APUSH Study Notes: All Eras

APUSH Study Notes: All Eras

Era 1: Pre-Columbian to 1491

• Indigenous peoples inhabited the Americas for thousands of years
• Three main categories of Native American societies:
  1. Nomadic hunter-gatherers
  2. Sedentary agricultural societies
  3. Advanced civilizations (e.g., Aztecs, Mayans)
• Impact of the environment on Native American societies

Era 2: 1491 to 1607

• European explorers (e.g., Columbus, Vasco da Gama) reached the Americas
• Spanish conquest of the Aztecs and Incas
• Establishment of Spanish colonies in the Caribbean and Mexico
• Introduction of African slavery

Era 3: 1607 to 1754

• English colonies established in North America (e.g., Jamestown, Plymouth)
• Characteristics of the 13 colonies:
  • Regional diversity (New England, Mid-Atlantic, Southern)
  • Economic systems (agrarian, commercial, industrial)
  • Religious and cultural differences
• Impact of the Columbian Exchange on the environment and population

Era 4: 1754 to 1800

• French and Indian War (1754-1763) and its impact on the colonies
• Proclamation of 1763 and its effects on westward expansion
• American Revolution (1775-1783):
  • Causes (e.g., taxation, representation)
  • Key events (e.g., Boston Tea Party, signing of the Declaration of Independence)
  • Outcomes (e.g., Treaty of Paris, Constitution)

Era 5: 1800 to 1848

• Westward expansion and its impact on Native Americans and the environment
• Market Revolution and its effects on the economy and society
• Slavery and its role in the early 19th century:
  • Increasing tensions between the North and South
  • Compromises (e.g., Missouri Compromise, Compromise of 1850)

Era 6: 1848 to 1877

• Mexican-American War (1846-1848) and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
• Compromise of 1850 and the Kansas-Nebraska Act
• American Civil War (1861-1865):
  • Causes (e.g., slavery, states' rights)
  • Key events (e.g., Battle of Gettysburg, Emancipation Proclamation)
  • Outcomes (e.g., Reconstruction Amendments, Reconstruction era)

Era 7: 1877 to 1898

• Reconstruction era and its outcomes (e.g., end of Reconstruction, Jim Crow laws)
• Industrialization and its impact on the economy and society:
  • Robber barons and industrial leaders
  • Labor movements and unions
• Imperialism and the Spanish-American War (1898)

Era 8: 1898 to 1945

• World War I and its impact on American society:
  • Entry into the war and the Treaty of Versailles
  • Red Scare and its consequences
• Roaring Twenties and the Harlem Renaissance
• Great Depression and the New Deal:
  • Causes and effects of the Depression
  • Franklin D. Roosevelt's policies and programs
• World War II and its impact on American society:
  • Entry into the war and the home front
  • Outcomes (e.g., dropping of the atomic bomb, formation of the United Nations)

Era 9: 1945 to 1980

• Cold War and its impact on American society:
  • Red Scare and McCarthyism
  • Foreign policy and international relations
• Civil Rights Movement:
  • Key events (e.g., Montgomery Bus Boycott, March on Washington)
  • Important figures (e.g., Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks)
• Social and cultural changes of the 1960s and 1970s:
  • Counterculture and anti-war movements
  • Feminist and LGBTQ+ movements

Era 10: 1980 to present

• Conservatism and neoliberalism:
  • Ronald Reagan's presidency and its impact on the economy
  • Globalization and its consequences
• Late 20th-century social and cultural changes:
  • Multiculturalism and diversity
  • Digital revolution and its impact on society
• Contemporary issues and challenges:
  • Political polarization and gridlock
  • Economic inequality and the wealth gap