Hiroshima

    The United States drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. First atomic bomb used in a war.

  • Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech

    Winston Churchill delivers his “Iron Curtain” speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, condemning the Soviet Union’s policies of expansion and calling for strengthening the U.S-Britain alliance.

  • Truman Doctrine

    It established that the United States would provide political, military and economic assistance to all democratic nations under threat from external or internal authoritarian forces.

  • Marshall Plan

    Secretary of State George C. Marshall announced a plan to provide economic assistance to the devastated nations of Europe after World War II.

  • Berlin Airlift

    In conjunction with the British, Truman orders the airlifting of supplies into West Berlin. The incident solidified the demarcation between East and West in Europe.

  • Truman announces H-Bomb

    Truman announces that the United States will develop a hydrogen bomb.

  • Truman orders troops to Korea

    Truman announces that he has ordered American ground forces stationed in Japan to Korea. General Douglas MacArthur commands the United Nations troops.
  • Period: to

    Dwight D. Eisenhower

    Born in Denison, Texas
    Education: United States Military Academy
    Military service: United States Army
    Previous Office: 13th President of Columbia University, 1st Military Governor of the American-occupied zone of Germany, 16th Chief of Staff of the Army, 1st Supreme Allied Commander Europe.
    He is respomsible of D-day of invading Normandy.

  • Rosenberg execution

    The couple were the first civilians in American history to be executed for espionage.

  • Refugee Relief Act of 1953

    Eisenhower signs the Refugee Relief Act of 1953, admitting 214,000 more immigrants than permitted under existing immigration quotas.

  • Geneva Agreements of 1954

    The Geneva Agreements of 1954, or the Geneva Accords, are signed, withdrawing French troops from the region and establishing a cease-fire and partition of Vietnam, ending the First Indochina War. The United States refuses to sign.

  • Geneva Conference

    s part of the agreement, the French agreed to withdraw their troops from northern Vietnam.

  • Parks takes a seat to take a stand

    Civil Rights activist Rosa Parks, at 42, is arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger in compliance with segregation laws. Her actions and subsequent arrest spark a bus boycott in Montgomery which lasts for more than a year.

  • Bus boycott success

    It showed the potential for nonviolent mass protest to successfully challenge racial segregation.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1957

    Eisenhower signs the Civil Rights Act of 1957, mainly a voting rights legislation, which was the first civil rights bill since Reconstruction.

  • Need for space exploration

    Eisenhower recommends the formation of a civilian agency to direct space exploration.

  • Eisenhower meets with Civil Rights leaders

    Eisenhower finally meets with civil rights leaders Martin Luther King, Roy Wilkins, A. Philip Randolph, and Lester Granger, who have been critical of Eisenhower’s slow pace of progress and lack of strong support for Civil Rights legislation.

  • Eisenhower's farewell address

    He warned the nation with regard to the corrupting influence of what he describes as the "military-industrial complex".
  • Period: to

    John F Kennedy

    Born in Brookline, Massachusetts
    Education: Harvard University
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous Office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 11th district, United States Senator from Massachusetts.

  • Bay of Pigs

    A brigade of about 1,500 Cuban exiles landed at Bahia de Cochinos on the southern coast of Cuba. Their mission was to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro by inciting revolt among the Cuban people. Funded and supplied by the United States, this invasion ended in absolute failure with some of the exiles killed and many captured by Castro's army. It failed.

  • Kennedy plans a man on the moon

    President John F. Kennedy in an address to Congress challenged the nation to “commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon.” He asked Congress to find additional funds to support the nation's space program.

  • Berlin Wall

    Created to separated the 2 divisions of Berlin. It ended the movement of East German citizens into West Berlin. In an impromptu protest, thousands of Berliners gathered on both sides of the new barricade.

  • Cuban Missile Crisis resolved

    After thirteen days, the Cuban Missile Crisis is resolved. The United States will pledge not to invade Cub, in exchange for the removal of the Soviet weapons.

  • Assination of JFK

    JFK got shot and killed while riding a motorcade in Dallas.
  • Period: to

    Lyndon B. Johnson

    Born in Gillespie County, Texas
    Education: Southwest Texas State, Teachers College, Georgetown University
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous Off: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 10th district, United States Senator from Texas, 37th Vice President of the United States.

  • Twenty-Fourth Amendment ratified

    The Twenty-Fourth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, abolishing poll taxes.

  • Great Society

    LBJ decided to create a Great Society by extending American prosperity to all its citizens.

  • Civil Rights Act of 1964

    It bans discrimination based on race or color, sex, religion or national origin.

