TAKS Review for U.S. history (social studies) 2011, Part 1Here’s a good review for TAKS. This should help get you through the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) for Social Studies (11th grade, or Exit Level).  You may use this list to see areas where you don’t know history, in order to go back and review before the test.

I. Geographic, Economic, and Political Influences on United States History

Absolute Chronology

Time and date measurements based upon an exact date (example: July 4, 1776)

Relative Chronology Time and date calculated from a major event (example: “Ten years after the birth of Jesus”, “25 years before World War I”, etc.), one event comes before or after another one

Magna Carta First document of English rights, trial by jury, Could not be deprived of life, liberty and property, signed by King John in 1215

Representative government

Philosophy of limited government with elected representatives serving at the will of the people

Spatial diffusion The process where plants, animals, diseases, ideas, or innovations are transmitted from one group or culture to another across space, examples – bubonic plague, Columbian exchange

Bubonic plague Example of Spatial Diffusion, – Black Death, spread from Asia to Europe, 1347 to 1352, 25 million (one third of population) died in Europe

Columbian Exchange of foods and products

Example of Spatial Diffusion of Food, Plants, Animals, and Diseases between New World (the Americas) and Old World (Europe, Africa, Asia)

Traditional economy An economic system where production is determined by tradition and customs, and goods and services are exchanged by bartering without money

Command economy An economic system where the production of goods and services is determined by the government

Market economy An economic system where the production of goods and services is determined by demand from consumers, and prices are determined by the prices buyers are willing to pay in a market; also called capitalism

Subsistence agriculture Goods produced by a family only for own

consumption, small scale, low technology, no surplus, no trade with others

Cottage industries Products usually made in the home or in small shops, small scale production of goods for sale in markets in traditional economy

English Bill of Rights Passed by Parliament in 1689 – English rights reinforced, no taxation, right to petition, individual rights

Physical geographic factors

Factors related to natural environment – topography, climate, vegetation, land forms, water bodies, natural resources, and location on earth

Human geographic factors

Factors related to people – population distribution, population density, population growth rates, agriculture and industry, culture, environment, government, language, religion, history, economy, education, etc.

Demographic patterns Changes and trends in population (people) and settlement patterns, for example: increases in income or birth rates, migration of people between areas (emigration and immigration)

II. American Revolutionary Period

1776 Declaration of Independence signed on July 4, during the Revolutionary War; English colonies announced as independent nations free from British rule

Declaration of Independence

July 4, 1776, written by Thomas Jefferson, American colonies declared independence from England and justified their action to earn the support of people of the world; list of grievances against King George III

Thomas Jefferson Main author of the Declaration of Independence, 3rd

President of U.S.; a “Renaissance Man.”Unalienable right Right/privilege which, according to the Declaration

of Independence, cannot be taken away, these include life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (and property)

Colonial grievances “No taxation without representation” the colonists said;  taxation without consent, no representation in Parliament, no trial by jury, quartering of British troops in colonists’ homes, standing armies, etc. – grievances were also addressed by Constitution & Bill of Rights

Revolution Armed rebellion, uprising against the government or authority, a period of great change

Independence Free from influence or control of other nations, sovereign

American Revolution War for U.S. Independence, 1775 – 1783, major battles – Lexington & Concord (“the shot heard ’round the world,” as Emerson wrote about it), Saratoga, Yorktown

George Washington Commander in Chief of Continental Army, 1st President of U.S., economic genius, known as “the Father of His Country.”  At his funeral, Washington was eulogized by Henry Lee as “First in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen.”

Confederation An alliance of states where states have the majority of the power and retain their sovereignty

Articles of Confederation

First government of United States from 1781-1788; state sovereignty predominated over any central government, weak national government – no standing army, no power to tax, no courts, no executive (president)

III. U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights

1787 U.S. Constitution written at Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia; Ratification of Constitution accomplished with the help of the Federalist Papers in 1788

Philadelphia Convention

1787, constitutional convention resulted in creation of FEDERAL government (separate executive, judicial and legislative branches); replaced the Articles of Confederation and wrote the U.S. Constitution

Constitution A document that defines the government a constitution restrains the powers of the government and guarantees certain rights to the people; James Madison is considered the “Father of the Constitution”

U.S. Constitution 1787-1788

Basic law and government of the United States, based on 7 principles – republicanism, popular sovereignty, federalism, limited government, separation of power, checks and balances, individual rights

Limited government Limits are placed on the powers of government, everyone including all authority figures must obey the laws

Republicanism Power is held by the people and exercised through the efforts of representatives elected by those people

Federalism Distribution of the powers of government between a central (federal) government and the regional (states) governments

