American Government For Dummies Cheat Sheet
The most important key dates in U.S. history highlight major events in U.S. history and show the continuing evolution of both U.S. government and U.S. culture.
Key dates in American history
July 4, 1776: The Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence.
November 15, 1777: The Articles of Confederation are adopted by the Continental Congress. They go into effect March 1, 1781.
May 25, 1787: The Constitutional Convention begins. Fifty-five delegates from 12 states participate. Rhode Island is the only state that does not send any delegates.
September 17, 1787: After four months of negotiations and bargaining, all twelve state delegations in attendance approve the Constitution. It must be ratified by 9 out of the 13 states to go into effect.
March 4, 1789: The required number of states have ratified the Constitution, and the Constitution goes into force.
April 30, 1789: George Washington is inaugurated the first president of the United States.
December 25, 1791: The Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments to the Constitution) is added to the U.S. Constitution.
February 24, 1803: The Supreme Court establishes the Doctrine of Judicial Review in Marbury v. Madison, allowing the judiciary to rule laws unconstitutional.
April 30, 1803: President Jefferson approves the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the size of the country.
June 15, 1804: The 12th Amendment, changing the procedure for electing president and vice president, is ratified.
June 18, 1812: The War of 1812 with Great Britain starts. The British army ransacks Washington, D.C., and burns down the White House and Congress.
March 3, 1820: Congress passes the Missouri Compromise, making slavery illegal north of latitude 36° 30'.
December 2, 1823: President Monroe issues the Monroe Doctrine, warning European countries not to interfere in the affairs of the Americas (Western Hemisphere).
March 6, 1857: In the Dred Scott Case, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that people of African descent could not be citizens of the United States.
November 6, 1860: Abraham Lincoln is elected president of the United States.
April 12, 1861: The Civil War breaks out when Confederate forces attack Fort Sumter in South Carolina.
November 19, 1863: Lincoln gives the Gettysburg Address, He stresses the ideas of liberty and equality to provide justification for why slavery was illegal.
April 14, 1865: President Lincoln is assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
December 6, 1865: The 13th Amendment to the Constitution outlawing slavery is ratified.
July 9, 1868: The 14th Amendment to the Constitution is ratified. The 14th Amendment makes anyone born or naturalized in the U.S. citizens and contains both the Equal Protection Clause and the Due Process Clause.
February 3, 1870: The 15th Amendment is ratified. The 15th Amendment gives former slaves the right to vote, stating that voting rights “shall not be denied . . . on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”
May 6, 1896: The U.S. Supreme Court establishes the Separate but Equal Doctrine in Plessy v. Feguson, resulting in legal segregation.
February 3, 1913: The 16th Amendment to the Constitution gives Congress the right to levy an income tax.
April 8, 1913: The 17th Amendment to the Constitution allows for the direct election of U.S. senators by the people.
April 6, 1917: The United States enters World War I.
August 18, 1920: The 19th Amendment to the Constitution gives women the right to vote.
October 24, 1929: The stock market collapses on Black Thursday, starting the Great Depression.
January 23, 1933: The 20th Amendment to the Constitution moves inauguration day from March 4 to January 20.
March 4, 1933: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) is inaugurated.
August 14, 1935: The Social Security Act establishes a pension system for the elderly and provides for people with disabilities.
December 7, 1941: Japan attacks Pearl Harbor and the U.S. enters WWII.
March 12, 1947: President Truman in an address to Congress outlines the Truman Doctrine, saving both Greece and Turkey from communism.
June 25, 1950: The Korean War starts.
February 27, 1951: The 22nd Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, limiting presidential terms to two terms.
July 27, 1953: The Korean War ends.
May 17, 1954: Brown v. Board of Education: The Supreme Court rules that segregation in public schools is unconstitutional because separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.
March 29, 1961: The 23rd Amendment to the Constitution gives residents of the District of Columbia the right to vote in presidential elections.
November 22, 1963: President Kennedy is assassinated.
January 23, 1964: The 24th Amendment to the Constitution eliminates poll taxes.
July 2, 1964: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act. The Civil Rights Act forbids discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, or national origin.
July 30, 1965: As a part of President Johnson’s Great Society programs, the Social Security Amendments of 1965 establish Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare establishes a federal health insurance program for people 65 and older. Medicaid is a federal health insurance program for people with limited incomes and capabilities.
August 6, 1965: Congress passes the Voting Rights Act. It protects the right to vote, prohibits literacy tests, and allows for federal observers in states where discrimination has been practiced in the past.
April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King is assassinated.
July 1, 1971: The 26th Amendment to the Constitution gives 18-year-olds the right to vote.
January 22, 1973: The U.S. Supreme Court, in Roe v. Wade, legalizes abortion.
August 8, 1974: President Nixon resigns from office after the Watergate scandal.
July 26, 1990: Congress passes the Americans with Disabilities Act, which extends many of the protections given to racial minorities and women to disabled persons.
December 25, 1991: The Soviet Union collapses, and the Cold War ends.
September 11, 2001: Terrorist attacks on the World Trade Towers kill over 3,000 people.
November 4, 2008: Barack Obama becomes the first African-American President of the U.S.
March 23, 2010: Congress passes the Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare. It mandates for Americans to have health insurance or pay a penalty.
June 26, 2015: In Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), the Supreme Court establishes the right to marry for same-sex couples.
November 8, 2016: Donald J. Trump is elected president of the U.S. in a major upset. Most polls had predicted a comfortable victory by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.
November 3, 2020: Joseph Biden defeats incumbent Donald Trump. Even though President Trump and his supporters claim that the election was rigged, state and federal courts reject these claims.
June 24, 2022: The U.S. Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health overturns Roe v. Wade. The Court rules that abortion is not a constitutionally protected right and that state legislatures have the right to pass laws regulating abortion.
July 21, 2024: President Biden abandons his quest for reelection among major concerns about his age and mental state. His vice president Kamala Harris becomes the Democratic candidate for president.
November 5, 2024: Former President Donald Trump wins a second term in office, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris. President Trump becomes the second president in U.S. history to serve two non-consecutive terms. (Grover Cleveland was the other.)
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