American History

Timeline

American history year by year — the big turning points, and the moments I bumped into on this trip.

1400s–1600s

1492

Oct 12Columbus Crosses the Atlantic

1607

May 14Jamestown Is Founded

1620

Nov 11The Mayflower and Plymouth Colony

1692

The Salem Witch Trials

1700

1765

Mar 22The Stamp Act

1770

Mar 5The Boston Massacre

1773

Dec 16The Boston Tea Party

1775

Apr 18The Midnight Ride

Jun 17The Battle of Bunker Hill

1776

Mar 17Evacuation Day

Jul 4The Declaration of Independence

1777

Oct 7The Battle of Saratoga

1782

Aug 7The Badge of Military Merit

1787

Sep 17The U.S. Constitution

Dec 7Delaware Becomes the First State

1789

Apr 30Washington Becomes the First President

1792

Apr 2The U.S. Mint Is Founded

1800

1800

The Capital Moves to Washington, D.C.

1803

Apr 30The Louisiana Purchase

1804

May 14The Lewis and Clark Expedition

1812

Jun 18The War of 1812

1814

Sep 14The Star-Spangled Banner Is Written

1825

Oct 26The Erie Canal Opens

1830

May 28The Indian Removal Act

1838

May 26The Trail of Tears

1848

Jan 24The California Gold Rush

Jul 19The Seneca Falls Convention

1850

1850

Sep 18The Fugitive Slave Law of 1850

1852

Mar 20Uncle Tom's Cabin Is Published

1861

Apr 12The Civil War

1863

Jan 1The Emancipation Proclamation

Nov 19The Gettysburg Address

1865

Apr 14Lincoln Is Assassinated

Dec 6The 13th Amendment Abolishes Slavery

1869

May 10The Transcontinental Railroad Is Completed

1872

Mar 1Yellowstone, the First National Park

1876

Mark Twain Publishes Tom Sawyer

1886

Oct 28The Statue of Liberty Is Dedicated

1892

Jan 1Ellis Island Opens

1900

1903

Dec 17The Wright Brothers Fly

1904

Feb 8The Russo-Japanese War

1905

Sep 5The Treaty of Portsmouth

1916

Aug 25The National Park Service Is Founded

1917

Apr 6The United States Enters World War I

1920

Aug 18Women Win the Vote

1929

Oct 29The Great Depression Begins

1933

Mar 4The New Deal

1941

Dec 7Pearl Harbor and Entry into World War II

1945

Sep 2World War II Ends

1950

1954

May 17Brown v. Board of Education

1963

Aug 28The March on Washington

1964

Jul 2The Civil Rights Act of 1964

1969

Jul 20The Moon Landing