Separation of powers

Form of government organized in three branches – a legislative branch (Congress), an executive branch (the President) and a judicial branch (Supreme Court) — each branch with its own duties and sphere of influence separate from the other branches

Checks and balances

Each branch of the government shares its power and checks the other two branches; prevents any branch of government from becoming too powerful

Popular sovereignty All political power rests with the people who can create, alter, and abolish government; most obvious demonstration of popular sovereignty is democratic elections for key officials of the government

Federalist Papers Newspaper articles published first in New York state – 84 essays explained reasons why people should adopt the new US constitution; authors: Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay (There were opposing views, expressed in the “Anti-Federalist Papers,” but that won’t be tested)

Individual rights The rights of the people protected in the Bill of Rights including economic rights related to property, political rights related to freedom of speech and press, and personal rights related to bearing arms and maintaining private residences

Bill of Rights:  1st through 10th Amendments

Basic rights protections spelled out explicitly; rights protected include:

Freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly, petition

Right to bear arms No citizen required to quarter soldiers in the

citizen’s home Warrants required for searches and seizures Due process of law before punishment or

forfeit of property Right to a fair trial for criminals Jury trial rights guaranteed No cruel or unusual punishment States rights reserved Individual rights not listed are also protected

Free speech 1st Amendment right, right to speak one’s own mindFreedom of the press

1st Amendment right, right to state anything in the printed form without prior restraint from government — no censorship pre-publication

IV. United States History, 1800 to 1877

Nullification Crisis Attempt by South Carolina to nullify a federal law in 1832; issue – high federal tariffs, South Carolina protested/refused to pay; Pres. Jackson threatened to use the army (Force Act), SC backed down; issue would fester until the Civil War; some states claimed the right not to follow federal law

States’ rights A view held by Southerners before the Civil War that the states were sovereign and had rights independent of the federal government and law

Civil war A war between people, factions, or regions within a country

1861-1865 Dates of the American Civil War between North and South; also known as War Between the States, began with Ft. Sumter and ended at Appomattox Courthouse; major battles – Gettysburg and Vicksburg

Civil War 1861 – 1865, War Between the Northern and Southern states, North wins, Abraham Lincoln president, main battles – Gettysburg & VicksburgAbraham Lincoln was president during the war.

Reconstruction amendments

13th – 1865 – abolished slavery 14th – 1868 – guaranteed all citizens,

including former slaves, civil rights and equality

15th – 1870 – guaranteed voting rights to former male slaves

13th Amendment Ended slavery in United States, adopted during Reconstruction period

14th Amendment Due process and equal protection under the law, applies to the states, defined U.S. citizenship, adopted during Reconstruction period

15th Amendment Guaranteed right to vote to African American males, adopted during Reconstruction period

V. Late 19th Century (The Gilded Age), 1877-1898

Free enterprise system All economic systems answer the following 3 questions – WHAT should be produced? HOW should it be produced? WHO should it go to? In the free enterprise system, people are free to produce what they can and to buy what they can afford, the interaction of decisions in the market by producers and consumers determines what is produced

Market-oriented agriculture

Growing crops and raising animals for sale in the market to make a profit, instead of just to feed one family

Farm issues Issues surrounding the production of agricultural products. The main issues were the high cost of transportation (caused railroad monopolies), low prices for farm products (caused by overproduction), and mortgaged farms in order to buy seed and supplies.

Industrialization Production of goods and products in factories by machines; “Second Industrial Revolution” occurred in the late 19th century (after the Civil War), and led to more goods being produced at lower prices; new sources of energy replaced human and animal power (whale oil, water power, steam power from coal, and then petroleum after 1859), factories and machines replaced the production of goods by hand (cottage industry), farmers left the countryside to work in cities, while population growth increased; immigrants from foreign nations also streamed into cities to get jobs in factories

Commercial industry Products usually made in a factory by a machine to sell to consumers in a market; production of manufactured goods in a market economic system

Big business Large companies that control major portions of the economy, owners of big businesses became politically powerful because of their wealth from profits

Labor union Workers who band together to demand better working conditions, shorter hours, and higher pay, COLLECTIVE BARGAINING allows all in the union to benefit equally when the union bargains with business management for these things.

Child labor Children under 14 years were exploited (taken advantage of) as workers, children were often forced to do dangerous jobs or work long hours for low pay

in factories (mills), farms, and minesPopulation growth Increase in the number of people in an area (state,

region, country) as result of increases in food/resources, migration, immigration

Migration Process of people moving to a new place to stay permanently or for a long time

Immigration Movement of people out of one country and into another. Note: people EMIgrate out of one country and IMMIgrate into another.

Minority group Any group of persons identified by race, ethnicity, religion, etc., and numbering less than 50 percent of total population.

