US history vocabulary terms – Flashcards
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1492
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The year the Italian navigator, Christopher Columbus, who sailed with the support of the Spanish crown, arrived in the Americas.
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Christopher Columbus
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Italian navigator who discovered the New World in the service of Spain while looking for a route to China (1451-1506)
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Ferdinand and Isabella
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the Spanish monarchs who funded the voyages of Christopher Columbus
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Jamestown
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first permanent English settlement in the New World
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Nina, Pinta, Santa Maria
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the boats Columbus took on his voyage to the new world
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John Smith
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English explorer who helped found the colony at Jamestown, Virginia
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Puritans
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group of people coming form England in 1630 who emphasized education and hard work
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Pilgrims
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Separatists
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Mayflower
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the ship in which the Pilgrim Fathers sailed from England to Massachusetts in 1620
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William Bradford
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A Pilgrim, the second governor of the Plymouth colony, 1621-1657. He developed private land ownership and helped colonists get out of debt. He helped the colony survive droughts, crop failures, and Indian attacks.
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Massachusetts Bay Colony
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the name of the Puritans settlement
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plantations
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large southern farms
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frontier
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the undeveloped area at the edge of the settled area
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militia
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small local/colonial armies
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indentured servant
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a single white man (usually) who came to the New World and agreed
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Congregationalists
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Puritans who wanted to reform the church from within
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Jonathan Edwards
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famous sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
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The Great Awakening
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1720 spiritual revival
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George Whitefield
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influential preacher from England
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French and Indian War
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first European war the colonists fought in
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George Washington
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America's first president; hero of Fort Duquense
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duties
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taxes on imported goods
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Lexington and Concord
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beginning of War for Independence
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Redcoats
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British
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Boston Tea Party
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Indians dumped the tea in the Boston Port
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Paul Revere
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American silversmith remembered for his midnight ride (celebrated in a poem by Longfellow) to warn the colonists in Lexington and Concord that British troops were coming (1735-1818)
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Patrick Henry
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a leader of the American Revolution and a famous orator who spoke out against British rule of the American colonies (1736-1799) "Give me liberty or give me death"
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Revolutionary War
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A war between the British and the colonists. The colonists wanted to be free of British rule.
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Yorktown
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Cornwallis surrendered here to end the Revolutionary War
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Benedict Arnold
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famous American traitor during the Revolutionary War
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Bunker Hill
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the first important battle of the American War of Independence (1775)
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Nathan Hale
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a soldier of the American Revolution who was hanged as a spy by the British
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Thomas Paine
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American Revolutionary leader and pamphleteer (born in England) who supported the American colonist's fight for independence and supported the French Revolution (1737-1809)
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Common Sense
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a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine that claimed the colonies had a right to be an independent nation
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Thomas Jefferson
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main author of Declaration of Independence
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Declaration of Independence
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the document recording the proclamation of the second Continental Congress (4 July 1776) asserting the independence of the colonies from Great Britain
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July 4, 1776
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Congress approved Declaration of Independence
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Valley Forge
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General Washington spent his most difficult winter here
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Patriots
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Colonists who wanted independence from Britain
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Articles of Confederation
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first document to govern America
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James Madison
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"Father of the Constitution" "America's first political scientist"
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Republic
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a party where elected representatives govern the people
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Federalists papers
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newspapers essays that persuaded states to ratify the Constitution
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Ben Franklin
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oldest delegate, A delegate from Pennsylvania and proposed the "Albany Plan of the Union" as a way to strengthen colonies.
