American History At A Glimpse

Created By: Renee Adams

Credit is given to the following websites for the textual information and some of the graphics in this presentation:

http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/jb

http://www.earlyamerica.com

Colonial America 1492-1763

• European nations came to the Americas to increase their wealth and broaden their influence over world affairs. The Spanish were among the first Europeans to explore the new world and the first to settle in what is now the united states. Colonialism and Trade

http://omp.gso.uri.edu/doee/history/colonial/c2.htm

Colonial America

• By 1650, however, England had established a dominant presence on the Atlantic coast. The first colony was founded at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607. Many of the people who settled in the New World came to escape religious persecution. The Pilgrims, founders of Plymouth, Massachusetts, arrived in 1620.

The Pilgrims landing at Plymouth Rock

Plymouth Rock

Colonial America

• In both Virginia and Massachusetts, the colonists flourished with some assistance from Native Americans. New World grains such as corn kept the colonists from starving while, in Virginia, tobacco provided a valuable cash crop.

Colonial America

• By the early 1700s enslaved Africans made up a growing percentage of the colonial population. By 1770, more than 2 million people lived and worked in Great Britain's 13 North American colonies.

Revolutionary Period 1764-1789

• Defending the Colonies against attack by the French and others had cost the British a great deal of money. As a result, the British had very high taxes in their country. They thus decided to shift some of their financial burden to the colonists.

French and Indian Warhttp://www.mohicanpress.com/bushy_run.html

The Stamp Act• The Stamp Act of 1765,

which taxed all legal documents, newspapers and other documents, was met with a great uproar in the Colonies. In 1766, this tax was repealed, but it was just the beginning of the problems between the colonists and the British.

The Boston Tea Party• The Boston Tea

Party in 1773 was an act of revolt against the British and their tax on tea in the Colonies.

• Americans dressed

up like Indians and threw thousands of dollars of tea into the bay.

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/british/brit-2.html

We Want Our Freedom

• Tensions such as these eventually led to the writing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

• Americans decided that they wanted to govern themselves instead of being ruled by England.

The Revolutionary War

• The War of Independence, also known as the American Revolution, began between America and England.

Yorktown1781

ValleyForge1778

Saratoga1777

BunkerHill

1775

Lexingtonand

Concord1775

Battlesof the

Revolution

Revolution Info• There were many, many battles during the

American Revolution.• At times, it looked as though the British were

winning, and then the American “patriots” would take the lead.

• The Revolution finally ended in Yorktown where General Cornwallis surrendered to General Washington.

• The Revolution made heroes out of men like General George Washington, who went on to become the 1st President of the US.

A New America Emerges

• When the British finally surrendered on October 19, 1781, Americans were officially independent of Britain and set about establishing their own government.

Treaty of Paris

http://www.archives.gov/digital_classroom/lessons/american_revolution_images/revolution_images.html

 The New Nation

1790-1828 • Americans had a lot to

deal with during this period. They struggled with the need to increase taxes to pay for the American Revolution.

• Taxes were a touchy subject, since this was one of the reasons the Revolution against Britain happened to begin with.

Louisiana Purchase

• Under President Jefferson, the country expanded westward with the purchase of the Louisiana territory and the Lewis and Clark expedition.

War of 1812• US vs. Britain • Sometimes called the Second

War of American Independence• Lasted three years• US tried to gain control of

British controlled Canada while Britain was fighting against France

• US lost• After the war, a mood of

nationalism existed as people focused on events and issues at home.

Western Expansion & Reform 1829-1859

• Many Americans of this time, embraced the notion of enlarging the "empire for liberty." In other words, they wanted to expand the borders of America westward. While some pioneers headed west to California in search of gold, others attempted to expand the idea of what "liberty" in America meant.