Urbanization Major move from countryside to cities in late 19th century, caused growth of cities; four major problems resulted:  inadequate public services, overcrowding, social tensions, and corruption

Economic growth The growth of the economy of nation as measured by its gross domestic product (GDP) and at the personal level by per capita GDP

Standard of living Level of development in a country, measured by factors like the amount of personal income, levels of education, food consumption, life expectancy, availability of health care, ways natural resources are used, level of technology

Scientific discoveries Technological improvements based on science such as the telephone, radio, airplanes, television, medicine vaccinations, etc.

Technological innovations

New ways of doing things which are based on a technology, major changes that improve how people live, examples:  fire, agriculture (including plows and reaping machines), writing, electricity, industry, telephones, airplanes, computers, A/C

Telegraph New form of communication over long distance, patented by Samuel Morse in 1837, messages were sent using a code (Morse Code) in a matter of seconds through wires carrying electrical signals

Railroads Helped westward expansion of the US by carrying large amounts of goods, cattle, and people; main means of transportation in US from 1840s to 1940s, railroads also became powerful politically.

VI. Progressive Era and World War I

1898 Spanish-American War: USS Maine attacked Feb. 15, US defeated Spain in war, gained control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam, Rough Riders, San Juan Hill; the United States stepped out onto the stage of international relations, becoming a major nation to contend with

Spanish-American War USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor (Cuba) Feb. 15, 1898; US defeated Spain, gained control of Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam; Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders, Battle of San Juan Hill; Admiral Dewey and the Battle of Manila Bay

Expansionism The belief in the early 20th century that the United States needed to grow outside its continental boundaries, areas of expansion included American control of the Caribbean, building of the Panama Canal, acquisition of islands in the Pacific to be used as coaling stations for U.S. ships

Panama Canal Built between 1901-1914, provides shortcut across narrowest portion of Central America to connect Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; cost 5,000 lives to construct (most lives lost to tropical diseases like Yellow Fever and malaria), 50 mile long canal

Theodore Roosevelt 26th US president (1901-09); hero of Spanish-American War, moved U.S. into position as a world power, reform president during progressive period, conservationist, founder Bull Moose Party; “Speak softly, but I carry a big stick!” Square Deal, Rough Riders

World power A nation becoming a dominant force throughout the world, this process usually involves colonization, having a strong military presence, and the protection of countries weaker than it against other world powers

Reform The need to change things for the better, some of the major areas of reform in US history were abolition of slavery, working conditions and pay, moral issues, muckrakers, prohibition, Second Great Awakening, spoils system, urban welfare, women and children in the workplace, civil rights, business practices

16th Amendment Established a national income tax (1913), Congress has power to tax individual incomes

17th Amendment Allowed voters to choose US senators (1913), before 17th amendment US senators were chosen by state legislatures, examples of popular sovereignty

W.E.B. DuBois Early 20th-century African-American political leader; early member/ founder of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP); first Black to receive Ph.D. from Harvard University

Susan B. Anthony Leader of SUFFRAGETTE (women’s voting rights) movement in 19th century, 1872 arrested in NY for trying to vote, 19th Amendment approved 13 years after her death

19th Amendment Equal voting rights for women in federal and state elections (1920), women’s suffrage amendment (“suffrage” means “right to vote”)

Imperialism Domination of one country by another, the quest for colonial empires, examples for the United States: Hawaii, Spanish-American War, Philippines, Panama Canal, Latin America, Mexican Revolution

Militarism To glorify military strength – before World War I the arms race by major European powers developed large armies and more powerful weapons than their rivals, strong nations began to form alliances to add even more strength to their military might

Nationalism National pride or loyalty – a cause of World War I which began in the Balkans with rival national groups, led to assassination of Archduke Ferdinand which started World War I

1914-1918 World War I: Involved most of Europe, US, Allies vs. Central Powers, U-boats sink Lusitania – 128 US killed and US enters war in 1917, war noteworthy because of cost, number of killed, and use of aircraft, tanks, poison gas and machine guns

World War I From 1914 to1918: “The Great War” and “War to End All Wars”, involved most of Europe, Allies vs. Central Powers, noteworthy because of cost, number of killed, and use of aircraft, tanks, poison gas and machine guns; US entery was in 1917 after U-boats resumed targeting U.S. ships (U.S. did NOT enter war after 1915 sinking of the Lusitania – 128 US killed — because Germany promised to leave U.S.ships alone): Zimmerman Telegram – German Foreign Minister Zimmerman telegraphed German Embassy in Mexico City to offer Mexico Texas and New Mexico, if Mexico would just attack U.S., to keep U.S. out of war in Europe, but the telegram was intercepted, decoded and released to the public; Mexico did nothing, U.S. entered war in Europe against Germany

