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January 31, 1876 Original date issued by the United States government ordering all Native Americans onto a system of reservations throughout the western lands of the United States.
Original date issued by the United States government ordering all Native Americans onto a system of reservations throughout the western lands of the United States. Although the date would be extended by President Grant, this issue would lead to the Great Sioux War of 1876. -
May 10, 1876The Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition
The Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition, a world's fair meant to celebrate the 100th birthday of the United States opens on 285 acres in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. -
June 25-26, 1876 The Battle of Little Big Horn occurs
The Battle of Little Big Horn occurs when Lt. Colonel George Custer and his 7th U.S. Cavalry engage the Sioux and Cheyenne Indians on the bluffs above the Little Big Horn River. All 264 members of the 7th Cavalry and Custer perish in the battle, the most complete rout in American military history. -
March 2, 1877Congressional leaders from both houses of Congress convene on the presidential election dispute, reaching the Compromise of 1877 and electing Rutherford B.
Congressional leaders from both houses of Congress convene on the presidential election dispute, reaching the Compromise of 1877 and electing Rutherford B. Hayes as President and William A. Wheeler as Vice President. They would be inaugurated one day later in a private ceremony at the White House on March 3. Hayes would appoint Carl Schurz Secretary of the Interior, who began efforts to prevent forest destruction. -
June 17, 1877The Nez Perce War
The Nez Perce War begins when Nez Perce Indians route two companies of United States Army cavalry in Idaho Territory near White Bird. This is the first battle of the war. On August 9 Colonel John Gibbon commands the 7th U.S. Infantry as they clash with Nez Perce Indians at the Battle of the Little Big Hole. This war was fought when the Nez Perce tribe attempted to avoid confinement within the reservation system. -
January 6, 1878Carl Sandburg
American poet, Carl Sandburg, is born. He would win two Pulitzer prizes for poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. -
October 15, 1878The Edison Electric Company begins operation.
The Edison Electric Company begins operation. -
February 15, 1879President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill that allowed female attorneys to argue in Supreme Court cases.
President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill that allowed female attorneys to argue in Supreme Court cases. -
March 14, 1879Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein, who would later revolutionize modern Physics, is born in Germany. -
June 7, 1880 The Yorktown Column
The Yorktown Column, now part of Colonial National Historical Park in Virginia, is commissioned by the United States Congress. Its construction would commemorate the victory of American forces in the Revolutionary War. -
October 23, 1880 Adolph F. Bandelier
Adolph F. Bandelier enters Frijoles Canyon, New Mexico, under the guidance of Cochiti Indians and witnesses the prehistoric villages and cliff dwellings of the national monument that is named after him. -
November 2, 1880 James A. Garfield, Republican
James A. Garfield, Republican is elected president over Winfield S. Hancock, the Democratic candidate. Garfield receives 214 Electoral College votes to 155 for Hancock, but barely wins the popular vote with a majority of only 7,023 voters. -
May 21, 1881 Clara Barton
The American Red Cross names Clara Barton president, a post she would hold until 1904 through nineteen relief missions. -
October 26, 1881 The gunfight
The gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona occurs in a livery stable lot between some of the famous characters of the American west; Sheriff Wyatt Earp, his brother Virgil, and Doc Holliday against Billy Claiborne, Frank and Tom McLaury and the Clanton brothers Billy and Ike. Although only thirty seconds long, the battle would live in western lore for more than one hundred years. The McLaury brothers and Billy Clanton would perish in the fight. -
January 30, 1882 Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Future president Franklin Delano Roosevelt is born at his home in Hyde Park, New York. -
March 22, 1882The practice of polygamy is outlawed by legislation in the United States Congress.
The practice of polygamy is outlawed by legislation in the United States Congress. -
January 16, 1883The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act is passed by Congress, overhauling federal civil service and establishing the U.S. Civil Service agency.
The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act is passed by Congress, overhauling federal civil service and establishing the U.S. Civil Service agency. -
October 15, 1883 the Civil Rights Act of
The U.S. Supreme Court finds part of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 unconstitutional, allowing individuals and corporations to discriminate based on race. -
May 1, 1884 The Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions in the U.S.A. call for an eight-hour workday.
The Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions in the U.S.A. call for an eight-hour workday. -
November 4, 1884 Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland claims victory for the Democratic Party, gaining 277 Electoral College votes to the 182 Electoral College votes for the Republic candidate James G. Blaine. -
July 23, 1885President Ulysses S. Grant, Civil War hero of federal forces, dies in Mt. McGregor, New York.
