American History Timeline: Colonization, Civil War, and Industry

Early Discoveries and Settlements

• Leif Ericson led Vikings around 1000 AD.
• Christopher Columbus, an Italian mariner, arrived in 1492.

Spanish Colonization

• St. Augustine, Florida: Established by the Spanish in 1565.
• Santa Fe, New Mexico: Established in 1609.
• San Diego, California: Established in 1769.

English Colonies and Early Economy

• The first permanent English colony was Jamestown, Virginia, founded in 1607.
• Tobacco Economy: Making money by growing tobacco, which began shipping to England in 1614.
• A larger Puritan colony (a religious group that came to New England) was established in Boston in 1630.
• Roger Williams: Disagreed with the union of Church and State and founded the colony of Rhode Island in 1635.

Immigration and Demographics

• German farmers came to Pennsylvania.
• Swedes settled in Delaware.
• Africans arrived in Virginia in 1619.

The Thirteen Colonies (Established by 1733)

1. Delaware
2. Pennsylvania
3. Massachusetts
4. New Jersey
5. Georgia
6. Connecticut
7. Maryland
8. South Carolina
9. New Hampshire
10. Virginia
11. New York
12. North Carolina
13. Rhode Island

Road to Revolution

The French and Indian War (1756–1763)

• France and England fought the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763).
• The Peace of Paris was signed in 1763, resulting in an English victory.

Pre-Revolutionary Acts

• Quartering Act: A British proclamation requiring colonists to provide food and housing to British soldiers.
• Stamp Act: A British tax requiring the purchase of stamps to be placed on all newspapers and legal documents.

The American Revolution (1775–1783)

• The Second Continental Congress met in 1775, composed of colonial leaders.
• The Declaration of Independence was issued.
• The American Revolution (1775–1783) pitted the colonies against the British.

Founding the Government

• The American Constitution was ratified in 1787.
• It established three branches of government: Executive, Legislative, and Judicial.

The Civil War Era and Reconstruction

Rising Tensions Over Slavery

• In 1856, Senator Charles Sumner spoke forcefully against slavery.
• John Brown's Raid (1859): White abolitionist John Brown led a raid intended to give guns and ammunition to slaves.
• Abraham Lincoln won the presidential election in 1860.

The Civil War (1861–1865)

• The North (Union Army): Led by Ulysses S. Grant.n
• The South (Confederate Army): Led by Robert E. Lee.
• Emancipation Proclamation (1863): Issued by Lincoln, granting freedom to all slaves.
• On April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln.

Reconstruction (1865–1877)

• The main goals of Reconstruction were to reunite the North and South and to end the system of slavery.

Industrialization and Social Change

Post-War Legal and Industrial Changes

• In 1896, the Supreme Court ruled that "separate but equal" facilities were constitutional for blacks and whites. (This ruling was later overturned.)
• The first transcontinental railroad was finished in 1869.

Industrial Titans and Corporate Growth

• John D. Rockefeller: Standard Oil.
• Andrew Carnegie: Steel Industry.
• In 1901, the United States Steel Corporation became the largest corporation in the world.

Regulation and Labor

• In 1887, efforts were made to control railroad rates.
• The Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) put an end to trusts, mergers, and business agreements "in restraint of trade."
• The American Federation of Labor (AFL) was founded in 1881.

Immigration and Farmers' Movements

• Between 1865 and 1910, approximately twenty-five million people immigrated to the USA.
• Farmers' movements included The Grangers (1867) and the National Farmers' Alliance (1877).
• The Populist Party (1890s) sought the nationalization of the railroads.