Panning for goldhttp://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:0zYKMgkd88kg0M:library.thinkquest.org/5181/Panner.gif

Times…They Are A Changing

Abolitionists opposed laws that kept African Americans enslaved. As new states were admitted to the Union, there were many arguments over the new states being free or slave states.

http://www.towards-success.com/dejnarde_files/civil_war_slavery_picture.jpg

http://www.towards-success.com/dejnarde_files/african_american_slavery_picture.jpg

The Civil War 1860-65

Conflict over issues of how much control the federal government should have over the states, industrialization, trade, and especially slavery had increased tension between Northern and Southern states. The entire southern economy relied on slavery, but the north wanted to slowly phase slavery out…and so the fighting begins.

http://students.umf.maine.edu/~kelleykl/civil%20war%20reinactment.jpg

We’re Outta Here!

After Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860, 11 Southern states seceded (or withdrew) from the Union and set up an independent government, the Confederate States of America, where they would be free to have slaves if they wanted to.

http://www.historyofwar.org/Maps/acw_secession.gif

The Civil War

• These events led to the outbreak of the Civil War--a brutal, bloody, four-year conflict that left the South defeated and ended slavery at the cost of more than half a million lives.

http://members.chello.fr/georgesmcrei/CivilWar.jpg

Reconstruction 1866-1877

• After the North defeated the South in the Civil War, politicians faced the task of putting the divided country back together.

Union soldiers freeing slaves http://www.sonofthesouth.net/Thomas_Nast/Thomas_Nast

_Southern_Plantation.jpg

Reconstruction

• There was great debate about how severely the former Confederate states should be punished for leaving the Union. With the assassination of President Lincoln in 1865, it was up to President Andrew Johnson to try to reunite former enemies.

Emancipating the Slaves

http://www.sonofthesouth.net/slavery/abraham-lincoln/pictures/abraham-lincoln-350.jpg

Reconstruction Acts

The Reconstruction Acts of 1867 laid out the process for readmitting Southern states into the Union.

The Civil War Amendments

• Thirteenth Amendment- Abolished slavery

• Fourteenth Amendment- provided former slaves with national citizenship

• Fifteenth Amendment- granted black men the right to vote.

http://www.americanheritage.com/assets/images/articles/web/20060131-13th-amendment.jpg

The Gilded Age 1878-1889

The growth of industry and a wave of immigrants marked this period in American history.

http://www.wsu.edu/~peckham/photo/fa483/project/images/immigrants.jpg

Westward…HO!

The production of iron and steel rose dramatically and western resources like lumber, gold, and silver increased the demand for improved transportation. Railroad development boomed as trains

moved goods from the resource-rich West to the East.

http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/fac/higgs/cl/fa380/img/wk5/28provo.jpg

Money, money, money, money…MONEY!

• Steel and oil were in great demand. All this industry produced a lot of wealth for a number of businessmen like John D. Rockefeller (in oil) and Andrew Carnegie (in steel), known as robber barons (people who got rich through ruthless business deals).

John D. Rockefeller

http://images.forbes.com/images/2004/03/11/carnegie.jpg

The Progressive Era 1890-1913

• Because of its rapid economic and social growth, the U.S. had become a major world power. So when Cuban rebels began a violent revolution against Spanish rule in 1895, and a mysterious explosion sunk the U.S.S. Maine in the Havana harbor, the U.S. entered into what diplomat John Hay called "a splendid little war" with Spain.

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9G_RtsVozRHgYYAsSWjzbkF/SIG=12fk9kfn2/EXP=1194718357/**http%3A//www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h61000/h61236.jpg

It’s All About Control

Although the Spanish-American War ended relatively soon, issues over ownership of the Philippines,

Puerto Rico, and the Hawaiian islands also had to be resolved.

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9G_RqvxpDRH1ZUATiijzbkF/SIG=12dtlqtll/EXP=1194718833/**http%3A//www.historical-museum.org/history/war/usa-cubb.jpg

Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt• 2nd in command of the “Rough

Riders”- a voluntary military group who fought in the Spanish-American War.

