Directions / Teacher’s Guide / Answer KeyTimeline...12. The California Gold Rush begins when gold...
Transcript of Directions / Teacher’s Guide / Answer KeyTimeline...12. The California Gold Rush begins when gold...
Directions / Teacher’s Guide / Answer Key
Introduction: Thanks so much for downloading this resource! This makes for a very engaging activity
for my classes. I will use it the first week of school – often on the first day – as a way to get to know
each other and also give me a good idea of their knowledge of US History.
First, cut out the events so that each student gets one. There are 33 here (hopefully you don’t have more
than that in your classes ). If you have less, you can take any away and the activity still works perfectly.
I always start with having students attempt to get in timeline order. First try they’re not allowed to get
any help. Then, I’ll ask if anyone wants to move where others are and we’ll have some great discussions
about why certain they perceive certain events to take place at certain times. We will also discuss the
events as we go through them. Then I will give them a chance to re-order before finally allowing the use
of textbooks or devices to confirm their order.
However, I love just how many other options it provides. After lining up chronologically, I’ll generally
have students line up:
From most important/impactful on history to least.
From being positive for American to negative
By where they happened geographically (by making each corner of the room Maine, Florida,
California, Washington)
Finally, this can also be used as an activity for students to get to know each other. With this
option, give students the table worksheet (page 4-5). Each student has to look up their event and
add it to the table. Then, they go around the room, introduce themselves to each other and
explain their events until everyone has their table completely filled (if you have less than 33
students you’ll have some blanks though).
I’m sure there’s even more ways that you might be able to think of!
ALSO – I started making a note of what student had
each event and putting that in my planner. When we get
to each event throughout the year, I ask that student a
question or remind them that they had the event.
They’re usually be shocked that you remembered.
After this activity, we’ll start getting into my US
History curriculum the next class! This is available at
StudentsofHistory.org and includes every single
resource you need for every day of the school year!
There’s PowerPoints, projects, interactive notebooks,
Google Drive resources, tests, and so much more.
There’s even free sample resources you can download!
Thanks for your interest!
The answer key for the chronological order line-up is found after this on the next page. The events were
chosen for their cultural and historical impact and also to include events from throughout American
History.
Obviously, there are an infinite number of possibilities for the other line-up options.
© Students of History - https://studentsofhistory.org
Answer Key
1. John Smith and settlers from the Virginia Company found the Jamestown settlement
within the country of Tsenacommacah, which was administered by the Powhatan
Confederacy.
2. The Mayflower Compact, the first governing document of Plymouth Colony, was signed
by the Pilgrims in what is now Provincetown Harbor.
3. The “shots ‘heard round the world” are fired at Lexington & Concord, marking the start of
the American Colonies rebellion against Great Britain.
4. The Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, announcing that the American colonies consider themselves
no longer under British rule.
5. Delegates from 12 states (all but Rhode Island) meet in Philadelphia to revise the Articles
of Confederation. However, they instead create a new form of government under the US
Constitution.
6. Thomas Jefferson authorized US diplomats to pay France roughly $15 million for the
Louisiana Purchase – about 828,000 square miles from the Mississippi River to the Rocky
Mountains.
7. The Lewis & Clark Expedition begins along the Mississippi River and would become the
first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States.
8. The Monroe Doctrine, named for President James Monroe, is proclaimed. It stated that
that any European intervention in the Western Hemisphere could be a potentially hostile
act against the US.
9. President Andrew Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act into Law, forcing the expulsion
of tens of thousands of American Indians from their traditional homelands to the West
along the Trail of Tears.
10. The Battle of the Alamo takes place near San Antonio, Texas. The Mexican army, led by
General Santa Anna’s killing of all the defenders of the fort inspired others to join the
Texian fight against Mexico.
11. The Seneca Falls Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Elizabeth Cady
Stanton and Lucretia Mott helped plan the convention which would be the first public
women’s rights meeting in the United States.
12. The California Gold Rush begins when gold was discovered at Sutter’s Mill near Coloma,
California. News of the discovery would bring over 300,000 people west in search of wealth.
13. The first shots of the Civil War are fired at Ft. Sumter, South Carolina, starting a long, 4-
year war that would result in more American deaths than any other conflict.
14. Abraham Lincoln is assassinated by John Wilkes Boothe while watching a performance of
“Our American Cousin,” at Ford’s Theater in Washington D. C.
15. Thomas Edison invents a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb.
16. Chinese Exclusion Act was signed by President Chester A. Arthur, prohibiting all
immigration of Chinese laborers into the United States.
1607
1620
1775
1776
1787
1803
1804
1823
1830
1836
1848
1849
1861
1865
1879
1882
17. The US wins the Spanish-American War and gains the territories of Puerto Rico, Guam,
and the Philippines from Spain.
18. Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated in Sarajevo, triggering
the start of World War I.
19. Octaviano Larrazolo of New Mexico became the first Hispanic senator in American
History when he was elected to the U.S. Senate.
20. October 29th becomes known as “Black Tuesday” when panicked sellers on Wall Street
send stock prices crashing downward. The crash signaled the start of the Great
Depression.
21. The 102-story, 1,250-foot-tall Empire State Building officially opens in New York City.
22. Japan leads a surprise attack on America’s naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, resulting in
the deaths of 2,402 Americans and leading America’s entry into World War II.
23. A group of scientists, led by Robert Oppenheimer and Enrico Fermi, begin work on the
top secret “Manhattan Project” to develop the first atomic bomb.
24. Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers broke the color barrier and became the first
black athlete in Major League Baseball.
25. President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is arrested for
the crime, but conspiracy theories about what really happened still abound.
26. The Supreme Court overrules the prohibition of interracial marriage in the Loving v.
Virginia: case after Mildred Loving, a black woman, and Richard Loving, a white man,
had been sentenced to a year in prison in Virginia for marrying.
27. Civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was
assassinated by a sniper at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
28. The crew of NASA’s Apollo 11 lands on the moon, with Neil Armstrong being the first to
walk on its surface and stating, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for
mankind.”
29. President Richard Nixon becomes the first and only President to resign from office
following the Watergate Scandal and potential impeachment.
30. Sandra Day O'Connor is sworn in as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, becoming
the first woman to serve on America’s highest court.
31. British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee invents the World Wide Web as a tool to share
information among scientists at universities around the world.
32. On September 11th, Islamic extremists indoctrinated by Osama bin Laden hijacked 4
commercial airliners and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York and
Pentagon in Virginia.
33. Barack Obama is elected, becoming America’s first African-American president.
© Students of History - https://studentsofhistory.org
1898
1914
1928
1929
1931
1941
1942
1947
1963
1967
1968
1969
1974
1981
1989
2001
2008
Name ____________________________________
Major Events in American History
Event Year Significance
1607
1620
1775
1776
1787
1803
1804
1823
1830
1836
1848
1849
1861
1865
1879
© Students of History - https://studentsofhistory.org
1882
1889
1914
1928
1929
1931
1941
1942
1947
1963
1967
1968
1969
1974
1981
1989
2001
2008
John Smith and settlers from the Virginia Company found the Jamestown settlement within the country of Tsenacommacah, which was administered by the Powhatan Confederacy.
The Mayflower Compact, the first governing document of Plymouth Colony, was signed by the Pilgrims in what is now Provincetown Harbor.
The “shots ‘heard round the world” are fired at Lexington & Con0cord, marking the start of the A0merican Colonies rebellion against Great Britain.
The Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, announcing that the American colonies consider themselves no longer under British rule.
Delegates from 12 states (all but Rhode Island) meet in Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation. However, they instead create a new form of government under the US Constitution.
Thomas Jefferson authorized US diplomats to pay France roughly $15 million for the Louisiana Purchase – about 828,000 square miles from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains.
The Lewis & Clark Expedition begins along the Mississippi River and would become the first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States.
The Monroe Doctrine, named for President James Monroe, is proclaimed. It stated that that any European intervention in the Western Hemisphere could be a potentially hostile act against the US.
President Andrew Jackson signs the Indian Removal Act into Law, forcing the expulsion of tens of thousands of American Indians from their traditional homelands to the West along the Trail of Tears.
The Battle of the Alamo takes place near San Antonio, Texas. The Mexican army, led by General Santa Anna’s killing of all the defenders of the fort inspired others to join the Texian fight against Mexico.
The Seneca Falls Convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott helped plan the convention which would be the first public women’s rights meeting in the United States.
The California Gold Rush begins when gold was discovered at Sutter’s Mill near Coloma, California. News of the discovery would bring over 300,000 people west in search of wealth.
The first shots of the Civil War are fired at Ft. Sumter, South Carolina, starting a long, 4-year war that would result in more American deaths than any other conflict.
Abraham Lincoln is assassinated by John Wilkes Boothe while watching a performance of “Our American Cousin,” at Ford’s Theater in Washington D. C.
Thomas Edison invents the first long-lasting, practical electric light bulb.
The Chinese Exclusion Act is signed by President Chester A. Arthur, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers into the United States.
The US wins the Spanish-American War and gains the territories of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines from Spain.
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated in Sarajevo, triggering the start of World War I.
Octaviano Larrazolo of New Mexico became the first Hispanic senator in American History when he was elected to the U.S. Senate.
October 29th becomes known as “Black Tuesday” when panicked sellers on Wall Street send stock prices crashing downward. The crash signaled the start of the Great Depression
The 102-story, 1,250-foot-tall Empire State Building officially opens in New York City.
Japan leads a surprise attack on America’s naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, resulting in the deaths of 2,402 Americans and leading America’s entry into World War II.
A group of scientists, led by Robert Oppenheimer and Enrico Fermi, begin work on the top secret “Manhattan Project” to develop the first atomic bomb.
Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers broke the color barrier and became the first black athlete in Major League Baseball.
President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is arrested for the crime, but conspiracy theories about what really happened still abound.
The Supreme Court overrules the prohibition of interracial marriage in the Loving v. Virginia: case after Mildred Loving, a black woman, and Richard Loving, a white man, had been sentenced to a year in prison in Virginia for marrying.
Civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by a sniper at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
The crew of NASA’s Apollo 11 lands on the moon, with Neil Armstrong being the first to walk on its surface and stating, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
President Richard Nixon becomes the first and only President to resign from office following the Watergate Scandal and potential impeachment.
Sandra Day O'Connor is sworn in as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, becoming the first woman to serve on America’s highest court.
British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee invents the World Wide Web as a tool to share information among scientists at universities around the world.
On September 11th, Islamic extremists indoctrinated by Osama bin Laden hijacked 4 commercial airliners and flew them into the World Trade Center in New York and Pentagon in Virginia.
Barack Obama is elected, becoming America’s first African-American president.