American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 19th Century United States History are emphasized in this first 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1800 - Washington DC Becomes the Nation's Capitol

00:04:13Washington D.C., the U.S. Capital named for George Washington and designed by Pierre-Charles L'Enfant, was the home of President John Adams and scene to the transfer of power from Federalists to Jeffersonian Republicans.

2.) 1803 - The Louisiana Purchase

00:04:01The Louisiana Purchase, which included the Mississippi River and New Orleans, would become known as the Louisiana Territory.

3.) 1804 - Lewis and Clark Expedition

00:03:40The Lewis and Clark expedition or the Corps of Discovery, was led by William Clark and Meriwether Lewis, and used seasoned mountain men to explore the Louisiana Purchase.

4.) 1807 - Robert Fulton Awakens the World to the Steamboat

00:03:06Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat, led American inventors at the start of 19th century, through the backing of American entrepreneur, Robert Livingston.

5.) 1811 - Battle of Tippecanoe

00:06:04At the Battle of Tippecanoe, Shawnee leader Tecumseh was defeated by General William Henry Harrison.

6.) 1811 - New Madrid Earthquake

00:02:23The New Madrid Earthquake affected most of the Mississippi river Rift Valley, changing the river's course in some places.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this second 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1814 - Washington DC is Captured and Burned by the British

00:05:43The War of 1812 produced heroes such as Commodore Perry and Dolley Madison, while Fort Miggs was defended by General Harrison and the White House were burned.

2.) 1814 - Star Spangled Banner is Written

00:02:59In the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key wrote the Spangled banner during the siege of Fort McHenry.

3.) 1815 - Battle of New Orleans

00:02:25In the War of 1812, the Battle of New Orleans was won by Andrew Jackson after the Ghent Treaty had ended the war.

4.) 1819 - Washington Irving Publishes "Rip Van Winkle" - 1819

00:03:03Washington Irving, the American author, wrote The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

5.) 1821 - Inauguration of the Santa Fe Trail

00:03:05The Santa Fe Trail, opened by William Becknell, was just one of many trails west, including the Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail and California Trail.

6.) 1825 - Erie Canal is Completed

00:03:16The Erie Canal, was built by New York governor DeWitt Clinton.

7.) 1826 - James Fenimore Cooper Publishes "Last of the Mohicans"

00:02:23James Fenimore Cooper, wrote Last of the Mohicans, which introduced the archetype character of Natty Bumpo, also known as Hawkeye and Deerslayer, the first truly American character by an American Author.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this third 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1831 - Cyrus McCormick Demonstrates His Mechanical Reaper

00:02:46Cyrus McCormick, who invented the mechanical reaper, was an American entrepreneur and an American inventor.

2.) 1831 - Nat Turner Begins His Rebellion

00:03:26Nat Turner, who led a slave rebellion, to end slavery and free slavery slaves, told his story in The confessions of Nat Turner.

3.) 1832 - Black Hawk War Ends with Massacre at Bad Axe River

00:03:33Chief Black Hawk, who led American Indians in Black Hawk War, which ended in the Massacre at Bad Axe River, also wrote Black Hawk an Autobiography.

4.) 1836 - Alamo Falls

00:04:13The Alamo, would introduce American heroes James Bowie, William Travis, and Davy Crockett, in the fight to free Texas led by Stephen Austin.

5.) 1845 - Edgar Allen Poe Publishes "The Raven"

00:02:53Edgar Allan Poe wrote "The Raven", one of the masterpieces of American poetry.

6.) 1846 - The Donner Party Starts West

00:02:57The Donner Party, organized by George A Donner, would end in tragedy in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

7.) 1846 - United States Declares War on Mexico

00:03:59The Mexican American War, begun by President John K. Polk, was fought to bring Texas into the union and to promote slavery and Manifest Destiny.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this fourth 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1846 - Dr. John Morton Demonstrates Painless Surgery Using Ether

00:02:38American Scientist, Dr. William T.G. Morton, was the first to use ether.

2.) 1848 - Gold is Discovered at Sutter's Mill

00:04:24California Gold Rush, would lead tens of thousands of 49ers, to look for gold near San Francisco.

3.) 1849 - Treaty Between U.S. and Hawaiian Islands

00:03:25The Hawaiian Islands under King Kamehameha, helps the American Navy.

4.) 1852 - Harriet Beecher Stowe Publishes "Uncle Tom's Cabin"

00:02:27Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin, the leading Abolitionist tale against, slavery and owning slaves.

5.) 1854 - Commodore Perry Lands in Japan

00:03:47Commodore Perry in using the American Navy to open Japan, showed the preeminence of the navy.

6.) 1858 - Lincoln Douglas Debates Begin

00:02:08Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas participated in the, Lincoln Douglas Debates on slavery and states' rights before the civil war.

7.) 1860 - Pony Express Mail Service Begins

00:04:25The Pony Express and, Butterfield Stage route opened up the American west.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this fifth 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1861 - Eleven States Comprise the Confederacy

00:03:28The Civil War, fought to end Slavery and bring the Confederacy back into the Union was led by Abraham Lincoln.