• 26th President• Lively character, full of energy• Attacked big businesses

(monopolies)• Attacked “yellow journalism”

(false reports in the newspapers)• Lover of nature• After serving as president for a

term, he later formed the Bull Moose Party and ran (unsuccessfully) for President again against Taft.

http://www.kerstengallery.com/images/seo/teddy_roosevelt.jpg

The Great War and the Jazz Age 1914-1928

Foreign affairs (relationships with other countries) took up a great deal of President Woodrow Wilson's attention.

http://www.americancorner.org.tw/AmericasLibrary/assets/jb/reform/jb_reform_wilson_1_e.jpg

Foreign Problems

In Europe, there was the outbreak of World War I, also known as the Great War, in 1914, and in Mexico, there was the Mexican Revolution.

http://www.greatwardifferent.com/Great_War/Childrens_Books/Stories_of_the_Great_War/Stories_of_the_Great_War_03.jpg

Pancho Villa and Mexican revolutionaries

http://www.tombstone1880.com/wildbill/mrphotos1/smmrphoto4.jpg

Leave Me Out Of It!

At first, Americans did not want to get involved in WWI (isolationism) they supported the Allies in their fight against Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey. Finally, the U.S. entered the war in 1917.

http://www.shsu.edu/~his_sub/map-WWII%20Europe%20and%20Africa.jpg

4 MAIN Causes of WWI

• Militarism• Alliances• Imperialism• Nationalism

•Militarism: Building up one’s military for possible action

•Alliances: Many European countries grouped together and fought against other countries (“I gotcha back”)

•Imperialism: Using force to take over lands that are not your own

•Nationalism: EXTREME pride in one’s country (“We are better than you”)

“V” Is For Victory

• The war concluded in 1918 and the Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919. The Allied Powers of the U.S., Great Britain, Japan, Italy, Russia, France, Belgium, Serbia and Montenegro had been victorious. “The BIG Four”: George (UK),

Clemenceau (France), Orlando (Italy), President Wilson (US)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Council_of_Four_Versailles.jpg/240px-

Council_of_Four_Versailles.jpg

Germany Has To Pay Up

• Germany had to admit their fault in causing WWI

• Germany had to pay war reparations (war costs) for starting the war

• Germany had to give up some land and military power

The Jazz Age• Some of the youth in the

1920s danced at night clubs and changed their clothing styles.

• Women exercised their newly found freedom (having won the right to vote in 1920).

• The 18th Amendment (Prohibition) prohibited alcohol usage and production. Some turned to a life of crime and got wealthy from breaking this law—bootleggers.

Bootleggers http://spot.colorado.edu/~kuncec/Gangsters.gif

Flapperhttp://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:qvJODeJCIVsk5M:www.valdosta.edu/~mssteven/flapper.jpg

The Harlem Renaissance(1920s)

• Harlem nightclubs thrived, spotlighting numerous artists such as jazz musicians Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.

• African-American culture was shown in art work, writings, and songs.

http://www.artlex.com/ArtLex/h/images/harlem_motley_nightlif_th.jpg

19th Amendment

• Women now have the right to vote in ALL states.

• A great victory in women’s rights

• Women being granted the right to vote is called “suffrage”.

Gov. Morrow of Kentucky signs the 19th Amendment

http://www.americaslibrary.gov/assets/jb/jazz/jb_jazz_19tham_2_e.jpg

Great Depression 1929-1941

• October 29, 1929, was a dark day in history. "Black Tuesday" is the day that the stock market crashed, officially setting off the Great Depression. Unemployment skyrocketed--a quarter of the workforce was without jobs by 1933 and many people became homeless.

http://www.lowrisk.com/image/29crash.gif

The Great Depression

• The stock market crash DID NOT cause the Great Depression

• Too many goods were being produced (overproduction) and not enough were being bought

• BIG gap between the rich and the poor (unequal distribution of wealth)

• The economy was in a slump http://teachers.eusd.k12.ca.us/mguerena/Coursework/E

ye%20For%20Reality/The%20Great%20Depression%20Brown.jpg

Herbert Hoover

• President Herbert Hoover attempted to handle the crisis but he was unable to improve the situation.