Unrestricted submarine warfare

Germany’s policy of sinking any ships on the seas to prevent war supplies from reaching its enemies, England and France, this practice forced the US into World War I in 1917

Woodrow Wilson 28th President (1913-21); president during World War 1, Wilson in his 14 Points offered conditions for ending World War I and called for creation of League of Nations to settle differences between countries, Progressive Democrat

Wilson’s Fourteen Points President Wilson’s plan for the post-World War I world, included SELF- DETERMINATION (self-rule) for small countries and League of Nations (pre-UN), freedom of the seas; Wilson’s plan called for no great punishment of the aggressor nations, such as Germany (see Treaty of Versailles)

Treaty of Versailles Peace treaty ending World War 1, declared Allies winners of the war and set out terms of German REPARATIONS (payment for

war damages), mostly ignored Wilson’s 14 Points, but did include the creation of the League of Nations (which the U.S. Senate refused to allow the U.S. to join).

VII. Between World Wars – Roaring ’20s, then Stock Market Crash, and Great Depression

Red Scare Fear in Western countries after World War I that Bolsheviks/Communists were trying to start revolutions and take over democracies. In the United States the Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer conducted raids to deport aliens suspected of being Communists

Prosperity “Good times” enjoyed by Americans in 1920s after World War I, employment and wages were high and workers bought more consumer goods and had more leisure time

Henry Ford Inventor of “Model T” in 1905 and “Model A” cars; introduced MASS PRODUCTION methods of building many cars quickly in a large factory, assembly line in 1914

Scopes Trial Trial in Tennessee in 1925 involving John Scopes, biology teacher who taught theory of evolution at a time when only creationism theory was accepted in Tennessee and 12 other states, trial was called the “Monkey trial” (because of misconception that evolution claims humans came from monkeys); lawyers – Clarence Darrow vs. William Jennings Bryan

Clarence Darrow Famous defense attorney known for flamboyant courtroom behavior and antics, defended Eugene Debs in 1894 union case, defended John Scopes in 1925 “Monkey Trial”

William Jennings Bryan Nebraska congressman; candidate for president in 1896 (“Cross of Gold” speech); prosecuting attorney in John Scopes 1925 “Monkey Trial”, Bible man, presidential candidate in 1900 and 1908 elections, Democrat, key figure in the POPULIST movement, which declared rich should pay more

Prohibition US constitutional amendment (18th amendment) that made illegal the manufacture, transportation, possession, or sale of alcohol; led to black market for alcohol and rise of crime, especially organized crime

Charles A. Lindbergh Hero of the 1920s; first aviator to cross the Atlantic non-stop in the “Spirit of St. Louis” aircraft (1927), NY to Paris 33 hours, former US Army and airmail pilot; victim of a kidnapping of his first child (the child was murdered)

1929 Stock Market Crash, Black Tuesday Oct. 29, end of prosperity period of 1920s with cheap credit, overvalued stocks, and consumer greed; plunged US and world into the Great

Depression of the 1930sStock Market Crash October 1929: Thousands of investors went broke when stocks

lost their value because of greed, margin buying and shady business deals; beginning of the Great Depression

Bank failures Bad bank loans drained cash out of peoples’ savings accounts; depositors later demanded their cash, which banks no longer held, caused banks go bankrupt (fail)

Depression A time of economic decline caused by a sharp drop in business activity; accompanied by rising unemployment, the Great Depression (1929-1941) was a serious global economic decline that began with the crash of the US stock market in 1929

Great Depression Began in 1929 and lasted throughout the 1930s, economic crisis caused by stock market crash; Americans suffered job loss, hunger and other hardships for more than a decade

New Deal President Franklin Roosevelt’s effort to jump-start the US economy and create jobs, New Deal programs emphasized relief, recovery, and reform

FDIC Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Created to insure bank (checking and savings) accounts against loss in case of mismanagement or financial disasters.

Social Security Act Passed in August 1935 as part of FDR’s New Deal; intended to protect American who were unable to support themselves – single parents, disabled, retired and elderly

VIII. World War II

Dictatorship One person holds all of the political power in a country.  Famous dictators of this era:  Adolf Hitler in Germany, Benito Mussolini in Italy, Hideki Tojo in Japan, Francisco Franco in Spain, Joseph Stalin in Soviet Union (Russia); Franco remained neutral in World War II, Stalin joined the Allies when Germany invaded Russia

1941-1945 Years of US involvement in World War II, America enters war when Japan attacks US base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Dec. 7 (“Day of Infamy”), Europe and Pacific theaters, Japan-Italy-Germany vs. U.S.-Great Britain-Russia, war end in Europe May 8 and Japan Aug. 14, 1945

Pearl Harbor Surprise Japanese attack on largest US base in Hawaii on Dec 7, 1941(“Day of Infamy”); caused US to enter World War II, more than 2,000 US military and civilians are killed.

