98 Important Dates To Know for AP US History
4 min read•may 9, 2022
AP US History 🇺🇸
454 resourcesSee Units
The Most Comprehensive APUSH Timeline
There will never be a question on the APUSH exam that specifically requires you to remember a date. However, you do need to know the timeline of events to place cause and effect. Plus, you can earn evidence points in your essays for knowing dates. The following are the key dates to know in the APUSH timeline!
Study Tips:
Create your own quizlet deck and study these dates! There are tons of decks already made with these dates (ex. here), but actually creating the deck is an important step in studying!
- To maximize your productivity when preparing for the exam, try using a pomodoro study timer in Fiveable rooms! It is beneficial because it splits up your study time, so you don't get overwhelmed, and reminds you to take breaks.
Period 1 Dates
1492 – Columbus’ first voyage
Period 2 Dates – Colonial America
1607 – Jamestown
1649 – Toleration Act
1688 – Glorious Revolution
1692 – Salem Witch Trials
Period 3 Dates – The American Revolution
1754–1763 – Seven Years’ War
1763 – Proclamation of 1763
1765 – Stamp Act
1770 – Boston Massacre
1773 – Boston Tea Party
1775 – Lexington & Concord
1776 – Dec. of Independence
1777 – Battle of Saratoga
1781 – Battle of Yorktown
1783 – Treaty of Paris
1787 – Constitutional Convention
1788 – Washington’s Election
1798 – XYZ Affair
1798 – Alien & Sedition Acts
Period 4 Dates – Expansion & Democracy
1800 – Jefferson’s Election
1803 – Louisiana Purchase
1812–1815 – War of 1812
1814 – Battle of New Orleans
1816–1824 – Era of Good Feelings
1820 – Missouri Compromise
1823 – Monroe Doctrine
1820s – Sectionalism
1828 – Jackson’s Election
1830 – Indian Removal Act
1832 – Nat Turner’s Rebellion
1830–1850 – Manifest Destiny
1836 – Battle of the Alamo
Period 5 Dates – The Civil War
1845 – Annexation of Texas
1845–1848 – Mexican-American War
1848 – Seneca Falls Convention
1850 – Fugitive Slave Law
1852 – Uncle Tom’s Cabin
1854 – Bleeding Kansas
1857 – Dred Scott Case
1860 – Lincoln’s Election
1861–1865 – Civil War
1862 – Homestead Act
1863 – Gettysburg
1867 – Reconstruction Acts
1867 – Purchase of Alaska
1877 – Compromise of 1877
Period 6 Dates – The Gilded Age
1876 – Little Bighorn
1886 – Haymarket Square Riot
1887 – Dawes Act
1887 – Interstate Commerce
1890 – Wounded Knee
1890 – Sherman Antitrust Act
1894 – Pullman Strike
1896 – “Cross of Gold” speech
1896 – Plessy v. Ferguson
👉Check out our Period 6 study guide!
Period 7 Dates – Progressivism & Global Conflict
1898 – Annexation of Hawaii
1898 – Spanish American War
1903 – Wright Brothers
1917 – US enters WWI
1920 – Women’s Suffrage
1920s – Red Scare
1920s – Prohibition
1929 – Stock Market Crash
1932 – Bonus Army
1935 – Social Security Act
1939 – WWII starts in Europe
1941 – Attack on Pearl Harbor
1944 – D-Day
1945 – Atomic Bomb dropped
Period 8 Dates – The Cold War
1945–1991 – Cold War
1947 – Truman Doctrine
1950–1953 – Korean War
1950s – McCarthyism
1954 – Brown v. Board of Ed.
1955 – Montgomery Bus Boycott
1957 – Sputnik
1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis
1963 – March on Washington
1963 – JFK assassinated
1964 – Civil Rights Act
1968 – MLK killed, RFK killed
1968 – Tet Offensive
1968 – Chicago Convention
1969 – moon landing
1972 – Watergate break-in
1973 – Roe v. Wade
1979 – Iranian hostage crisis
Period 9 Dates – The Modern Era
1980 – Reagan elected
1989 – Cold War ends
1991 – Persian Gulf War
1994 – Contract with America
1995 – Oklahoma City Bombing
2000 – Bush v. Gore
2001 – 9/11 Attacks
2008 – Great Recession
2008 – Obama elected
2011 – Affordable Care Act
Browse Study Guides By Unit
🌽Unit 1 – Interactions North America, 1491-1607
🦃Unit 2 – Colonial Society, 1607-1754
🔫Unit 3 – Conflict & American Independence, 1754-1800
🐎Unit 4 – American Expansion, 1800-1848
💣Unit 5 – Civil War & Reconstruction, 1848-1877
🚂Unit 6 – Industrialization & the Gilded Age, 1865-1898
🌎Unit 7 – Conflict in the Early 20th Century, 1890-1945
🥶Unit 8 – The Postwar Period & Cold War, 1945-1980
📲Unit 9 – Entering Into the 21st Century, 1980-Present
🚀Thematic Guides
🧐Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
📋Short Answer Questions (SAQ)
📝Long Essay Questions (LEQ)
📑Document Based Questions (DBQ)
📆Big Reviews: Finals & Exam Prep
✍️Exam Skills (MC, SAQ, LEQ, DBQ)
© 2023 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.