• He though the problem would correct itself (it did not).

http://portrait.kaar.at/USA%202/images/herbert_hoover.jpg

I’m Gonna Give Americans a New Deal

• In 1932, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was elected president and he promised a "New Deal" for the American people.

• FDR was stricken with polio and

loss much of the use of his legs.

• He was married to his 5th cousin, Eleanor Roosevelt, who was an advocate for the poor as well as women and African-American rights.

http://plaza.ufl.edu/jacarey/Imagef1.jpg

New Deal Programs

• Congress created The Works Progress Administration (WPA) which offered work relief for thousands of people.

• FDR also implemented many other programs to create jobs for the starving Americans (Ex: CCC, TVA, WPA, AAA…)

http://re3.mm-a4.yimg.com/image/2932343553

The Dust Bowl

• Between 1933 and 1936, the Great Plains states suffered from severe drought.

• This farm land had been abused during WWI when agriculture was really needed to feed the troops.

• The topsoil had been ruined and the wind blew the powder-dry dirt for thousands of miles to the east, often forcing farmers to flee their land and settle more westward (mostly in California).

http://www.weru.ksu.edu/new_weru/multimedia/dustbowl/big/dustbowl2b.jpg

http://www.weru.ksu.edu/new_weru/multimedia/dustbowl/dustbowlpics.html

World War II

• The end to the Great Depression came about in 1941 with America's entry into World War II. America sided with Britain, France, and the Soviet Union against Germany, Italy, and Japan.

• Americans now had jobs building weapons, growing food, and producing materials for the war.

http://www.clemson.edu/caah/architecture/studiosouth/images/1920/wwII.gif

Adolf Hitler• The ruthless and cruel

leader of the German “Nazi” Party in WWII.

• The Nazis hated all who were not from the Arian race (especially Jews, blacks, and the handicapped).

• Hitler sent millions of Jews to concentration camps where they were starved, worked, tortured, and murdered. This is known as the Holocaust.

http://www.dictatorofthemonth.com/Hitler/hitler2.jpg

The Holocaust

• Over 6 million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust.

• The bodies of the dead were buried in mass graves or burned in the incinerators (big stoves).

• Many were the subjects of cruel medical experiments.

http://bokertov.typepad.com/btb/images/holocaust_mass_grave_belsen.jpg

Germany and the Holocaust

• The loss of lives in this war was staggering. The European part of the war ended with Germany's surrender in May 1945.

• Over 6 million Jews were murdered in these concentration camps. Those that survived were rescued by American soldiers when the war ended. Concentration Camps

http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images;_ylt=A9iby4AvLjNHq4AATjyJzbkF?p=concentration+camps&ei=UTF-8&fr=yfp-t-501&x=wrt&js=1&ni=20

The Bombing of Pearl HarborDecember 7, 1941

Japanese bombers flew over the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and killed 2,500+ people

Japan was angry because the US had cut off supplies to them for being involved with Germany.

http://images.news14.com/media/2006/12/7/images/01_pearl_harbor.jpg

V-J: “Victory in Japan”

• Japan surrendered in September 1945, after the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

http://re3.mm-a8.yimg.com/image/4114060907

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

• The US decided to drop an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima because Japan would not surrender after bombing Pearl Harbor.

• Three days later, the US dropped a second atomic bomb on the city of Nagasaki. Japan finally surrendered.

http://pegasus.phys.saga-u.ac.jp/imagesMac-PC/ForPEACE/bomb1.jpg

http://pegasus.phys.saga-u.ac.jp/imagesMac-PC/ForPEACE/hypocenter.jpg

1946 To The Present

• The U.S. was involved in a Cold War with the Soviet Union.The Cold War was not a real war with the Soviet Union; this term refers to the chilly relations the U.S. had with the formerly communist nation, which, since its breakup, is called Russia.

http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~jwrathma/pics/coldwar2.jpg

The Red Scare• In the States, the "Red

Scare" of communism of 1950 resulted in the McCarthy hearings. Senator Joseph McCarthy accused many Americans of being communists, which led to loss of employment for many artists, teachers, and government employees (many of which were innocent.)

http://www.atomicplatters.com/images/rediceberg_cvr_510.jpg

The Korean War 1950-1953

• A civil war between the North Koreans (communists) and South Koreans.