World War II 1941-1945 were years of US involvement, but war began in Europe in 1939, America enters war when Japan attacks US base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on Dec. 7 (“Day of Infamy”), Europe and Pacific theaters, Japan-Italy-Germany vs. U.S.-Great Britain-Russia, war ends with surrenders in Europe on May 8 and by Japan on Aug. 14, 1945

Internment of Japanese Americans

In response to Pearl Harbor, US government suspected all Japanese-Americans as possible spies or sabateurs; thousands especially on West Coast relocated to prison camps on US mainland

Battle of Midway Considered “turning point” of World War II in the Pacific; US ships and planes defeated large Japanese fleet on its way to capture Midway Island for use as military base (1942); Japan’s Navy was hurt so that Japan could not mount any further offensive campaigns in the war

Home front What was happening in the United States while America was at war. Examples: women in the economy (Rosie the Riveter), war bonds, rationing coupons, victory gardens, scrap metal drives

Rationing Goods needed for the armed forces or wartime production were rationed (limited); included rubber, gasoline, oil, sugar, butter, and meat; Americans used coupons to obtain their supply of the rationed item.

Holocaust Imprisonment, torture and extermination (genocide) of more than 6 million Jews by Nazi Germany, millions of other people also killed in camps; major death camp – Auschwitz

Normandy Invasion; also known as D-Day, or Operation Overlord

June 6, 1944, “D-Day”, Operation Overlord, Allied invasion of France, beginning of the end for Germany in World War II

Harry S. Truman VP who became president in 1945 with death of Franklin Roosevelt, decided to drop atomic bomb on Japan, stood up to USSR, Potsdam Treaty, Truman Doctrine 1947, Korean War

Atomic bomb Harry S Truman decision to use the bomb on Hiroshima & Nagasaki, August 1945; Enola Gay was name of B-29 Bomber used to drop the first bomb on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945; killed thousands of Japanese, ended World War II in the Pacific Front

Hiroshima and Nagasaki Atomic bombs (developed in Manhattan Project) dropped on these Japanese cities (August 6 & 9, 1945), ended WWII in Pacific on August 14, 1945

IX. Cold War to 1960

GI Bill of Rights 1944 law providing financial aid to World War II veterans entering college, starting a business, buying a home, and giving veterans preference in government jobs.

Truman Doctrine President Truman’s position after World War II that US would aid any nation threatened by the Communists, part of US containment policy against Soviet Union and communism

George C. Marshall US Army general who helped develop US plans to win World War II; as Secretary of State, created “Marshall Plan” to rebuild Europe after World War II; organized Civilian Conservation Corps in the New Deal

Marshall Plan US economic aid program that rebuilt Western Europe after World War II; proposed by Secretary of State George Marshall; became part of US containment policy against communism

NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization (1949); a mutual defense pact among Western European nations and United States; further enforced containment of communism

Korean War Conflict arising in 1950 from post-WW II division of Korea at latitude 38 degrees north, between North (Communist) and South Korea; President Truman sent in US troops (police action) to help South Korea; General Douglas MacArthur head of United Nations forces; Korean War ended in stalemate armistice in 1953

McCarthyism Named after US Senator Joseph McCarthy; part of fear of communism scare after World War II in the 1950’s, called the “Red Scare;” practice of unproven accusations of disloyalty; Sen. McCarthy’s downfall – accusing Army of harboring Communists and being seen on TV as a bully

Joseph McCarthy US Senator from Wisconsin 1950, conservative, believed communists were trying to take over US from the inside, called many famous people to testify before Congress to prove their loyalty and reveal names of suspected spies, responsible for McCarthyism

Sputnik I Launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, the world’s first space satellite; showed that US was behind in education, big push to improve science and math education, “Space

Race” beganInternational trade Trade between countries from all over the world, trade

usually benefited both countries involved, but sometimes benefited the dominant country more.

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

US Supreme Court decision (1954) overturning “separate but equal” doctrine of racial segregation (separation/discrimination) originally set out in the 1896 train car case of Plessy v. Ferguson; led to integration of US public schools.

When did the Cold War begin?  Some historians date it from 1945, when the Soviet Union failed to retreat from lands gained in the final push to defeat Germany.  Many historians date it from 1946, from Winston Churchill’s  “Iron Curtain” speech in Fulton, Missouri, in 1946, in which he identified the conflict between East and West.  Some date it from 1947, with official acts on the part of the Soviet Union to cement into place the Eastern Bloc of  “satellite nations.”

