Smallpox

Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor . The disease is also known by ...

Mississippian culture

The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American civilization that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Sou...

Pre-Columbian era

The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significa...

Beringia

Beringia is a loosely defined region surrounding the Bering Strait, the Chukchi Sea, and the Bering Sea. It includes parts of Chukotka and ...

Siberia

Siberia ( / s aɪ ˈ b ɪər i ə / ; Russian: Сиби́рь , tr. Sibir' ; IPA:  [sʲɪˈbʲirʲ] ) is an extensive geographica...

Timeline of United States history

This is a timeline of United States history , comprising most legal and territorial changes and political and economic events in the United ...

History of the United States

When to date the start of the history of the United States is debated among historians. Older textbooks start with the arrival of Christoph...

American (word)

The meaning of the word American in the English language varies according to the historical, geographical, and political context in which i...

Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution

The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. I...

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus (Italian: Cristoforo Colombo ; Spanish: Cristóbal Colón ; Portuguese: Cristóvão Colombo ; born between 31 October ...

Columbia (name)

"Columbia" ( / k ə ˈ l ʌ m b i ə / ; kə- LUM -bee-ə ) is a historical and poetic name used for the United States of America...

Independence Day (United States)

Independence Day , commonly known as the Fourth of July or July Fourth , is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adopti...

The Virginia Gazette

The Virginia Gazette is the local newspaper of Williamsburg, Virginia. Established in 1930, it is named for the historical Virginia Gazette...

Joseph Reed (politician)

Joseph Reed (August 27, 1741 â€" March 5, 1785) was a lawyer, military officer and statesman of the Revolutionary Era who lived the ma...

Continental Army

The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of Ameri...

Aide-de-camp

An aide-de-camp (British: /ˌeidˌdəˈka:n/ ; American: /ˌeidˌdəˈkaemp/ ) (French for assistant in the field ) is a personal assistant...

George Washington

George Washington (February 22, 1732 [O.S. February 11, 1731] â€" December 14 , 1799) was the first President of the United States (1...

Stephen Moylan

Stephen Moylan (1737 â€" April 11, 1811) was an Irish American patriot leader during the American Revolutionary War. He had several po...

Amerigo Vespucci

Amerigo Vespucci ( Italian pronunciation:  [ameˈriːɡo vesˈputtʃi] ; March 9, 1454 â€" February 22, 1512) was an Italian explore...

Americas

The Americas , or America , also known as the New World , are the combined continental landmasses of North America and South America, in the...

Martin Waldseemüller

Martin Waldseemüller (Latinized Martinus Ilacomylus , Ilacomilus or Hylacomylus ; c. 1470 â€" 16 March 1520) was a German cartograph...

Cartography

Cartography (from Greek χάρτης khartÄ"s , "map"; and γράφειν graphein , "write") is the study and pra...

Germans

Germans (German: Deutsche ) are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe, who share a common German ancestry, culture and history, ...

Names for United States citizens

Different languages use different terms for citizens of the United States of America, who are known in English as "Americans". All...

Science and technology in the United States

The United States came into being around the Age of Enlightenment (circa 1680 to 1800), an era in Western philosophy in which writers and th...

Post-industrial society

In sociology, the post-industrial society is the stage of society's development when the service sector generates more wealth than the ...

Economy of the United States

Throughout this article, the unqualified term "dollar" and the $ symbol refer to the US dollar. The United States is the world&#...

Natural resource

Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by humanity, in a natural form. A natural resource...

Soviet Union

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Russian: Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик ,...

Dissolution of the Soviet Union

The dissolution of the Soviet Union was formally enacted on December 26, 1991, as a result of the declaration no. 142-Н of the Supreme Sov...

Cold War

The Cold War was a state of political and military tension after World War II between powers in the Western Bloc (the United States, its NA...

United Nations Security Council

The United Nations Security Council ( UNSC ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance o...

Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council

The permanent members of the United Nations Security Council , also known as the Permanent Five , Big Five , or P5 , include the following f...

Nuclear weapons and the United States

The United States was the first country to develop nuclear weapons, and is the only country to have used them in warfare, with the separate ...

Superpower

A superpower is a state with a dominant position in international relations and is characterised by its unparalleled ability to exert influ...

World War II

World War II ( WWII or WW2 ), also known as the Second World War (after the recent Great War), was a global war that lasted from 1939 to...

Spanish–American War

The Spanishâ€"American War (Spanish: Guerra hispano-estadounidense ) was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, the r...

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840...

Slavery in the United States

Slavery in the United States was the legal institution of chattel slavery that existed in the United States of America in the 18th and 19th...

American Civil War

The American Civil War , widely known in the United States as simply the Civil War as well as other sectional names, was a civil war fought...

United States territorial acquisitions

This is a United States territorial acquisitions and conquests list, beginning with American independence. Note that this list primarily co...

American Indian Wars

The American Indian Wars , or Indian Wars , were the multiple conflicts between American settlers or the United States government and the na...

Manifest destiny

In the 19th century, Manifest Destiny was a widely held belief in the United States that American settlers were destined to expand through...

Natural and legal rights

Natural and legal rights are two types of rights. Legal rights are those bestowed onto a person by a given legal system. Natural rights a...

United States Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. Proposed to assuage the fears of ...

Colonial empire

The Colonial empires began with a race of exploration between the then most advanced maritime powers, Portugal and Spain, in the 15th centu...

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War (1775â€"1783), the American War of Independence , or simply the Revolutionary War in the United States...

East Coast of the United States

The East Coast of the United States runs along the Atlantic Ocean. The states which have shoreline on the East Coast are, from north to s...

Thirteen Colonies

The Thirteen Colonies , as of 1775, were British colonies on the east coast of North America which had been founded between 1607 (Virginia) ...