Back to the Beginning
This popular phrase was used by colonists during the American Revolution.
No taxation without representation
The belief that Americans had a God given right to control and civilize all of North America.
Manifest Destiny
This branch of government makes all laws, declares war, regulates interstate and foreign commerce and controls taxing and spending policies.
Legislative Branch
President Abraham Lincoln issued this executive order during the Civil War that declared all enslaved individuals in Confederate territory were to be freed.
Emancipation Proclamation
The US Navy can now move quickly between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean because of this.
The Panama Canal
This document established a weak central government and left most of the power in the hands of state governments.
The Articles of Confederation
This act resulted in the displacement, suffering, and loss of thousands of Native American lives. It also opened up vast lands for white settlement, particularly in the southeastern United States.
The Indian Removal Act
This clause of the Constitution, later reinforced by a similarly named 1850 law, declared that any person bound to work in one state could not escape that obligation by moving to another state.
Fugitive Slave clause.
These three amendments granted basic rights to formerly enslaved people.
The 13th, 14th and 15th amendments
This foreign policy warned European powers against interfering in the affairs of the Americas.
The Monroe Doctrine
In this series of newspaper articles, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay laid out their vision of republican government and urged fellow Americans to adopt a new constitution.
The Federalist Papers
This slave action, which happened in 1857, is now known to have been the single largest sale of human beings in U.S. history.
The Weeping Time
This act limited immigration from China to the United States.
Chinese Exclusion Act
This otherwise undistinguished president is famous for having been "elected" in 1876 despite losing the popular vote by 4%.
Rutherford B. Hayes
This secret communication between Germany and Mexico convinced the American public it was time to enter World War I
The Zimmermann Telegram
Consent of the governed and natural rights are two key principles in this document.
The Declaration of Independence
This abolitionist, who led the raid on Harper's Ferry, believed he had a God-given mission to liberate slaves
John Brown
The purpose of this act was to have Native Americans adopt western ways, give up their tribal lands in exchange for citizenship and consolidate Indian reservations.
Dawes Act
This agency launched several programs to benefit the newly freed slaves, the most impactful of which was the building of schools.
The Freedmen's Bureau
During this war, the U.S. gained California, as well as several future states in the American Southwest.
Mexican-American War
This woman urged her husband to "remember the ladies".
Abigail Adams
Alexander Stephens of Georgia delivered a speech in 1861 arguing that slavery would be the central institution of the newly formed Confederate States of America. This became known as the:
Cornerstone Speech
This is a part of the United States Constitution that allows Congress to create laws that are necessary and appropriate for carrying out its powers.
The Elastic Clause
This South Carolina man escaped to freedom on a Confederate ship and later served 10 years in Congress
Robert Smalls
Before Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt urged Americans to get involved in World War 2 by supplying the Allies with weapons and supplies. This policy was known as:
Lend-Lease