All historical events change the course of the country in one way or the other. Below are listed ten of the most important.
In 1803, in what was known as The Louisiana Purchase the United States purchased 828,800 square miles of land from France for $12,000 doubling the size of the U.S.
The California Gold Rush of 1848 saw thousands of people flock to California leading to its development, and statehood.
The 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln as president forced several states to secede from the union leading to the Civil War.
Lee’s surrender at Appomattox on April 9, 1865 saw the end of the Civil War, enabling a divided nation to begin the process of reuniting.
On August 26, 1920 the 19th Amendment was passed giving women the right to vote, thus beginning equal rights.
The 1929 stock market crash, was the largest ever. It pushed the U.S. into the Great Depression which lasted twelve years.
The Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941 prompting a previously reluctant U.S. to enter World War II.
The dropping of the atomic bomb by the U.S. on Japan ended World War II, and ushered in the Cold War.
The assassination of John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963 shattered the American innocence, and plunged the U.S. deeper into the Vietnam War.
The 9/11 terrorist attacks killed nearly 3000, and changed the way Americans live their lives.
