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Time Line



Here are some notable events that happened throughout history...

1100 Mayan civilization reaches its height in Central America
1254 Birth of Marco Polo, explorer who will bring pasta to Italy from China
1347 Bubonic plague in Europe; originated in India, 1332. 75 million deaths
1492 Columbus discovered America
1507 Lands of the New World named for Amerigo Vespucci by Waldseemuller
1539 First printing press set up in the New World - at Mexico City
1590 Galileo describes the law of falling bodies
1607 Jamestown founded
1609 Henry Hudson explores river valley named for him
1609 Kepler describes planetary motions and laws
1619 First legislative assembly in America, in Virginia, July 30
1620 Puritan Pilgrims land at Plymouth Colony, write Mayflower Compact
1624 Indians barter away Manhattan for about $24.00
1629 Puritans settle Boston area, call themselves The Massachusetts Bay Co.
1636 First college in the colonies, later named after Rev. John Harvard
1676 First formally declared Day of Thanksgiving June 29
1684 Cotton Mather coins the term "Americans" for colonists
1685 Louis XIV cancels Edict of Nantes, thousands flee to the colonies
1692 Witch hunts in Salem, MA; 19 die
1752 Benjamin Franklin flies a kite
1764 Mozart writes his first symphony, at age eight
1770 Boston Massacre. Five dead, six wounded on March 5
1773 Boston Tea Party. 342 chests of tea go into the drink
1774 Virginia Conventions begin.  Lead to First Continental Congress
1775 The Revolutionary War begins in the United States
1775 Patrick Henry says "Give me liberty or give me death!"
1775 Second Continental Congress, again in Philadelphia
1776 Declaration of Independence drafted by Tom Jefferson, with John Adams
1777 Congress adopts the American flag with thirteen stars and stripes
1779 British surrender to Americans at Vincennes
1781 Articles of Confederation go into effect; were drafted in 1777
1783 Revolutionary War ends in the United States
1787 United States Constitution was framed and sent to the Congress and states
1789 George Washington and John Adams elected as first President and VP
1790 First national census records 3,929,214 persons
1792 Congress names the Dollar as our unit of currency; proposed by Jefferson
1792 Political parties formed; Republicans (to be Democrats) & Federalists
1793* Cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney
1803 Louisiana purchased for $15,000,000
1803 Atomic theory was first published
1810 Census counts 7,239,881 persons in United States
1812-1814 War of 1812 declared on England June 18
1835 USA becomes debt free (briefly) for only time in history
1836 The Alamo.  6000 Mexicans defeat 190 Americans in 12 days on March 6
1840 Telegraph invented by Samuel F. B. Morse
1840-1860 Oregon Trail
1846 Potato famine in Ireland.  Many flee to America for survival
1847 Brigham Young leads his followers into Salt Lake City, UT area
1849 California gold rush
1860 South Carolina secedes from Union, December 20
1861 Civil War begins at Fort Sumter, Charleston, SC, April 12
1861 Congress enacts first income tax August 2, on incomes more than $800
1863 The Emancipation Proclamation.
1863 The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln
1865 13th amendment abolishes slavery
1865 Lincoln shot by Boothe April 14, dies next day
1867 US buys Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million
1869 Transcontinental railroad completed; Ogden, UT wins the golden spike
1870 15th Amendment gives blacks the right to vote
1876 Custer's last stand at Little Big Horn in Montana
1876 Liberty statue presented by France
1876 Telephone invented by Alexander Graham Bell
1880 Incandescent lamp invented by Thomas A. Edison
1892 Ellis Island Opened (Jan.)
1897 Alaska gold rush
1898 Spanish - American War
1903* Wright brothers make first flight at Kitty Hawk, NC
1912 SS Titanic hits iceberg, 1503 lives lost
1914-1918 World War I
1920 19th Amendment brings women the vote
1929 Great Depression begins after bank and stock failures
1937 Social Security benefits were instituted
1939 Bill of Rights finally ratified
1941-1945 World War II
1950-1953 Korean War
1962 John Glenn first US astronaut to orbit earth
1968 Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. murdered in Memphis
1969 Neil Armstrong is first person on the moon
1986 Shuttle "Challenger" exploded on takeoff, 7 astronauts perished


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