When did the Cold War end?  Again the end is not clear.  Since there never was a formal declaration of war, there never was a need to negotiate a truce or peace.  Most scholars date the end of the Cold War with the formal break-up of the Soviet Union, which occurred at midnight, December 31, 1991.

X. United States from 1960 to 1974

Martin Luther King, Jr. Minister and civil rights leader of 1950s-60s, famous for “I Have a Dream” speech, assassinated in Memphis, on Apr. 4, 1968, non-violent protest style copied from Gandhi in India

Civil rights movement Activities by African Americans in 1950s and 1960s to make the Reconstruction Amendments actually work for them in the South, key events – Brown v. Board of Education, Freedom Riders, March on Washington, Montgomery Bus Boycott, non-violent resistance, sit-ins, civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Political equality The concept that all persons in a country have the same political power, the Reconstruction Amendments and the Suffrage Amendment tried to achieve this in the United States for African Americans and for women, but not until the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950’s and 1960’s did political equality truly happen in the U.S.

Civil Rights Act of 1964 President Johnson’s first important piece of legislation; prohibited an employer from denying someone a job because of race, sex, or religion, gave the federal government the power to desegregate public places

24th Amendment Eliminated fees (poll taxes) required for voter registration in most states (1964)

26th Amendment Lowered the minimum voting age from 21 to 18 for voting in all

elections (1971)Vietnam Conflict Conflict between 1946 – 1975 in which Vietnamese overthrew

French rule, followed by conquest of South Vietnam by North Vietnam; US comes in on S. Vietnam’s side against Communist N. Vietnam, final settlement signed on Jan. 27, 1973, United States LOST

Watergate Office and apartment complex in Washington, DC, headquarters of Democratic National Committee, break-in ordered by White House officials; President Nixon (Republican) resigns from office over scandal to avoid impeachment and removal hearings.

Resignation of President Nixon

Richard M. Nixon resigned as president (Aug. 1974), rather than face impeachment (removal from office), after the discovery of his involvement in the Watergate burglary of the Democratic Party headquarters.

Rachel Carson Scientist and author whose book, Silent Spring, is credited with starting a new, modern environmental movement, with its warning against indiscriminate use of complex hydrocarbon chemicals whose health and safety effects were not fully studied. She specifically warned of the dangers of the insecticide DDT, which kills songbirds and especially big raptors, thereby threatening to make a “silent spring.”

Thurgood Marshall A brilliant attorney who won the case against racial segregation in schools, in Brown vs. Topeka Board of Education in 1954. He was the first African-American justice to sit on the Supreme Court, appointed by President Lyndon Johnson in 1973.

Ronald Reagan (mostly after 1974, actually)

A former Hollywood actor and two-term governor of California, Ronald Reagan’s election to the presidency in 1980 established a conservative “revolution” in Washington, slowing or halting many trends to liberal politics in government that had continued since the administration of FDR. Reagan’s political popularity helped take the Senate for Republicans, and his appointments to courts, including the Supreme Court, will affect the political outlook of our justice system well into the 21st century.

Dates to remember, U.S. history (TEKS dates)1492

Christopher Columbus stumbled into the Americas, trying to sail to China – In 1492 the Italian navigator Christopher Columbus, who sailed with the support of the Spanish crown, arrived in the Americas. His original intention was to reach the Indies by sailing west instead of east. This would ensure the Spanish crown a new trade route to the lucrative markets of the East. Instead of reaching the Indies, his first expedition sighted land in the Bahamas on October 12, 1492. He named the first island San Salvadore (Holy Savior).

1607Founding of Jamestown, Virginia — the first permanent, English colony in America – In 1607, representatives of the Virginia Company of London established the first permanent English settlement in North America. The Virginia Company, a joint-stock company founded by investors in England, called it Jamestown in honor of King James I of England. Several factors encouraged settlement including peace with Spain; willing settlers lured by adventure, markets and the prospect of religious freedom; financial support provided by the Virginia Company; and the company’s assurance that colonists could remain subjects of England.

1776

Declaration of Independence – On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, the Virginia representative to the Second Continental Congress, moved that “These United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states. . . ” Congress appointed a committee to draft an inspirational document to explain to the world the reasons the colonies were asserting their independence in the hopes of gaining broad colonial and international support. The committee included Thomas Jefferson who was charged with drafting the document. In it he asked for protection of the “unalienable rights” of humankind, in addition to British rights, and listed other British actions which prompted the quest for independence. Congress adopted Lee’s motion on July 2, and on July 4, fifty-six representatives from the thirteen original colonies unanimously approved the Declaration of Independence. Six months prior to the official declaration, Thomas Paine published his influential political pamphlet Common Sense. It presented a clear and persuasive argument for independence, and convinced many undecided colonists to support the movement for independence.

