Background
- 1889, the government opens up “Indian Territory”, or Oklahoma, to be settled by whites, as presented in the musical “Oklahoma!” Indians try to rise up, but Sitting Bull is killed.
- 1890, wounded Knee Massacre is carried out by the U.S. Army, officially ending the American Indian Wars. The last Indians surrender to reservation life
- by the end of the century, the western frontier is all but gone.
- in an effort to keep expansion going, the U.S. Government looks overseas with ideas of Colonialism. They sought Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippine Islands, which were all controlled by Spain.
- 1898, U.S. launches the Spanish-American War, and within several months, America’s modern navy destroys Spain. With the war over, the U.S. doesn't leave, and several hundred thousand Philippines die in resurrections.
- 1901, President McKinley is assassinated, and Vice President Theodore Roosevelt steps in. He wants to control the Panama Canal, and push U.S. interests into Cuba and the Dominican Republic. He also wants to regulate business and conserve natural resources.
- 1908, President Roosevelt leaves office, and new Socialist and Progressive parties emerge. They want to break up Standard Oil and institute a Federal Income Tax among other reforms.
- 1912, from the socialist movements, Woodrow Wilson is elected.
- 1914, oversease, European nations reach a boiling point with each other, as they fight for colonies throughout the world. When an Austrian Duke is assassinated by a Serb, a chain reaction of alliances is set off, and the First World War.