American Revolution History - American Revolution

Silverites, Populists, and the Movement for Free Silver Gold bugs v. Silverites Political battles over currency issues became intensely divisive during the last quarter of the 19th century as industrialization accelerated in the Northeast, while the South and newly settled areas of the Midwest remained dependent on farming. From 1873 through the late 1890s, the U.S. suffered through two major economic depressions that heightened sectional and class conflict. Farmers for Free Silver Congress had discontinued the minting of silver coins in 1873 in an act that came to be known as the “Crime of ’73.” Advocates for inflating the money supply ranged from those who proposed that the federal government print paper money not backed by either gold or silver to those who called for the remonetization of silver. The People’s Party, also known as the Populists, formed as a political party in 1891. Election of 1896 Populists hoped to win the 1896 election and supplant the Democrats as one of the nation’s two major national parties.

World War I History - World War I Tensions had been brewing throughout Europe–especially in the troubled Balkan region of southeast Europe–for years before World War I actually broke out. A number of alliances involving European powers, the Ottoman Empire, Russia and other parties had existed for years, but political instability in the Balkans (particularly Bosnia, Serbia and Herzegovina) threatened to destroy these agreements. The spark that ignited World War I was struck in Sarajevo, Bosnia, where Archduke Franz Ferdinand—heir to the Austro-Hungarian Empire—was shot to death along with his wife Sophie by the Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip on June 28, 1914. Princip and other nationalists were struggling to end Austro-Hungarian rule over Bosnia and Herzegovina. But because Russia supported Serbia, Austria-Hungary waited to declare war until its leaders received assurance from German leader Kaiser Wilhelm II that Germany would support their cause.

Spanish-American War - HISTORY The Spanish-American War was an 1898 conflict between the United States and Spain that ended Spanish colonial rule in the Americas and resulted in U.S. acquisition of territories in the western Pacific and Latin America. Causes: Remember the Maine! The war originated in the Cuban struggle for independence from Spain, which began in February 1895. Spain’s brutally repressive measures to halt the rebellion were graphically portrayed for the U.S. public by several sensational newspapers engaging in yellow journalism, and American sympathy for the Cuban rebels rose. The growing popular demand for U.S. intervention became an insistent chorus after the still-unexplained sinking in Havana harbor of the American battleship USS Maine, which had been sent to protect U.S. citizens and property after anti-Spanish rioting in Havana. War Is Declared Spain announced an armistice on April 9 and speeded up its new program to grant Cuba limited powers of self-government. But the U.S. Scroll to Continue

A Brief History of Jim Crow “I can ride in first-class cars on the railroads and in the streets,” wrote journalist T. McCants Stewart. “I can stop in and drink a glass of soda and be more politely waited upon than in some parts of New England.” Stewart had decided to tour the South because he feared for freedmen’s liberties. After a few weeks on the road, Stewart decided they would. Stewart was wrong. “Jim Crow” was a derisive slang term for a black man. In 1890, in spite of its 16 black members, the Louisiana General Assembly passed a law to prevent black and white people from riding together on railroads. Two years later, the court seemed to seal the fate of black Americans when it upheld a Mississippi law designed to deny black men the vote. Jim Crow laws touched every part of life. In Richmond, one could not live on a street unless most of the residents were people one could marry. Prisons, hospitals, and orphanages were segregated as were schools and colleges. For Discussion and Writing For Further Reading

Guatamala's Maya Society Featured Huge 'Megalopolis,' LiDAR Data Show Learn how your family history is connected to the human journey with National Geographic’s Geno 2.0 DNA ancestry kit. In what’s being hailed as a “major breakthrough” in Maya archaeology, researchers have identified the ruins of more than 60,000 houses, palaces, elevated highways, and other human-made features that have been hidden for centuries under the jungles of northern Guatemala. Using a revolutionary technology known as LiDAR (short for “Light Detection And Ranging”), scholars digitally removed the tree canopy from aerial images of the now-unpopulated landscape, revealing the ruins of a sprawling pre-Columbian civilization that was far more complex and interconnected than most Maya specialists had supposed. Garrison is part of a consortium of researchers who are participating in the project, which was spearheaded by the PACUNAM Foundation, a Guatemalan nonprofit that fosters scientific research, sustainable development, and cultural heritage preservation.

Mexican-American War - HISTORY The Mexican-American War (1846-1848) marked the first U.S. armed conflict chiefly fought on foreign soil. It pitted a politically divided and militarily unprepared Mexico against the expansionist-minded administration of U.S. President James K. Causes of the Mexican-American War Texas gained its independence from Mexico in 1836. Nonetheless, annexation procedures were quickly initiated after the 1844 election of Polk, who campaigned that Texas should be “re-annexed” and that the Oregon Territory should be “re-occupied.” The Mexican-American War Begins On April 25, 1846, Mexican cavalry attacked a group of U.S. soldiers in the disputed zone under the command of General Zachary Taylor, killing about a dozen. Following those battles, Polk told the U.S. Mexican-American War: U.S. At that time, only about 75,000 Mexican citizens lived north of the Rio Grande. Meanwhile, U.S. troops led by Gen. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Ends the Mexican-American War

Mississippi History Now Mass Grave in England May Hold a ‘Lost’ Viking Army In the mid-ninth century, a Viking military force known as the Great Heathen Army invaded England. It marked the transition among Vikings from raiding cities to conquering them, and is considered an important historical event in the creation of England. Yet for decades, no one could find any archaeological evidence to back this up. Now, a group of researchers at the University of Bristol in England think they might have found that evidence—i.e., the soldiers’ bones. However, initial carbon dating placed the skeletons in earlier centuries, leading researchers to conclude that they couldn’t be Viking soldiers. It was only after adjusting for Vikings’ seafood diet that researchers were able to correctly carbon date them to the 9th century. VIDEO: Viking Women – In Viking society, women enjoyed a surprising degree of autonomy and independence. The bones come from a mass grave of at least 264 skeletons at St. Other clues support the theory that these are remnants of the Viking army.