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census
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a period count of the population every 10 years
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Electoral college
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the body of electors who formally elect the United States president and vice-president
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ratify
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formally approve
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tariffs
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Taxes on imports or exports
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separation of powers
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the division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government
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checks and balances
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A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power
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Bill of Rights
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a statement of fundamental rights and privileges (especially the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution)
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five freedoms
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religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition
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suffrage
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the right to vote
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preamble
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introduces the Constitution
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inauguration
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the formal ceremony which officially begins a president's term of office
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presidential cabinet
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group of officials who head government departments and advise the president
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excise tax
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a tax paid for the manufacture or sale of certain goods and services
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Mount Vernon
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George Washington's home
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Louisiana Purchase
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doubled the size of US; 15 million dollars
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Lewis and Clark
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the men who led the Corps of Discovery as they explored the Louisiana territory
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Sacajawea
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the Shoshone woman who was great help to Lewis and Clark
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War of 1812
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a war (1812-1814) between the United States and England which was trying to interfere with American trade with France
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incumbent
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the official who holds an office and is running for re-election
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Monroe doctrine
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an American foreign policy opposing interference in the Western hemisphere from outside powers
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mudslinging
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attempt to ruin an opponent's reputation with insults
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spoils system
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the system of employing and promoting civil servants who are friends and supporters of the group in power
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political machine
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organized groups of politicians who sought to control government
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John C. Calhoun
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South Carolina Senator - advocate for state's rights, limited government, and nullification
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Daniel Webster
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United States politician and orator (1782-1817) from Massachusetts who attacked nullification defending the Constitution
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protective tariff
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protected American businesses and manufacturers from foreign competition
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secession
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formal separation from an alliance or federation
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lame duck
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a person still in office after he or she has lost a bid for reelection
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Daniel Boone
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Virginia pioneer and trailblazer who guided settlers through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky
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Cumberland Gap
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a pass through the Cumberland Mountains between Virginia and Kentucky that early settlers used in order to move west
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telegraph
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apparatus used to communicate at a distance over a wire (usually in Morse code)
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steamboats
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boat that could easily be pushed upstream
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erie canal
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an artificial waterway connecting the Hudson river at Albany with Lake Erie at Buffalo
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pony express
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express mail carried by relays of riders on horseback
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Samuel F.B. Morse
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invented the telegraph
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John Deere
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United States industrialist who manufactured plows suitable for working the prairie soil (1804-1886)
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Eli Whitney
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An American inventor who developed the cotton gin. Also contributed to the concept of interchangeable parts that were exactly alike and easily assembled or exchanged
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Camp meetings
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a tool of the Second Great Awakening where people would gather to hear speeches;revivals
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Second Great Awakening
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A second religious fervor that swept the nation. It converted more than the first. It also had an effect on moral movements such as prison reform, the temperance movement, and moral reasoning against slavery.
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Factory system
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collected many workers in one place where they turned out many similar items in one day
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labor unions
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Organizations of workers who, together, put pressure on the employers in an industry to improve working conditions and wages.
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Mexican war
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after Mexican refusal to sell California-New Mexico region, Polk sent troops and it ended w/ Treat of Guadalupe-Hidalgo
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Forty-niners
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men who came to California to search for gold
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John Sutter
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Owner of the mill where gold was discovered that helped start the California Gold Rush
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Alamo
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the mission in San Antonio where in 1836 Mexican forces under Santa Anna besieged and massacred American rebels who were fighting to make Texas independent of Mexico
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California Gold Rush
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1849 (San Francisco 49ers) Gold discovered in California attracted a rush of people all over the country to San Francisco.
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abolitionism
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a movement to end slavery
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Harriet Beecher Stowe
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Wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin, a book about a slave who is treated badly, in 1852. The book persuaded more people, particularly Northerners, to become anti-slavery.
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john Brown
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abolitionist who was hanged after leading an unsuccessful raid at Harper's Ferry, Virginia (1800-1858)
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Jefferson Davis
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an American statesman and politician who served as President of the Confederate States of America for its entire history from 1861 to 1865
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Underground Railroad
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abolitionists secret aid to escaping slaves
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Confederate States of America
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the southern states that seceded from the United States in 1861
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Ft. Sumter
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union fort attacked by confederates in 1861. started civil war.
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The Civil War
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the U.S war between the North and the South.
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1861-1865
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Civil War
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1st Battle of Bull Run
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the first major land battle of the American Civil War, fought on July 21, 1861, near Manassas, Virginia. Unseasoned Union Army troops under Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell advanced across Bull Run against the equally unseasoned Confederate Army under Brig. Gens. Joseph E. Johnston and P.G.T. Beauregard, and despite the Union's early successes, they were routed and forced to retreat back to Washington, D.C.
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Ulysses S. Grant
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an American general and the eighteenth President of the United States (1869-1877). He achieved international fame as the leading Union general in the American Civil War.