2.) 1862 - Congress Sets Forth the Homestead Act

00:02:40Homestead Act, passed during the Civil War, gave homesteaders a chance to settle the west.

3.) 1863 - Lincoln Signs Emancipation Proclamation

00:02:55The Emancipation Proclamation, ending slavery during the Civil War, was written by Abe Lincoln, to rally the support of abolitionists.

4.) 1863 - Lincoln Delivers His Gettysburg Address

00:03:21During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln gave his immortal Gettysburg Address.

5.) 1865 - Lee Surrenders at Appomattox

00:03:23Appomattox, ending the civil war, brought together Confederate General Robert E. Lee, and Union General U.S. Grant.

6.) 1865 - Abraham Lincoln is Assassinated

00:02:39Abraham Lincoln wanted to let the south back into Union easily, but the Abraham Lincoln assassination by John Wilkes Booth would lead to a harsh Reconstruction.

7.) 1865 - Formation of the Ku Klux Klan

00:03:37The Ku Klux Klan, created to keep blacks in a virtual slavery, was founded by Minor Merriweather.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this sixth 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1867 - Carpetbaggers Descend on the South

00:03:01Reconstruction brought and scalawags into the south when slavery ended.

2.) 1867 U.S. Acquires Alaska . . . Seward's Folly

00:02:36Known as Seward's folly, Alaska was bought by the U.S. in 1867.

3.) 1868 - President Andrew Johnson is Impeached

00:04:10Andrew Johnson's impeachment was the first faced by an American Presidency, and would deepen reconstruction, led by abolitionist Thaddeus Stevens.

4.) 1869 - Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad

00:05:49The Transcontinental Railroad, completed at Promontory Point, opened the era of Railroads and American Industrialization, leading to the creation of great railway magnates such as Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, and James Fiske.

5.) 1870 - Rockefeller Incorporates Standard Oil Co. of Ohio

00:05:26Standard Oil, founded by John D. Rockefeller, would centralize the American oil industry.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this seventh 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1871 - Chicago Fire

00:03:01The Chicago Fire, in Chicago, Illinois, was supposedly started by O'Leary's cow.

2.) 1872 - Susan B. Anthony is Arrested for Voting

00:02:27Susan B. Anthony, a leader of women's rights and civil rights, was helped by long time friend Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

3.) 1875 - Robert Smalls, Former Slave, Elected to the House

00:02:53Robert Smalls, a slave, escaped the South during the civil war and returned to help lead reconstruction.

4.) 1876 - Alexander Graham Bell Demonstrates the Telephone

00:02:12Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, another example of the American entrepreneur and the American Inventor.

5.) 1876 - Battle of Little Bighorn

00:02:58At the Battle of Little Big Horn, George Armstrong Custer was defeated by Crazy Horse leading northern Indian Plains tribes.

6.) 1879 - Thomas Edison Demonstrates the Incandescent Lamp

00:02:05Thomas Edison, inventor of the Incandescent Lamp, was an American Inventor, who also produced the phonograph and helped found the electric utility industry dominated by General Electric.

7.) 1880 - George Eastman Patents Kodak Roll Film

00:03:06George Eastman ,founded of Kodak, was an American inventor who created the photography industry.

8.) 1881 - Booker T. Washington Opens Tuskegee Institute

00:02:47Booker T. Washington founded the Tuskegee Institute and helped to promote civil rights.

American History, 19th Century American History, United States History, and 18th Century United States History are emphasized in this eighth 19th Century Turning Points Program.

Chapter List

1.) 1881 - Clara Barton Organizes the American Red Cross

00:02:56Clara Barton who founded the American Red Cross, was a nurse during the Civil War.

2.) 1882 - Chinese Exclusion Act Passed by Congress

00:02:47The Chinese Exclusion Act impacted Chinese American Civil Rights.

3.) 1885 - Mark Twain Publishes "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn"

00:02:33Mark Twain, who wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, was one of the 19th century's American Humorists, whose real name was Samuel Clemens.

4.) 1889 - Oklahoma Land Rush begins

00:02:07The Oklahoma Land Rush gave Indian Lands to white settlers and would lead to the creation of the state of Oklahoma.

5.) 1890 - Battle at Wounded Knee

00:02:51The Battle of Wounded Knee, fought t stop the Ghost Dance, happened after the great Sioux leader, Sitting Bull, was killed,

6.) 1893 - First Gas Powered Automobile is Demonstrated

00:02:09The building of the automobile, by American Inventors, Frank Duryea and Charles Duryea would lead to the American automobile industry.

7.) 1896 - Plessy vs. Ferguson Case Upholds Segregation

00:02:44In Plessy v. Ferguson, Segregation and Jim Crow were held up by the U.S. Supreme Court, of which only John Marshall Harlan stood for Black civil rights.

8.) 1898 - Sinking of the Maine

00:04:01The Sinking of the Maine launches American imperialism to take over Cuba, the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico and destroys the Spanish fleet and makes the reputation of Teddy Roosevelt.