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What are some facts on when the first transcontinental railroad was completed?

Two men were chosen for the honor of driving in the golden spike, one representing each railroad company. California Governor Leland Stanford represented the Central Pacific Railroad, and the president of the Union Pacific Railroad, Thomas C. Durant, represented his side. When the time came to drive the golden stake into the ground to officially christen the railroad, Governor Stanford missed hitting the spike with the sledgehammer on his first attempt, before connecting on his second try. He then passed the sledgehammer to Durant, who also missed the spike on his first attempt.\n\nThe transco..

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What did the Ancient Persians invent?

The ancient Persian leaders worked hard to ensure their empire succeeded. To do this, they invented their own taxation system and various universal laws to encourage cooperation from the people. They also standardized weights and developed a mail delivery system. The mail delivery system was a major communication route for the leaders and the people of the empire. Throughout time, many Persians made major contributions to science and medicine. The empire was one of the large in history.

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Who were some Egyptian pharaohs?

Khufu is one of the first major pharaohs in Egyptian history, having built the Great Pyramid at Giza during his reign, which lasted from 2609 to 2584 B.C. Khufu probably came to the throne during his twenties and immediately started work on the Great Pyramid, which took 23 years to complete. After his death, a funerary cult formed around Khufu, which lasted into the Roman era.\nAkhenaten ruled from 1550 to 1295 B.C., during the New Kingdom era of Egyptian history. Akhenaten upended the old Egyptian religious system in favor of a single sun god. Akhenaten's probable son, the 9-year-old Tut..

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Why did the Battle of Monmouth happen?

Washington's objective at Monmouth was to defeat Clinton after the British abandonment of Philadelphia in the spring of 1778. British strategy focused on keeping New York after the French entered the war on the side of the colonials. British forces numbered 10,000 versus Washington's 12,000 total.\nLee's forces engaged the British first. His 5,000-strong forward unit was supposed to harass the British until Washington's troops arrived. The subordinate withdrew his army before Washington's force of 7,000 came to bear. The normally reserved Washington, in a rare display ..

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When was the Battle of Lexington and Concord?

General Gage of Great Britain planned to send troops first to Lexington to capture revolutionary leaders John Hancock and Samuel Adams and then continue to Concord to seize supplies of munitions and gunpowder. However, colonial spies learned of the plot and sent out Paul Revere and other riders to warn the colonists. When about 700 British soldiers arrived in Lexington, they encountered 77 colonial militiamen in the town square and ordered them to lay down their arms and disperse. Instead, a shot was fired, followed by several British volleys, which killed eight colonists and wounded nine more..

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How many people died on D-Day?

The D-Day invasion provided a pathway to send Allied troops into the heart of Axis territory. Once the Allies gained control of Normandy, they used this foothold in Western Europe to begin their march against German forces. D-Day signaled a major turning point in the war, when the Allies reversed the gains made by Axis forces. The invasion at D-Day was planned for several years, as the Allied leaders strived to determine how to gain control of this area without excessive loss of life for Allied troops.

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What was the purpose of the National Industrial Recovery Act?

Enacted in 1933, the National Industrial Recovery Act was set to expire in 1935. However, prior to its expiration, the act was declared unconstitutional and was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. Many historians today consider the National Industrial Recovery Act a policy failure due to the way it supported harmful business monopolies and provided no support or method for handling labor unrest.

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What role did the Nile River play in the development of civilization in ancient Egypt?

Because the Nile made it so easy to build up surpluses of food but still had poor growing seasons, it forced farmers and hunters to plan ahead. This necessitated a government structure. The leaders had to build and maintain storehouses, predict good and bad years and defend against inevitable invasions. A system of writing sprang up in order to keep good records, and a priestly class started working to predict the regular rise and fall of the Nile.\nAs Egypt grew and developed complexity, the placid Nile made an ideal thoroughfare for travelers. Food was shuttled to places that had a bad year..

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When did Puerto Rico become U.S. territory?

The act gave statutory citizenship and that is why Congress had to grant citizenship to the people of Puerto Rico. This development enabled the people of Puerto Rico to join the U.S. workforce, including the military. The island contributed about 20,000 soldiers during World War I and became a vital base for U.S. forces during World War II.

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When was plastic invented?

Parkes's compound was derived from cellulose, which became the basis for celluloid. Celluloid was invented by John Wesley Hill eight years after Parkes presented Parkesine. The most common use of celluloid was in the making of film. During the late 19th century and the early part of the 20th century, inventors experimented with adding formaldehyde to celluloid to create resins.

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