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Gettysburg
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The most violent battle of the American Civil War and is frequently cited as the war's turning point, fought from July 1 - July 3, 1863.
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John Wilkes Booth
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United States actor and assassin of President Lincoln (1838-1865)
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Stonewall Jackson
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general in the Confederate Army during the Civil War whose troops at the first Battle of Bull Run stood like a stone wall (1824-1863)
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Robert E. Lee
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confederate general who had opposed secession but did not believe the union should be held together by force
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Antietam
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The first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with almost 23,000 casualties. After this "win" for the North, Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation
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Emancipation Proclamation
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issued by Abraham Lincoln on September 22, 1862 it declared that all slaves in the confederate states would be free
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Appomattox
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Lee surrenders here, but Grant offers the Confederacy good surrender terms to try to reunify the country.
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Reconstruction
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the period after the Civil War in the United States when the southern states were reorganized and reintegrated into the Union
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freedmen
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former slaves
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Ku Klux Klan
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a secret society created by white southerners in 1866 that used terror and violence to keep African Americans from obtaining their civil rights
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sharecropping
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System in which landowners leased a few acres of land to farmworkers in return for a portion of their crops
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Immigration
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migration into a place (especially migration to a country of which you are not a native in order to settle there)
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Ellis island
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Immigration processing center that open in New York Harbor in 1892
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sole proprietorship
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business owned by one person
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partnership
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a business owned by two or more people
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corporation
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business gains a legal charter and sells stock to many individual investors; stockholders are esesentially owners but can lose the amount they invest in stock if the corporation
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John D. Rockefeller
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philanthropist who formed the trust: Standard Oil
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Cornelius vanderbilt
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a railroad owner who built a railway connecting Chicago and New York. He popularized the use of steel rails in his railroad, which made railroads safer and more economical.
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Alexander Graham Bell
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United States inventor (born in Scotland) of the telephone (1847-1922)
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Thomas Edison
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American inventor best known for inventing the electric light bulb, acoustic recording on wax cylinders, and motion pictures.
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capitalism
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economy where people are free to invest and make profits on their investments;based on free enterprise
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ghost towns
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towns deserted as prospectors moved on to more promising sites or returned home
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Indian reservations
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tracts of land set aside for Indians
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George Custer
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United States general who was killed along with all his command by the Sioux at the battle of Little Bighorn (1839-1876)
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imperialism
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a policy of extending your rule over foreign countries
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isolationism
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a national policy of avoiding involvement in world affairs
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Rough Riders
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volunteer soldiers led by Theodore Roosevelt during the Spanish American War
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Humanitarianism
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assisting the hungry and sick
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Spanish-American War
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In 1898, a conflict between the United States and Spain, in which the U.S. supported the Cubans' fight for independence
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Panama Canal
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a ship canal 40 miles long across the Isthmus of Panama built by the United States (1904-1914)
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Dwight L. Moody
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Popular evangelical preacher who brought the tradition of old-time revivalism to the industrial city
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philanthropists
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People who give large sums of money to charities
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Booker T. Washington
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founded the most famous black school:Tuskegee Institute
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George W. Carver
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researched at Tuskegee Institute discovered hundreds of uses for the peanut
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agnostic
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man cannot know if there is a God
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Charles Darwin
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English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection (1809-1882)
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Initiative
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allowed voters to propose their own legislation
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Referendum
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allowed voters to pass judgement on acts already passed by state legislatures
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income tax
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a personal tax levied on annual income
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Federal Reserve
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controls America's money supply, by controlling the interest rates of banks, also America's central bank
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World War I
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a war between the allies (Russia, France, British Empire, Italy, United States, Japan, Rumania, Serbia, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, Montenegro) and the central powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, Bulgaria) from 1914 to 1918
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1914-1918
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World War I
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1917
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US enters WWI
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November 11, 1918
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day that Germany signed Armistice ending WWI
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Convoys
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Groups of merchant ships protected by warships
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Treaty of Versailles
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the treaty imposed on Germany by the Allied powers in 1920 after the end of World War I which demanded exorbitant reparations from the Germans
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Wright brothers
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Invented the airplane
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Henry Ford
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United States manufacturer of automobiles who pioneered mass production and used the assembly line
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Charles Lindbergh
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United States aviator who in 1927 made the first solo nonstop flight across the Atlantic Ocean (1902-1974)
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Prohibition
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a law forbidding the sale of alcoholic beverages
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Al Capone
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United States gangster who terrorized Chicago during Prohibition until arrested for tax evasion (1899-1947)
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Scopes Trial
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a highly publicized trial in 1925 when John Thomas Scopes violated a Tennessee state law by teaching evolution in high school
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Great Depression
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the economic crisis beginning with the stock market crash in 1929 and continuing through the 1930s
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dole
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handout of money
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recession
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slump in business that is less severe than a depression
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New Deal
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the historic period (1933-1940) in the U.S. during which President Franklin Roosevelt's economic policies were implemented
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fireside chats
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informal talks given by FDR over the radio; sat by White House fireplace; gained the confidence of the people
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World War II
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War fought from 1939 to 1945 between the Allies and the Axis, involving most countries in the world. The United States joined the Allies in 1941, helping them to victory.
