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1752
Britain and the British colonies switch from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar -
Period: to
1754-1763
French and Indian War: Final conflict in the ongoing struggle between the British and French for control of eastern North America. The British win a decisive victory over the French on the Plains of Abraham outside Quebec. With the Treaty of Paris, the British formally gain control of Canada and all the French possessions east of the Mississippi. -
1770
Boston Massacre: British troops fire into a mob, killing five men and leading to intense public protests. -
1773
Boston Tea Party: Group of colonial patriots disguised as Mohawk Indians board three ships in Boston harbor and dump more than 300 crates of tea overboard as a protest against the British tea tax. -
Period: to
1774
First Continental Congress meets in Philadelphia, with 56 delegates representing every colony except Georgia. Delegates include Patrick Henry, George Washington, and Samuel Adams. -
1775
American Revolution: War of independence fought between Great Britain and the 13 British colonies on the eastern seaboard of North America. Battles of Lexington and Concord, Mass., between the British Army and colonial minutemen, mark the beginning of the war. -
1776
Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. -
1777
Continental Congress approves the first official flag of the United States. -
1777
Continental Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation, the first U.S. constitution. -
Period: to
1777-1778
Battle-weary and destitute Continental army spends brutally cold winter and following spring at Valley Forge, Pa. -
1781
British general Charles Cornwallis surrenders to Gen. George Washington at Yorktown, Va. -
1783
Great Britain formally acknowledges American independence in the Treaty of Paris, which officially brings the war to a close. -
1786
Shays's Rebellion erupts; farmers from New Hampshire to South Carolina take up arms to protest high state taxes and stiff penalties for failure to pay. -
1787
Constitutional Convention, made up of delegates from 12 of the original 13 colonies, meets in Philadelphia to draft the U.S. Constitution. -
1789
George Washington is unanimously elected president of the United States in a vote by state electors. -
1789
U.S. Constitution goes into effect, having been ratified by nine states.
U.S. Congress meets for the first time at Federal Hall in New York City. -
1789
Washington is inaugurated as president at Federal Hall in New York City. -
1790
The nation's first census shows that the population has climbed to nearly 4 million. -
1790
U.S. Supreme Court meets for the first time at the Merchants Exchange Building in New York City. -
1791
First ten amendments to the Constitution, known as the Bill of Rights, are ratified. -
1792
The court, made up of one chief justice and five associate justices, hears its first case in 1792. -
1793
Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin greatly increases the demand for slave labor. -
1793
Washington's second inauguration is held in Philadelphia. -
1797
John Adams is inaugurated as the second president in Philadelphia.