The first people to ever settle in the United States were ones that crossed over the Alaskan/Russian land bridge into the continent. They migrated about 15,000 years ago and many of the ancestors of Native Americans can be traced back to these early people. After the arrival of many Asian people to the United States, not much happened for another few thousand years. It wasn’t until 1492 that a European settler arrived on an American province and declared it a discovery. Christopher Columbus was this explorer. He arrived in what is now modern-day Puerto Rico. Following his arrival to the country, many more European settlers made their way across the ocean to settle on the shores of the United States. This settling in the United States became known as the Colonial period.
The Colonists
About 100 years after Christopher Columbus, in 1607, settlers from mainland Europe began erecting colonies and eventually the first thirteen states that would become the United States. During this time as well, many other nations, such as France, Russia, and Spain, also founded colonies in the land that makes up the present-day United States. They would later lose this land, but they too saw the opportunity that it held for European settlers.
The population of the new thirteen states exploded over the course of about one hundred years. The population continued to grow because of a mass influx of people migrating from England and other religiously oppressed countries. By 1775, one year before the Declaration of Independence was signed declaring the United States a free country from British ties, the population of the United States was nearing 3 million people. Another reason for the high population growth rate was the quality of living. By this time, about one hundred years after the first colonization, settlers had created a quality of life and lifestyle that was comparable to that of Great Britain. In fact, people had more control over their lives and had more religious freedoms than they did in Great Britain, making the United States a better choice to live.
Tension With Britain
By this point in time, The United States had established itself as a self-sustaining colony and this angered the British. Because the colonists didn’t believe they should have to pay taxes to a government that didn’t listen to their problems or requests, they refused to pay taxes when the British demanded they do so. Although the taxes weren’t particularly high, the colonists were angry about the idea of the taxation. In what came to be known as taxation without representation, the colonists revolted against the British to show their original government that they were no longer needed and that the colonies were capable of sustaining themselves.
Fighting broke out as a result of the tension between the British and the new American colonies. The American states declared themselves independent of British rule and decided that battle was the best way to resolve the issue. In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was signed and was sent to the British royal family to declare that the United States of America was indeed a free nation and would no longer subscribe to British rule. Eventually, the American forces won the war against the British and a new government was formed. But after the new government proved to be too weak, high powered members in American society convened and created a new government. These new government guidelines and structures, which were better suited to the United States, were outlined and ratified in the Constitution of the United States.
Westward Expansion
As all of the turmoil happened, the United States wasn’t a very big country. It wasn’t until the Louisiana purchase, a purchase that bought land from France west of the Mississippi River, did the United States grow close to the size that it was today. A concept created by many religious factions across the United States was the idea of Manifest Destiny, or a continued westward expansion all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Revival religious groups saw the United States expanding all the way to the west of the continent and seizing the Mexican land out west.
Abolition of Slavery
Through this period of time population experienced another boom. But as the population grew, there was a big disparity between the northern and southern states. The southern states disagreed with the northern states on the issue of slavery. While the northern half of the country had abolished slavery in hopes that it would help fuel the expansion of the nation, many in the south saw this as a threat. They subsequently tried to declare themselves a separate nation from the United States called the Confederacy, but were stopped during America’s bloodiest war, the Civil War. Under the leadership of Abraham Lincoln, the northern armies were able to thwart the efforts of the south to keep slavery in place and start their own nation. The newly defeated southern states were put on a type of “probation” period called the Reformation. This period of time was to restructure the southern laws and governments to prevent another uprising of slavery.
Industrial Revolution
The next large period of history in the United States was the Industrial Revolution onwards, which puts us where we are today. Franklin D. Roosevelt became president during the early part of the 20th century and led the country through the Great Depression. The Great Depression happened as a result of economic growth happening too rapidly following the First World War. Stock markets collapsed and people lost their jobs. It was truly the worst economic disaster the country has ever seen. Franklin Roosevelt led the country out of the depression and following it, the Second World War broke out. It is often said that the Second World War was the reason the country was able to bounce back from the depression as production had to increase and jobs had to be created to help fight the war.
Civil Rights
Following the Second World War was the final great moment in the history of the United States. The Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s finally allowed blacks and whites to live together peacefully. Although slavery was abolished under Abraham Lincoln’s leadership, blacks were still segregated and whites were still the dominant race. The 1960’s movements under the leadership of people like Martin Luther King Jr. helped propel the United States into modern day.
Not many important events have happened in the past few years, but if we stick around long enough, we’re sure to see some type of historical moment happen before our eyes.