1787

Convention in Philadelphia drafts what will become the U.S. Constitution – Between May 25 and September 17, 1787, delegates gathered in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. Instead they drafted, debated, compromised, and finally approved for ratification the Constitution of the United States. It was then sent to the states to adopt or reject based on the votes of delegates to ratification conventions. The debate over ratification continued into 1788 as Federalists and Anti-Federalists faced off over issues of states’ rights, human liberties, and governmental authority. Ratification of the new constitution required acceptance by nine of the thirteen states. Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution and it was followed by Pennsylvania and New Jersey in 1787. Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, and New Hampshire ratified it in 1788. The ninth state (New Hampshire) guaranteed that the new United States had a government. Virginia and New York approved the document later in 1788, and North Carolina and Rhode Island adopted it last, in 1789 and 1790, respectively.

1803

Louisiana Purchase – In 1803, the United States acquired, under the leadership of President Thomas Jefferson, the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon Bonaparte, ruler of France, for $15 million dollars. The purchase more than doubled the area of the United States. It gave the new

nation access to 828,000 square miles of fertile territory and navigable waterways between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains at a cost of approximately three cents per acre. All or parts of 13 states were carved out of the Louisiana Purchase (in order of admission): Louisiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, and Oklahoma.

1861-1865

The American Civil War began on April 12, 1861, with the firing on Fort Sumter and ended with the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House in early April 1865. South Carolina, the first state to leave the Union, seceded in 1860, prompted by the election of the Republican presidential candidate Abraham Lincoln. Six more followed in early 1861 (Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Texas). They formed the Confederate States of America. 1861: President Lincoln took the oath of office on March 4, 1861 and sought to maintain ties with eight border states which remained with the Union. The Civil War began on April 12 with the firing on Fort Sumter by Confederate troops off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina. Four more states seceded after war was declared: Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The first battle of the war at Bull Run, near Manassas Junction, Virginia, ended in a Confederate victory due to poor Union generalship. 1862: The Confederacy started to draft soldiers to meet the demand for troops and the Union followed suit in 1863. The Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single-day battle of the war, occurred in Maryland on September 17, 1862. Lincoln issued his Emancipation Proclamation on September 23, following the Union victory at Antietam. 1863: From July 1 to 3, 1863, 92,000 Union troops fought 76,000 Confederates at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The fate of the Confederacy was sealed on July 4 with Union victories at Gettysburg, turning back a Confederate invasion of the North, and Vicksburg, ceding control of the Mississippi River to the Union. The war continued for two more years as the South sought independence and Lincoln demanded union. 1864: Ulysses S. Grant, appointed commander of the Union army following Vicksburg, crafted a more aggressive military offensive than previous generals. It included a march of destruction into the heart of the South by General William Tecumseh Sherman, and Grant’s own assault on Lee in Virginia. Sherman’s men captured and burned Atlanta in September 1864. Grant’s engagements with Lee involved destructive battles including the Wilderness Campaign and the assault on Cold Harbor. 1865: Union troops captured Richmond and surrounded Lee in April. On Palm Sunday, April 9, 1865, General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia. On April 15, 1865, President Lincoln died from an assassin’s bullet and Vice-President Andrew Johnson assumed office.

1877

Military Reconstruction ended in the South with the Compromise of 1877. The compromise solved a political impasse caused by the close election of 1876 in which Democratic nominee Samuel J. Tilden gained more popular votes than his Republican opponent Rutherford B. Hayes, but not a majority of electoral votes. The southern states of Louisiana, Florida, and South Carolina each submitted two sets of returns, one Democratic and one Republican. The Compromise consisted of the Electoral Count Act which established a commission drawn from the Senate, the House, and the Supreme Court to count disputed votes. Even this commission

split on partisan lines. The Compromise prevented further deadlock by recommending that Hayes become president in exchange for withdrawing federal troops from Louisiana and South Carolina. As a result, Republicans abandoned efforts to ensure equality for African Americans and Democrats regained control of southern politics.

1898

The Spanish-American War was triggered by the explosion of the Maine on February 15, 1898, in Havana harbor. American officials refused to accept the Spanish report that the cause of the explosion was internal and accidental. On April 11, 1898, President William McKinley asked Congress to authorize armed intervention against Spain to free the oppressed Cubans. The Navy, commanded by Commodore George Dewey, sailed into Manila Bay in the Philippines on May 1 and with the assistance of military troops, captured it on August 13, a day after the armistice was signed. Hawaii was annexed by the United States on July 7 to secure a coaling and supply station in the Pacific Ocean. The “Rough Riders,” led by Theodore Roosevelt, rushed San Juan Hill, Cuba, on July 1 and the American fleet destroyed Spanish ships in Santiago Harbor, Cuba, on July 3. Disease ravaged U.S. forces; 400 died in battle or due to injuries while more than 5,000 succumbed to malaria, typhoid, dysentery, and yellow fever. In peace negotiations late in 1898, the Cubans received their freedom from Spanish rule, and the United States acquired Puerto Rico, the island of Guam, and the Philippines.