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facist
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governmnent with one leader who has complete power. opress opposition/religion/race/commerce (Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini)
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Nazi
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a German member of Adolf Hitler's political party
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Adolf Hitler
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German Nazi dictator during World War II (1889-1945)
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Benito Mussolini
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Italian fascist dictator (1883-1945)
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Axis powers
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Germany, Italy, Japan
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Allied Powers
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Great Britain, France, later Italy, Russia, and later the US
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Joseph Stalin
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Communist dictator of the Soviet Union
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Winston Churchill
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British statesman and leader during World War II
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1939-1945
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World War II
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December 7, 1941
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Japanese attack on pearl harbor
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Battle of the Bulge
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WWII battle in which German forces launched a final counterattack in the west
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blitzkrieg
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"Lighting war", typed of fast-moving warfare used by German forces
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D-day
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June 6, 1944 - Led by Eisenhower, over a million troops (the largest invasion force in history) stormed the beaches at Normandy and began the process of re-taking France.
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Dwight D. Eisenhower
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leader of the Allied forces in Europe then was elected to be Pres. of the USA
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Coral Sea
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This battle was the first win for America in the Pacific, and took over Japan's territory; first battle at sea in which all of the fighting was done by airplanes
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Iwo Jima
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One of the Bloodiest battles in the war, a fight to the death for Japanese soldiers, as the Americans were coming closer to Japan
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Okinawa
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Site of important battle near Japanese mainland; last battle before atomic bombs; Allies won; last obstacle before reaching Japanese mainland
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Hiroshima and Nagasaki
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nuclear attacks during World War II against the Empire of Japan by the United States of America at the order of U.S. President Harry S. Truman
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Midway
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naval battle of World War II (June 1942) Turning point of Pacific
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Douglas MacArthur
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United States general who served as chief of staff and commanded Allied forces in the South Pacific during World War II
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kamikazes
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Japanese suicide pilots
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Manhattan Project
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code name for the secret United States project set up in 1942 to develop atomic bombs for use in World War II
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Nuremburg Trials
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Series of trials in 1945 conducted by an International Military Tribunal in which former Nazi leaders were charged with crimes against peace, crimes against humanity, and war crimes
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baby boom
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the larger than expected generation in United States born shortly after World War II
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civil rights
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the rights of full citizenship and equality under the law
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United Nations
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an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security
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Cold War
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A conflict that was between the US and the Soviet Union. The nations never directly confronted each other on the battlefield but deadly threats went on for years.
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NATO
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an international organization created in 1949 by the North Atlantic Treaty for purposes of collective security
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Korean War; 1950-1953
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Conflict that began with North Korea's invasion of South Korea and came to involve the United Nations (primarily the United States) allying with South Korea and the People's Republic of China allying with North Korea.
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Nikita Kruschev
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Emerged as a leader in the Soviet Union after the death of dictator Josef Stalin. In 1956, he advocated reform and indirectly criticized Stalin and his methods. He became the Premier of the Soviet Union from 1958 to 1974.
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Jim Crow laws
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Laws designed to enforce segregation of blacks from whites
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Third World countries
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poor countries
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Iron Curtain
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Winston Churchill's term for the Cold War division between the Soviet-dominated East and the U.S.-dominated West.