  • Tet Offensive

    Vietnamese Lunar New Year of Tet, the North Vietnamese Army and the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam coordinated a massive offensive against South Vietnam. The Tet Offensive weakened domestic support for the Johnson Administration.

  • Johnson Special Announcement

    LBJ announced that he would not seek reelection due to low popularity by the main focus on the Vietnam War.
  • Period: to

    Richard Nixon

    Born in Yorba Linda, California
    Education: Whittier College, Duke University
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous offices: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 12th district, United States Senator from California, 36th Vice President of the United States.

  • Men land on the moon

    Apollo 11 is a success of having Neil Armstrong landing on the moon.

  • Pentagon Papers

    A development which leads the White House to become increasingly fearful of further disclosures. A unit, "Plumbers", stopped the leaks.

  • Nixon arrives in China

    Nixon is the first president to visit China. US and China negotiate the Shanghai Communique. It calls for both countries agree to increase their contacts, and for the United States to withdraw gradually from Taiwan.

  • Nixon visits the Soviet Union

    NIxon is the first persident to visit the Soviet Union for a summit meeting.

  • Watergate scandal

    James McCord, Frank Sturgis, and three accomplices break in the Watergate Hotel. They steal some stuff to have Nixon win the election.

  • Saturday Night Massacre

    The Saturday Night Massacre marked the turning point of the Watergate scandal as the public, while increasingly uncertain about Nixon's actions in Watergate, were incensed by Nixon's seemingly blatant attempt to end the Watergate probe.

  • U.S. v Nixon

    The supreme court demand Nixon to turn over the tapes. The tapes revealed Nixon's cover-up of Watergate. Because of this, Nixon's resigns in August 8, 1974.
  • Period: to

    Gerald Ford

    Born in Omaha, Nebraska
    Education: University of Michigan, Yale University
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous Office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 5th district, Leader of the House Republican Conference, 40th Vice President of the United States.
    His original name is Leslie Lynch King Jr..

  • Ford addresses inflation

    Ford speaks to a joint session of Congress regarding inflation.

  • Ford pardons Nixon

    Ford pardons Nixon caused people to dislike and criticize him and it is not popular.

  • Sunday Morning Massacre

    In what is dubbed by the press as the “Sunday Morning Massacre,” Henry Kissinger gives up his position as National Security adviser but retains the post of Secretary of State; William Colby is fired as director of Central Intelligence, and James Schlesinger is fired as Secretary of Defense.

  • April 16, 1976 Building up oil reserves

    In resolving an inter-agency dispute, Ford decides to build up the country's strategic oil reserve in order to protect the United States from another foreign embargo. It worsen the inflation.
  • Period: to

    Jimmy Carter

    Born in Plains, Georgia
    Education: United States Naval Academy
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous Office: Member of the Georgia State Senate
    from the 14th district, 76th Governor of Georgia.

  • Camp David Accords Signed

    It established a framework for a historic peace treaty concluded between Israel and Egypt in March 1979.

  • Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty

    It limited the total of both nations' nuclear forces to 2,250 delivery vehicles and placed a variety of other restrictions on deployed strategic nuclear forces, including MIRVs.

  • Malaise speech

    Carter delivers his Malaise speech that blame on a crisis of confidence. The problem and the issues.

  • Americans taken hostage in Tehran

    In the longest hostage situation in recorded history, Iranian students take fifty-two American diplomats and citizens hostage for 444 days at the American embassy in Tehran. The students were supporters of the Iranian Revolution and took the hostages in protest of the United States’ harboring of the Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi who was accused of numerous violent crimes against Iranian citizens.

  • “Desert One” failure

    Carter announces the failure of “Desert One,” the mission to rescue the Iranian-held hostages, and that several American military personnel had been killed.
  • Period: to

    Ronald Reagan

    Born in Tampico, Illinois
    Alma mater: Eureka College
    Military service: United States Army
    Prev Off: 9th and 13th President of the Screen Actors Guild, 33rd Governor of California.
    His brother, Neil, is a American radio station manager and a CBS senior producer.

  • Reagan got shot

    John Warnock Hinkley Jr. attempted to assassinate Reagan. Luckily, Reagan survived. Hickley was sent to St. Elizabeth's Hospital for treatment of his mental illness.

  • Cutting taxes

    Reagan signs a tax cut into law, improving the economy.

  • Negotiating with Soviet Union

    Reagan states that he will not deploy intermediate-range nuclear missiles in Europe if the Soviet Union agrees to dismantle similar weapons already in place.

  • Recession ends

    US economy shows dramatic growth in the first quarter that ends recession. US economy is recovering.

