"My Top Ten" by Michael Vargas

1820; The Missouri Compromise

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:07:57 UTC

Significance: I chose this event due to its political and social significance. Socially this event caused the country to divide into two parts the north and south states. The north states contained free slaves while the south contained pro-slavery. Politically this caused major conflict between the governments of the pro-slave and free slave states by balance of power in the Senate. Some states wanted to become pro-slave states causing a disrupt in the balance of power.

October 16-18 1859; John Brown's Raid on Harpers Ferry

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:10:27 UTC

Significance: I chose this event because of its social and political significance. Socially this event was a meet up of John Brown's supporters with a total of 19 supporters in attendance. John Brown beliefs were; abolishing slavery, and violence towards the south. Politically, the main objective of the raid was to confiscate arsenal from Harpers Ferry in order to arm up local slaves to overthrow their owners. Though this event failed due to U.S. marines ending the raid causing casualties on both sides mainly from John Brown's supporters.

1860; The Presidential Election

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:10:56 UTC

Significance: I chose this event because of its political and economic significance. Politically the election of 1860; Abraham vs Douglas, caused a major diverse between the states; Abraham Lincoln promising to stop the spread of slavery made many southern states to leave the country and become their own country known as the Confederate states. Economically slavery was the only way of making money for many southerners, with Lincoln wanting to end slavery was a direct attack to their source of income. Without slavery many of their profit margins will start to decrease causing southerners to make less money then they were due to labor cost.

July 21, 1861; The First Bull Run

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:11:36 UTC

Significance: I chose this event because of its political and social significance. Politically this war made the north realize how strong the confederates really are which led to immediate political action. Congress increased the size and term of service for the union army, in addition since the Union got a humiliating defeat the Union changed command of the army to George B. McClellan to lead the Union army. The social significance of this event is that it shattered the public's view of the battle being a quick and easy battle to win.

May 18-July 4, 1863; The battle of Vicksburg

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:12:52 UTC

Significance: I chose this event because of its political and economic significance. Politically this event split the Confederacy in half by the Union taking control of the mississippi river. The Union took advantage of this split because they bombarded the confederates with heavy artillery. Economically the take over of the mississippi river helped the Union restore Northern trade with agriculture goods causing an economic boost to the Union, while the south had the complete opposite with a suffering economy due to the cut off trades with western states.

July 1-3, 1863; The battle of Gettysburg

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 03:13:33 UTC

Significance: I chose this event because of its political and social significance. Politically this event is a major turning point in the civil war; the Union wins causing Confederate General Robert E. Lee to end the last invasion in the North. Abraham Lincoln gave a powerful political and ideological framework for the war on why the Union was really fighting the Civil War, which was to abolish slavery. The social significance of this event was at the start of the invasion Confederate troops kidnapped between 40 and 60 free black citizens of Pennsylvania and made them do slavery work in the south. The North then continued to fight the south in order to obtain the free slaves back changing the fundamental reason of the Civil war to fighting for freedom.

1865-1866; Ku Klux Klan

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-07 16:10:38 UTC

I chose this event due to political and economical significance. The political significance of this event is the K.K.K wanted to prevent black politicians and black voting. The K.K.K prevented black politicians and black voting was by assassinating or publicly executing black politicians or any governmental official that promoted freedmen to vote, this caused for fear for many Freedman to use their 15th amendment. The economical significance of this event is the K.K.K targeted many black successful farmers, black owned business owners and black artisans. In addition the K.K.K forced black laborers to remain in low-wage dependent labor systems such as sharecropping which caused many black families to go into generational debt.

1865; Black Codes

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-10 16:17:56 UTC

I chose this event for its social and economical significance. The social significance of this event is black codes were a disguise for slavery since the 13th amendment made owning people illegal, southern state governments used these codes to make black people less powerful than a typical white person. These codes were crucial to many African Americans an example is if a white person committed a crime against a black person, the victim cannot offer their side of the story in court making the victim be criminalized instead of the criminal. The economical significance of this event is black codes were forcing formerly enslaved people to work in the plantation labor once again, laws were enacted causing unemployment to be considered a crime known as the Vagrancy Laws which allowed local sheriff's to arrest jobless black men and make them employ to planters to work off their fine for being unemployed.

1865-1870; Reconstruction Amendments

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-10 16:23:28 UTC

I chose this event for its political and social significance. The social significance of the reconstruction amendments is the U.S. congress tried to destroy the racial social hierarchy that was established by slavery and replace it with one where black people were recognized as legally defined U.S. citizens and have the same rights white people do. The reconstruction amendments changed American society structure and ideals. Politically, the amendments made the U.S. congress rewrite the U.S. constitution to define who counts as a citizen and what rights they possess. The 14th amendment made a big change into state government and federal government before a person's rights were protected by their state government now the federal government got the power to step in and make sure the state doesn't violate fundamental rights of their citizens.

May 1865; The Johnson Plan

michael_vargas2_2 — 2025-10-10 16:25:09 UTC

I chose this event for its political and economical significance. Politically the Johnson Plan granted pardons to former confederates giving political rights and putting ex-confederates back into government offices. This caused a major conflict between the two parties; Confederate leaders enacting anti-black policies which made the republican party to be enraged, causing a major political crisis over who had control for reconstruction. The economical significance of this event is Johnson returned the 40 acres of land the freedmen were promised to its former white owners. This made many hopes and opportunities for freedmen to obtain economic independence through land ownership.