President Ulysses S. Grant, Civil War hero of federal forces, dies in Mt. McGregor, New York. -
May 4, 1886The Haymarket riot and bombing occurs in Chicago, Illinois, three days after the start of a general strike in the United States that pushed for an eight hour workday
The Haymarket riot and bombing occurs in Chicago, Illinois, three days after the start of a general strike in the United States that pushed for an eight hour workday. This act would be followed by additional labor battles for that worker right favored by unions. Later this year, on December 8, the American Federation of Labor (AFL) was formed by twenty-five craft unions. -
June 2, 1886President Grover Cleveland marries Francis Folsom in the White House Blue Room
President Grover Cleveland marries Francis Folsom in the White House Blue Room, the sole marriage of a president within the District of Columbia mansion during the history of the United States. -
January 20, 1887Pearl Harbor naval base is leased by the United States Navy, upon approval of the U.S. Senate.
Pearl Harbor naval base is leased by the United States Navy, upon approval of the U.S. Senate. -
February 4, 1887Interstate Commerce
Congress passes the Interstate Commerce Act to regulate and control the monopolies of the railroad industry. -
November 8, 1887Emile Berliner
Naturalized as a citizen in 1881, Emile Berliner is granted a patent for the gramophone. Berliner, born in Hanover, Germany, had previously worked with Bell Telephone after selling his version of the microphone to the company. -
March 11-14, 1888The eastern section of the United States undergoes a great snow storm, killing four hundred people.
The eastern section of the United States undergoes a great snow storm, killing four hundred people. -
March 23, 1889President Benjamin
President Benjamin Harrison opens up Oklahoma lands to white settlement, beginning April 22, when the first of five land runs in the Oklahoma land rush start. More than 50,000 people waited at the starting line to race for one hundred and sixty acre parcels. -
July 8, 1889The first issue of the Wall Street Journal is published.
The first issue of the Wall Street Journal is published. -
September 27, 1890Rock Creek Park
Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C. is created when President Benjamin Harrison signs legislation creating natural preservation in the wooded valley within urban District of Columbia. -
December 13, 1890Dayton Tattler
Wilbur and Orville Wright print the "Dayton Tattler" in their print shop in Dayton, Ohio. The paper was the creation of Paul Laurence Dunbar, an African American poet. -
March 3, 1891The 51st Congress of the United States passes the International Copyright Act of 1891.
The 51st Congress of the United States passes the International Copyright Act of 1891. -
June 21, 1891Alternating current is transmitted for the first time by the Ames power plant near Telluride, Colorado by Lucien and Paul Nunn.
Alternating current is transmitted for the first time by the Ames power plant near Telluride, Colorado by Lucien and Paul Nunn. -
October 12, 1892The first recital of the Pledge of Allegiance in U.S. public schools is done to mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day.
The first recital of the Pledge of Allegiance in U.S. public schools is done to mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus Day. -
November 8, 1892Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland returns to the presidency with his victory in the presidential election over incumbent President Benjamin Harrison and People's Party candidate James Weaver. Weaver, who would receive over 1 million votes and 22 Electoral College votes, helped defeat Harrison, who garnered only 145 Electoral College votes to Cleveland's 277. -
January 14-17, 1893The United States Marines
The United States Marines, under the direction of U.S. government minister John L. Stevens, but no authority from the U.S. Congress, intervene in the affairs of the independent Kingdom of Hawaii, which culminated in the overthrow of the government of Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani. -
May 5, 1893The New York Stock Exchange collapses
The New York Stock Exchange collapses, starting the financial panic of 1893. It would lead to a four year period of depression. -
April 29, 1894In a march of five hundred unemployed workers into Washington, D.C. that had begun on March 25 in Massillon, Ohio, leader James S. Coxey is arrested for treason.
In a march of five hundred unemployed workers into Washington, D.C. that had begun on March 25 in Massillon, Ohio, leader James S. Coxey is arrested for treason. -
February 20, 1895Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass, the ex-slave who rose to prominence in national politics as a civil rights advocate and abolitionist during Civil War times died at his home in Washington, D.C. -
November 25, 1895 Oscar Hammerstein opens the first theatre
Oscar Hammerstein opens the first theatre, Olympia, in the Times Square section of New York City. -
November 3, 1896 Republican William McKinley
Republican William McKinley claims victory in the presidential election with a majority of Electoral College voters, 271 selected him over Democratic and People's Party candidate William J. Bryan with 176. -
July 17, 1897 The Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush begins with the arrival of the first prospectors in Seattle. The Gold Rush would be chronicled beginning eight days later when Jack London sails to the Klondike and writes his tales. -
July 7, 1898The United States annexes the independent republic of Hawaii.
The United States annexes the independent republic of Hawaii. -
March 2, 1899 Mount Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier National Park is established in Washington State. -
September 6, 1899 an attempt to open international markets and retain the integrity of China as a nation.
The Open Door Policy with China is declared by Secretary of State John Hay and the U.S. government in an attempt to open international markets and retain the integrity of China as a nation. -
March 14, 1900 The Gold Standard Act
The Gold Standard Act is ratified, placing the United States currency on the gold standard.