  • Suicide bombers attack Lebanon

    U.S. Marines in the capital city of Lebanon, Beirut, got attacked by suicide bombers. It led to the withdrawal of the international peacekeeping force from Lebanon.

  • Bush acting president

    Reagan has a malignant polyp removed from his colon; Vice President Bush serves as acting President for eight hours.
    Bush is taking care of his presidency.

  • Reagan, Gorbachev hold summit

    Reagan and Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev hold a summit meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. It is the first such meeting between U.S and Soviet heads of state since 1979.

  • Chief Justice Warren Burger retires

    Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger announces his retirement; Regan elevates Justice William Rehnquist to the position of chief justice and nominates Anthony Scalia as an associate justice.

  • Tower Commission concludes report

    The Tower Commission releases its report, finding no criminal wrongdoing on the part of the White House but remaining critical of the administration nonetheless.

  • Reagan prohibits abortion assistance

    Reagan prohibits federally funded family-planning centers from providing assistance to women seeking abortions.
  • Period: to

    George H. W. Bush

    Born in Milton, Massachusetts
    Education: Yale University
    Military service: United States Navy
    Previous Office: Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 7th district, 10th United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Chair of the Republican National Committee, 2nd Chief of the U.S. Liaison Office to the People's Republic of China, 11th Director of Central Intelligence, 43rd Vice President of the United States.

  • Bank Bail-Out Plan Introduced

    President Bush, at a White House press conference, introduces his bail-out plan for troubled savings and loans banks. It provides for the sale of $50 billion in government bonds to finance the bail-out and gives the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) regulatory oversight over S&Ls.

  • Berlin Wall Falls

    The fall of the Wall marked the first critical step towards German reunification, which formally concluded a mere 339 days later on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of East Germany and the official reunification of the German state along the democratic lines of the West German Basic Law. The symbolic end of Communist rule in Eastern Europe.

  • Iraq Invades Kuwait

    Iraq invades Kuwait. President Bush strongly condemns Iraq's actions, setting the stage for an American response. It start the Gulf war.

  • Persian Gulf War Begins

    Operation Desert Storm started with coalition forces led by the United States launched air strikes against Iraq. These strikes signaled the beginning of the military phase of the Persian Gulf War.

  • Nuclear Arms Reduction Agreements

    The United States signs agreements with Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan, ensuring the continued participation of these nations in the nuclear arms reduction treaties signed by the U.S.S.R. before its collapse in late 1991.
  • Period: to

    Bill Clinton

    Born in Hope, Arkansas
    Education: Georgetown University, University College, Oxford Yale University.
    Prev Off: 50th Attorney General of Arkansas, 40th and 42nd Governor of Arkansas.

  • NAFTA

    Clinton Signs NAFTA that established a free-trade zone in North America with Canada and Mexico. It caused loss of United States manufacturing jobs.

  • Clinton attends NATO summit

    President Clinton attends the NATO summit meeting in Brussels, Belgium, at which he announces that the United States will maintain at least 100,000 troops in Europe. He also introduces the “Partnership for Peace” program aimed at building closer ties between NATO and former Warsaw Pact states.

  • Oklahoma City bombed

    In an act of domestic terrorism, a bomb planted in a truck parked in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, kills 168 people and causes massive structural damage. In the days following the tragedy, Clinton, in widely-praised efforts, speaks with victims and to the country about how to recover physically, emotionally, and spiritually from the attack.

  • Clinton expands law enforcement, death penalty

    President Clinton signs into law the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act that includes provisions providing for the hiring of 100,000 more police and the expansion of the death penalty to cover more than 50 federal crimes.

  • Principle peace in Bosnia

    In Dayton, Ohio, the representatives of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia agree in principle to a peace agreement, brokered by American Richard Holbrooke, to end three years of war in Bosnia. The agreement establishes a unitary Bosnian state and allows refugees to return home.

  • Fundraising investigations begin

    The Senate votes 99-0 to approve an investigation into the “improper” and “illegal” fund-raising tactics of both the White House and members of Congress. Allegations by Republicans and some Democrats of illegal fund raising by the Clinton White House spur the investigation.

  • Chemical Weapons become illegal

    The Senate ratifies the Chemical Weapons Convention, making illegal the production, acquisition, stockpiling, or use of chemical weapons.

  • Clinton denies Lewinsky allegations

    President Clinton had a a sexual relationship with a former White House intern named Monica Lewinsky, but Clinton says, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.”

  • House votes to impeach Clinton

    On December 19, 1998, the House of Representatives voted to impeach President Bill Clinton on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice.

