1. 1750’s -1800

2. Important Dates 1752: Ben Franklin conducts kite experiment
1753: African American Ben Banneker made first striking clock
1754: French/Indian war begins
1765: Stamp Act passed by British
1767: Townsend Act imposes another tax
1773: Tea Act prompts Boston Tea party

4. Important Dates Cont.
1774: First Continental Congress meets in Philadelphia
1775: American Revolution begins
1776: Declaration of Independence
1783: Revolutionary War ends
1789: George Washington
1793: Eli Whitney invents cotton gin

6. The Age of Reason A movement in thought Valued reason over faith
Believe people are by nature good
Believe that a perfect society is possible

7. Wars & Unhappiness French vs. England -over North America
-called the French Indian war
-France didn’t win
1765 The Stamp Act was put into place to help England pay for the war
1767 The Townsend Acts taxed paper, paint, glass, lead, and tea

8. Unrest Builds 1770: Boston Massacre- only five people really killed
Tea Act, Coercive Acts, Intolerable Acts
September of 1774 First Continental Congress met to discuss possibility of war

9. Revolution
On April 19, 1775, 700 hundred British troops met 70 Americans, someone shot, and war began!
Fought until won our freedom
Once freedom won, it was very hard to unify the states
-states vs. federal: states didn’t want to lose individual freedoms to the government
Followed by election of new president

10. Literature Political writings (expressions of opinions) Poetry
Slave narratives
Developed own culture and art

11. What we will be reading this unit
Poor Richard’s Almanac by Ben Franklin
Writings by Olaudah Equiano
The Declaration of Independence
Patriotic Poetry