1914-1918

In 1914 World War I began in Europe, triggered when a Serb assassinated the heir to the Austria-Hungary throne. The Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and later Turkey and Bulgaria faced off against the Allies including France, Britain, and later Japan and Italy. President Woodrow Wilson declared neutrality but both the Central Powers and the Allies sought U.S. support. England and France benefited from American products which aided their war efforts and businessmen in the United States prospered even as anti-German sentiment increased. Trade with the Central Powers was limited because Britain controlled shipping channels in the Atlantic and diverted U.S. ships to British ports. German U-boats (submarines) sank the British passenger liner Lusitania on May 7, 1915, at the cost of 128 American lives. Wilson won re-election in 1916 on the assumption that he would not ask Congress for a declaration of war but Germany announced its plan to wage unlimited submarine warfare in early 1917 and sank four U.S. merchant marine vessels in March. On April 2, 1917, Wilson asked Congress to declare war. After the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) arrived in France, the German threat increased, and the Allied forces united under French Marshal Foch. By September, General John J. Pershing demanded separate command. The U.S. troops under Pershing participated in the last major offensive of the war, the Meuse-Argonne which lasted 42 days and involved 1.2 million U.S. troops. In the battle of Argonne Forest, one-tenth of all U.S. troops died in the heavy fighting. Germans surrendered on November 11, 1918. Peace negotiations began late in 1918 and continued into 1919.

1929The Great Depression began in 1929, with the Stock Market Crash on Tuesday, October 29. President Herbert Hoover’s efforts to slow the speculation in paper profits through the Federal

Reserve Board had little effect. In October, U.S. and foreign investors began selling shares at a panic pace. The stock market fluctuated considerably during the Fall of 1929. Erratic sales on “Black Thursday,” October 24, caused investors concern and on October 29, “Black Tuesday,” 16,410,030 shares were sold on the stock exchange. By late 1929, investors lost $40 billion in paper values, an amount greater than total U.S. expenditures for World War I. The collapse of the stock market preceded a world-wide economic depression. All industrialized nations suffered. By the end of 1930, more than 4 million workers were jobless in the United States and by 1932, 12 million were unemployed.

1941-1945

The United States entered World War II in 1941 on both the Pacific and European fronts. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, prompted the United States to declare war on Japan. Germany responded by declaring war on the United States. Nearly 15 million men and more than 200,000 women enlisted. More than six million women worked outside the home to keep the economy going. In 1942 U.S. troops invaded north Africa and in 1943 the Allied troops invaded Italy. Also in 1943 the Japanese were driven from Guadalcanal. On June 6, 1944, General Dwight D. Eisenhower led 3 million Allied troops in the cross-channel invasion of France, landing at Normandy and pushing German forces out of France, liberating Paris in August. Adolf Hitler countered with a concentrated attack on American forces in the Ardennes forest on December 16, 1944. Over ten days, the German advance was stalled and then repulsed in the Battle of the Bulge. Eisenhower’s troops advanced through Germany, meeting Soviet troops at the river Elbe in April 1945 and pushed on to Berlin. President Franklin Roosevelt died of a massive cerebral hemorrhage on April 12, 1945, nearly a month before German officials surrendered unconditionally on May 7. May 8 is designated V-E Day (Victory in Europe Day). War with Japan continued with the United States dropping fire bombs on Tokyo, March 9-10, 1945, in an effort to force its unconditional surrender. On August 6, 1945, the first atomic bomb was dropped on the military-base city of Hiroshima. A total of 180,000 were killed or missing. A second bomb fell on the naval-base city of Nagasaki on August 9 with 80,000 killed or missing. The Japanese agreed to surrender on August 10 if their emperor Hirohito remained as head of state. The surrender ceremony occurred on the U.S.S. Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945.

1957

The year 1957 marked the start of the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. On October 4, the Soviets launched the world’s first space satellite, called Sputnik and one month later launched Sputnik II, which carried a dog into space. The Communist success caused U.S. military and political leaders concern because it appeared to narrow the gap between the “backward” Soviet Union and the United States. Scientists quickly developed a small satellite and launched it in early 1958. The education system in the United States also came under scrutiny. The National Defense and Education Act, passed in 1958, authorized $887 million for loans and grants to improve science, mathematics, and language education.

1969

Apollo 11 lands on the Moon, the first time humans have ventured to a planet other than Earth. For the first time, two humans landed on the moon.

1991

End of the Cold War