1803 Westward Expansion - Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory from

the French. The Santa Fe Trail was established in 1821, it was a vital commercial and
military highway until the railroads went in. The Oregon Trail was established in the
1830s and was widely publicized by 1843, it was used by emigrants going west from the
east. The Mormons migrated from the Midwest to Utah starting in 1846. In the 1820s
Mexico allowed Americans to settle Texas.
1821 Mexican Independence - Mexico gained its Independence from Spain
1836 Alamo - The Battle of the Alamo was part of the Texas Revolution. Although
Mexico one the battle, it gave the Texans the Remember the Alamo battle cry, that
helped the momentum of the Texans that eventually led to Texas gaining Independence
1846-48 War with Mexico - The Mexican-American War was a conflict between the US
and Mexico after the US annexed Texas. Mexico still considered Texas part of its
territory even after the Texas Revolution of 1836.
1848 The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo It is the peace treaty between the US and
Mexico that ended the Mexican-American War. It set the Rio Grande as the
Texas/Mexico border. The U.S. also got California and parts of New Mexico, Arizona,
Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Colorado.
1849 California Gold Rush gold was discovered at Sutters Mill in 1848. By 1849,
word of the discovery of gold had spread and the Gold Rush began.
1846 The Wilmot Proviso It was designed to ban slavery in land acquired after the
Mexican War. It was defeated in the Senate but it helped to widen the sectional split in
the United States.
1850 The Compromise of 1850 It allowed California to come in a free state. New
Mexico and Utah allowed popular sovereignty to decide if they would be free or slave.
The slave trade in Washington, D.C. was abolished. The Fugitive Slave Act was made
tougher.
1854 The Kansas-Nebraska Act Overturned the Missouri Compromise and allowed
Kansas residents to decide if they were going to be a slave or Free State. This caused
problems because people from Missouri would come over and vote.
1854-1861 Bleeding Kansas it was a series of border wars between Kansas and
Missouri involving slavery and anti-slavery groups. This was caused by the KansasNebraska Act.
1856 Sack of Lawrence Pro-slavery activists attacked the town of Lawrence, Kansas.
Lawrence was established in 1854 by anti-slavery settlers.

1856 Pottawatomie Massacre John Brown and a group of abolitionist settlers killed
five settlers north of the Pottawatomie Creek in response to the sacking of Lawrence.
1857 Dred Scott v. Sanford this was a landmark Supreme Court Decision in which the
court ruled that African-Americans whether free or slave, were not citizens, so they could
not sue in federal court. It also ruled that the federal government had no power to
regulate slavery in federal territories.
1858 Lincoln-Douglas Debates A series of debates between Abraham Lincoln and
Stephen Douglas when they were both running for Senator in Illinois. Douglas won the
election, but Lincoln started to get national recognition that helped him when the
Presidential election.
1860 Election of 1860 Lincoln was the Republican candidate and the democrats had
two candidates. John C. Breckinridge was the Southern Democrat and Stephen Douglas
was the Northern Democrat. Breckinridge and Douglas split the vote, which allowed
Lincoln to win.
1860-1861 South Secession South Carolina left the union on December 20, 1860. By
February 1st, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas all left the
union.