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Mao Zedong
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Chinese communist leader (1893-1976)
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Ho Chi Minh
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Vietnamese communist statesman who fought the Japanese in World War II and the French until 1954 and South vietnam until 1975 (1890-1969)
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Fidel Castro
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Led the revolution of Cuba and took control of Cuba in 1959; resented past dictators; made Cuba communist
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Rosa Parks
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United States civil rights leader who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man in Montgomery (Alabama) and so triggered the national civil rights movement (born in 1913)
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Berlin Wall
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a wall separating East and West Berlin built by East Germany in 1961 to keep citizens from escaping to the West
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Bay of Pigs
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An unsuccessful invasion of Cuba in 1961, which was sponsored by the United States. Its purpose was to overthrow Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
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Cuban Missile Crisis
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an international crisis in October 1962, the closest approach to nuclear war at any time between the U.S. and the USSR. When the U.S. discovered Soviet nuclear missiles on Cuba, President John F. Kennedy demanded their removal and announced a naval blockade of the island; the Soviet leader Khrushchev acceded to the U.S. demands a week later.
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Lee Harvey Oswald
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United States assassin of President John F. Kennedy (1939-1963)
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Great Society
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President Johnson called his version of the Democratic reform program the Great Society. In 1965, Congress passed many Great Society measures, including Medicare, civil rights legislation, and federal aid to education.
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Martin Luther King Jr.
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U.S. Baptist minister and civil rights leader. A noted orator, he opposed discrimination against blacks by organizing nonviolent resistance and peaceful mass demonstrations. He was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. Nobel Peace Prize (1964)
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Vietnam War
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a prolonged war (1954-1975) between the communist armies of North Vietnam who were supported by the Chinese and the non-communist armies of South Vietnam who were supported by the United States
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Vietcong
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the guerrilla soldiers of the Communist faction in Vietnam, also know as the National Liberation Front
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detente
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the easing of tensions or strained relations (especially between nations)
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Henry Kissinger
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United States diplomat who served under President Nixon and President Ford (born in 1923)
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NASA
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an independent agency of the United States government responsible for aviation and spaceflight
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Roe v. Wade
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(1973) legalized abortion on the basis of a woman's right to privacy
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Watergate
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a political scandal involving abuse of power and bribery and obstruction of justice; led to resignation of Nixon
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Three Mile Island
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1979 - A mechanical failure and a human error at this power plant in Pennsylvania combined to permit an escape of radiation over a 16 mile radius.
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Iranian hostage crisis
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In 1979, Iranian fundamentalists seized the American embassy in Tehran and held fifty-three American diplomats hostage for over a year. The Iranian hostage crisis weaked the Carter presidency; the hostages were finally released on January 20, 1981, the day Ronald Reagan became president.
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supply-side economics
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An economic theory, advocated by President Reagan, holding that too much income goes to taxes and too little money is available for purchasing. The solution is to cut taxes and return purchasing power to consumers.
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Sandra Day O'Connor
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first woman supreme court justice. appointed by Reagan
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Mikhail Gorbachev
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Soviet statesman whose foreign policy brought an end to the Cold War and whose domestic policy introduced major reforms (born in 1931)
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Persian Gulf War
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a war fought between a coalition led by the United States and Iraq to free Kuwait from Iraqi invaders
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Contract with America
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In the 1994 congressional elections, Congressman Newt Gingrich had Republican candidates sign a document in which they pledged their support for such things as a balanced budget amendment, term limits for members of Congress, and a middle-class tax cut.
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Christian Coalition
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created by Pat Robertson in 1989, claimed 1.6 million members and control of the Republican Party in more than a dozen states.
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Whitewater
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Real estate scandal involving the Clintons
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al-Qaeda
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Islamist terrorist organization that launched a series of attacks against U.S.
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Osama Bin Laden
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Arab terrorist who established al-Qaeda (born in 1957). Planned attack of 9-11. Reportedly in Afghanistan
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September 11, 2001
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terrorist attacks on the united states that killed thousands of people at the twin towers and the pentagon
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Taliban
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a group of fundamentalist Muslims who took control of Afghanistan's government in 1996
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Sam Walton
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founder of Wal-Mart