  • NATO attack on Serbia

    In response to Serbian aggression in Kosovo and Albania, and reports of ethnic cleansing, the United States leads NATO attacks against Serbia. On February 23, Serbian and Kosovar representatives had agreed to a plan that would have granted more autonomy to Kosovo over a three-year period. Serbia reneged on the agreement, prompting U.S. and NATO military action.
  • Period: to

    George W. Bush

    Born in New Haven, Connecticut
    Education: Yale University, Harvard University
    Military service: United States Air Force
    Previous Office: 46th Governor of Texas
    He's George H. W. Bush eldest son.

  • Israeli-Palestine relations

    Bush renews his call on Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to end attacks on Israel, indicating that a meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney could still take place if Arafat yielded to American demands. Cheney, on a trip to the Middle East, refuses to meet with Arafat in the current environment. Meanwhile, Arafat remains penned in Ramallah by Israeli threats since December. On March 29, Israeli troops will take over most of his headquarters.

  • 9/11

    Al-Qeada hijacker planes hit the 2 buildings in Manhattan. This signaled to have United States to guard people in safety.

  • Operation “Enduring Freedom”

    W. Bush announced to begin operation in Afghanistan. Since the 9/11 attacks

  • Bush declares war with Iraq

    The 8:00 p.m. deadline for Hussein to leave Iraq passes. At 10:15 p.m., Bush addresses the nation and informs the American people that the United States is at war with Iraq.

  • U.S. abuse of Iraqi prisoners

    CBS broadcasts photographs of U.S. Army abuse of Iraqi prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison, a facility on the outskirts of Baghdad. Bush and other senior administration officials voice deep disapproval over these abuses.

  • Persuading North Korea to end nuclear pursuit

    South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun meets with Bush to talk about how to get North Korea to join the six-party talks intended to end North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons.

  • Bush approves border fence

    President Bush signs a bill providing for the construction of a 700-mile fence along the United States-Mexico border, in an effort to increase border security and stem illegal immigration.

  • U.S. attacks al-Qaeda in Somalia

    The U.S. Air Force launches an air attack on extremist militias and suspected al-Qaeda operatives in Somalia.

  • Bush vetoes troop removal

    Bush vetoes a war spending bill passed by Congress, which set a timetable for troop withdrawal from Iraq. Within days Bush reaches a record low approval rating.

  • Six detainees charged for September 11

    Six detainees at Guantanamo Bay who were thought to have had roles in orchestrating the September 11 terrorist attacks are charged with conspiracy, murder in violation of the law of war, terrorism, and other charges. All six face the death penalty in military tribunals.
  • Period: to

    Barack Obama

    Born in Honolulu, Hawaii
    Education: Columbia University, Harvard University
    Previous Office: United States Senator
    from Illinois, Member of the Illinois Senate
    from the 13th district.
    His wife is Michelle.

  • Nobel Peace Prize

    Obama wins is Nobel Peace Prize for strengthening people to be cooperative and hard-working.

  • Hate Crimes Prevention Act

    Obama sign the Hate Crimes Prevention Act to stop and manage the hate crimes more effectively.

  • 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act

    It helps handicap people to have access new technological innovations that made their lives easier.

  • End of Iraq War

    US troop are going to at home from the war and later freezes the Iranian governmant that's deceiving.

  • Gay Marriage

    Obama supports homosexual marriage.

  • Sandy Hook shooting

    Obama adresses the shooting of Sandy Hook elementary school in Connecticut of having 26 people killed. He will deal by gun control legislation

  • Government shutdown

    Congress fails to agree on funding legislation caiusing a government shutdown.

  • LGBT discrimination

    Obama signs an executive order of LGBT employees have thier right not to be violated in the workforce.

  • Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act

    Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act purpose is to ensure to have Veterans getting help from suicudal attempts.

  • Gives speech at Democratic National Convention

    Obama gives a speech to of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton in Democratic National Convention.
  • Period: to

    Donald Trump

    Born in Queens, New York City
    Alma mater: University of Pennsylvania
    No previous office.
    Before his presidency, Trump was employed at his father's real estate company, Trump Management. In 1971, he became president of the company and began using the Trump Organization as a brand. He had a tower called the trump tower. His company has founded many landmarks.

  • Travel ban

    Trumps bans Us citizens to travel Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. It let to protest.

  • Trade War

    Trump low the tarriffs between 30 and 50 per cent on solar panels and washing machines.

  • Trump meets with North Korean leader

    President Trump meets with North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, at a summit in Singapore.

  • Trump impeached

    The House of Representatives impeaches President Trump on two articles of impeachment: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

  • Second impeachment

    Trump becomes the first US president to be impeached twice. He got impeached for “incitement of insurrection,” for the attack on the Capitol on January 6.