• N. Korea wanted to take over the S. Korean government

• US supported S. Korea and China and the Soviet Union supported N. Korea (during the Cold War Era)

• The war “technically” never actually ended because S. Korea did not sign the treaty, but a ceasefire (armistice) was signed in 1957.

http://www.glynn.k12.ga.us/BHS/academics/junior/hunt/jamiej17588/korea2.jpg

Martin Luther King Jr.

• Ushered in the civil rights movement

• Was a southern African-American preacher who advocated peacefully for black rights.

• Famous also for his “Free At Last” speech

• Wrote the “Letter From the Birmingham Jail”

• Was assassinated

http://re3.mm-a8.yimg.com/image/3998570481

John F. Kennedy (JFK)• The youngest elected

President• Catholic from

Massachusetts • Worked for the rights of

African-Americans• President during the Bay

of Pigs/Cuban Missile Crisis

• Married to Jackie Kennedy

• Assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald during a motorcade tour through Dallas, Texas in 1963 http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:tnj

RZSezZfImXM:www.jfk50mile.org/images/JFK.jpg

To The Moon!

• Always competing with Russia in technological advancements, the US became the first to land on the moon in 1969 (“the eagle has landed”.

• Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon. Famous line: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:Qw2XV_9tSqVikM:www.medaloffreedom.com/NeilArmstrongMoon.jpg

Vietnam War1959-1975• Similar to the Korean War, in

that one country was divided by communism. Americans did not want communism to spread, so they stepped in.

• North Vietnam (communist) • South Vietnam (supported by

the US)• Ended when the South

Vietnamese capital, Saigon, was taken over by N. Vietnam (YES, we lost)

• 1.4 million military personnel were killed

http://www.pieceuniquegallery.com/page/pix/TP6506.jpg

Richard M. Nixon • US Republican President from 1969-

1974

• Guilty of bugging the offices of the Democratic National Committee (the Watergate Scandal) during his re-election campaign.

• Nixon’s involvement in Watergate was proven by recordings that he himself had made.

• Resigned after the Watergate Scandal

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:rcrt6fmabc7XdM:www.visitingdc.com/images/richard-nixon-picture.jpg

Tearing Down The Wall• The wall closed off

communist East Germany to non-communist West Germany after millions fled to West Germany between 1949-1961.

• The wall was a symbol of the Cold War.

• The fall of communism is symbolized by tearing down the wall between East and West Berlin in 1989. http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9gnMiHFJzNHJmwA9Ti

jzbkF/SIG=130a9jdvp/EXP=1194621253/**http%3A//www.futureswatch.org/TELS_Course/Module_2/Mod2_Images/Berlin_Wall.JPG

George W. Bush

• Our current President of the US• Son of former US President,

George H.W. Bush• President that declared “War on

Terrorism” when the Twin Towers in New York City were attacked/destroyed on 9-11-2001

• Currently engaging the US military in a costly and lengthy war against terrorism in Iraq

http://re3.mm-a8.yimg.com/image/4041151662

9-11• Terrorists from leader Osama bin

Laden’s Al Qaeda group hijacked three planes on the morning of September 11, 2001 and crashed two of them into the Twin Towers (center of trade in the US), killing thousands of innocent people.

• Bin Laden has not been caught and terrorists continue to kill innocent people in countries all around the world daily.

• Today, we continue to fight other countries that harbor and aid terrorists.

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9gnMia6KDNHAAAB8UGjzbkF/SIG=12kp4fq8i/EXP=1194621498/**http%3A//images.surclaro.com/Screenshots/FreeStyle/911_tribute.JPG