The 10th century was the period from 901 to 1000 in accordance with the Julian calendar, and the last century of the 1st millennium. 1860 - Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln elected president. Settlers secured lands, established farms and started new lives in the west. Labor unions lobbied for fair wages and rights. 1929-33 - 13 million people become unemployed after the Wall Street stock market crash of 1929 triggers what becomes known as the Great Depression. The 444-day hostage crisis - including a failed rescue attempt in 1980 - impacts on Carter's popularity and dominates the 1980 presidential election campaign. Some of these went on to become major centers while others were eventually abandoned and became ghost cities and towns.

Industrial development attracted large numbers of people to the cities. 2002 January - State of the Union address: President George W Bush includes Iraq, Iran and North Korea in what he describes as an "axis of evil".

1920 - Women given the right to vote under the Nineteenth Amendment. BBC History: Was the American Revolution inevitable? 2001 11 September - Co-ordinated suicide attacks on various high-profile targets, prompting the US to embark on a ''war on terror'' which includes the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. 2004 July - Senate report says US and allies went to war in Iraq on "flawed" information. Lincoln is assassinated. 2002 June/July - Telecoms giant WorldCom's multi-billion dollar accounting fraud is revealed, eclipsing the Enron scandal to become the biggest business failure in US history. 2001 July - US tests its controversial missile defence shield, or "Son of Star Wars". BBC History: Listen to some of JFK's key speeches, Special feature: Marching for Freedom 1963, On This Day 1968: Martin Luther King shot dead, On This Day 1980: Reagan beats Carter in landslide, In Depth: Space Shuttle - Return to flight, Tourists flock to 'Jesus's tomb' in Kashmir. 2008 September - Turmoil in the US and international financial markets as major Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers collapses and other big US financial players face growing troubles as a result of the "credit crunch". 1962 - US compels Soviet Union to withdraw nuclear weapons from Cuba in what has become known as the Cuban missile crisis. 1920 - Sale and manufacture of alcoholic liquors outlawed. North America is already inhabited by several distinct groups of people, who go into decline following the arrival of settlers. The new lands in the west also attracted a large number of immigrants from around the world.