United States history

Contents

Pre-Columbian and Colonial America (before 1607–1775)
American Revolution and Founding Era (1775–1820s)
Expansion, Slavery, and Civil War (1820s–1865)
Reconstruction and Gilded Age (1865–1900)
Progressive Era, World Wars, and Great Depression (1900–1945)
Cold War, Civil Rights, and Social Change (1945–1989)
Contemporary United States (1990–present)

United States history The narrative of the United States spans indigenous civilizations, colonial empires, revolutionary founding, continental expansion, civil conflict, industrial transformation, global warfare, ideological rivalry, and technological globalization. Major actors include Indigenous polities, European powers such as Spain, France, and Great Britain, revolutionary leaders like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, and twentieth-century figures such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. Political documents and institutions—Declaration of Independence, United States Constitution, Bill of Rights—and landmark events such as the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War shaped legal and social frameworks.

Pre-Columbian and Colonial America (before 1607–1775)

Before European contact, complex societies like the Mississippian culture, Puebloans, and the Iroquois Confederacy developed agriculture, trade networks, and mound-building. Contact with Christopher Columbus's voyages preceded colonization by Spanish colonization of the Americas in Florida and New Spain, French colonization of the Americas along the Mississippi River and in Quebec, and English colonization of the Americas establishing colonies such as Jamestown and the Plymouth Colony. Colonial rivalries produced conflicts like King Philip's War, Queen Anne's War, and the Seven Years' War, which altered imperial claims and set the stage for colonial dissent over acts such as the Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts.

The American Revolutionary War saw colonial militias and Continental forces under George Washington confront British regulars at battles including Lexington and Concord and the Battle of Yorktown. Revolutionary ideology drew on thinkers like John Locke and resulted in the Declaration of Independence and later the Articles of Confederation. The 1787 United States Constitutional Convention produced the United States Constitution, creating separation of powers and the Electoral College. Early republic conflicts included the Whiskey Rebellion, debates between the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party, and foreign entanglements like the Quasi-War with France and the War of 1812 against Great Britain.

The doctrine of Manifest Destiny accompanied territorial acquisitions such as the Louisiana Purchase, Annexation of Texas, the Oregon Trail migration, and the Mexican–American War leading to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The spread of chattel slavery into cotton-producing regions intensified sectional disputes over the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1850, and the Kansas–Nebraska Act. Political fissures coalesced into the Republican Party and events like the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision and the raid by John Brown at Harper's Ferry heightened tensions. The election of Abraham Lincoln precipitated secession by Southern states and the formation of the Confederate States of America, resulting in the American Civil War with pivotal engagements such as Battle of Gettysburg and the Siege of Vicksburg and culminating in Union victory and the Emancipation Proclamation.

Postwar Reconstruction attempted to integrate formerly enslaved people via the 13th Amendment, 14th Amendment, and 15th Amendment while federal policies and organizations like the Freedmen's Bureau shaped labor and political rights. Resistance through groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and the rise of Jim Crow laws eroded gains. The Gilded Age saw rapid industrialization led by figures like John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, and Cornelius Vanderbilt, expansion of railroads such as the Transcontinental Railroad, labor conflicts including the Homestead Strike and the Pullman Strike, and political reforms prompted by corruption scandals exemplified by Tammany Hall.

Progressive reformers including Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson pursued antitrust action, regulatory agencies like the Federal Reserve, and amendments such as the 19th Amendment for women's suffrage. The United States engaged in overseas intervention during the Spanish–American War and entered World War I under Woodrow Wilson's leadership, contributing to the Treaty of Versailles debates. The Great Depression prompted the New Deal under Franklin D. Roosevelt with programs like the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Social Security Act. In World War II the U.S. fought in theaters including Pacific War battles like Midway and European campaigns culminating in alliances with United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and the use of atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The Cold War era featured ideological rivalry with the Soviet Union manifested in events like the Berlin Airlift, Korean War, Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Vietnam War alongside domestic policies such as the Marshall Plan and institutions like NATO. The Civil Rights Movement, led by figures including Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and organizations like the NAACP, achieved legislative victories such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 while confronting opposition in episodes like the Freedom Summer and the Selma to Montgomery marches. Social change broadened through the Women's Liberation Movement, environmental initiatives spurred by Rachel Carson's work and legislation like the National Environmental Policy Act, and economic shifts under leaders like Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon.

The post‑Cold War period saw geopolitical realignment after the Dissolution of the Soviet Union, economic globalization tied to institutions such as the World Trade Organization, domestic policy debates over healthcare exemplified by the Affordable Care Act, and technological revolutions driven by companies like Apple Inc. and Microsoft. The September 11 attacks precipitated the War on Terror, including wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and security measures like the USA PATRIOT Act. Political polarization intensified around elections such as 2000 United States presidential election and 2016 United States presidential election, while movements including Black Lives Matter and debates over climate policy linked to the Paris Agreement have shaped civic life. Contemporary challenges include public health crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, economic resilience after the Great Recession (2007–2009), and ongoing technological, demographic, and cultural transformations centered in cities like Los Angeles and Chicago.