APUSH Timeline Flashcards- Important Events in American History

Important Events in American History

1491

Last year before European contact in the Americas; the year the class begins.

1492

Columbus lands in the Americas; first European contact in the Americas.

1607

Founding of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America.

1619

First ship of enslaved Africans arrives in Jamestown, setting the stage for slavery in North America.

1680 Pueblo Revolt

Most successful indigenous revolt against Europeans; drove Spanish away for 12 years and established better terms upon their return.

1730s First Great Awakening

Based on Puritan ideals, a reaction to the Enlightenment; featured powerful, emotional sermons and anti-authority ideals that helped lead to the American Revolution.

1754 Beginning of French and Indian War

British increase taxes on colonists to pay off war debt after victory which leads to colonial resentment, sparking the American Revolution.

1776 Declaration of Independence

Signed during the war, it summarized colonists’ motivations for seeking independence, drawing on Enlightenment ideals.

1781 Battle of Yorktown

British General Cornwallis surrenders, officially marking the American victory in the Revolutionary War.

1787 Constitutional Convention

Replaces the weak Articles of Confederation with a stronger Constitution.

1800 Revolution of 1800

Democratic-Republican Jefferson wins over Federalist opponents in the Presidential Election; the first time power in America successfully and peacefully transfers from one party to another.

1820 Missouri Compromise

Temporary solution to sectional division over slavery; represents the Era of Good Feelings (1815-1825).

1828 Andrew Jackson Elected

Expanded democracy for white male citizens, reorganized the banking system to lessen federal control, and forced the Indian Removal Act of 1830.

1830s Second Great Awakening

Protestant revival movement with diverse sects such as Mormons emerging. Women played a large role, increasing political participation of common citizens and helping to lead to new reforms.

1848 Seneca Falls Convention

Led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott; the first women’s rights convention in the United States, marking the beginning of efforts by women to achieve equality, resulting in the Declaration of Sentiments.

1844 Election of James Polk (Expansionist)

Polk ran on a platform of Manifest Destiny and oversaw significant expansion to the US, including the Oregon territory and the Mexican-American War.

1850 Compromise of 1850

Attempted to address sectional divisions by admitting California as a free state, allowing popular sovereignty in New Mexico/Utah, ending the slave trade in DC, and strengthening the Fugitive Slave Act, but ultimately heightened tensions.

1860 Election of Abraham Lincoln

Begins Civil War as South Carolina secedes

1865 Lee’s surrender at Appomattox

Ends the Civil War. Also the year Abraham Lincoln is assassinated, ushering in a new era of Reconstruction in the South.

1877 Compromise of 1877

Ended the Reconstruction era, resulting in loss of protection for African-Americans in the South and leading to the rise of Jim Crow laws.

1869 First Transcontinental Railroad

Connected East and West coasts leading to massive economic/industrial growth.

1882 Chinese Exclusion Act

First major restrictive immigration law in American history, setting precedent for future similar acts. Remained in place until 1943.

1890 Closing of the western frontier

Ended era of westward expansion, leading US to shift to imperialism to gain new territories/resources.

1892 Homestead Strike

Created a lasting impact on how the nation viewed the relationship between labor and management.

1896 Plessy v Ferguson

Established “Separate but Equal” doctrine; racial segregation is constitutional.

1898 Spanish American War

US gains Puerto Rico, Guam, Philippines, and is established as a major world power.

1917-1919 US enters WWI

US emerges with stronger industrialization/economy, becoming a leading economic power. Catalyst for social change/reform such as Great Migration, women’s suffrage

1920 19th Amendment Ratified

Constitutional Amendment guarantees women the right to vote.

1929 Great Depression begins

Following stock market crash, profound economic crisis occurs.

1933 FDR becomes President; New Deal Begins

The New Deal policies expand federal government’s role in the economy, laid groundwork for a welfare state, and established key institutions. Government is now more involved with its citizens.

1941 US enters WWII

Marks US emergence as a global superpower, sets stage for Civil Rights Movement. US establishes concentration camps for Japanese-Americans.

1945 US drops 2 atomic bombs on Japan

Ended WWII. Massive civilian casualties/long-term suffering for Japanese citizens, both highlighting the dangers of nuclear weaponry and marking the beginning of the nuclear age.

1954 Brown v Board

Desegregated schools; Southern states resist.

1950s-1970s Vietnam War

Proxy war of the Cold War; led US to be more cautious in foreign involvement in the future, and led to new social/civil rights movements and a new counterculture.

1964 Civil Rights Act passed

Victory for Civil Rights activists, prohibiting discrimination in public spaces, enforcing desegregation, and ending Jim Crow.

1979 Iran hostage crisis

Carter’s failure to rescue hostages increases a sense of vulnerability and anti-Iranian sentiment. This legacy continues today.

1981 Reagan becomes President

Sign of rising conservatism in the US, start of modern conservative movement and “Reaganomics”.

1989 Destruction of the Berlin Wall

Marks symbolic end to Cold War.

2001 9/11 Terrorist Attacks

Begins American War on Terror, heightens Islamophobia in the US.

2008 Election of Barack Obama

First Black president elected in the United States.