How the United States of America was Shaped

If you look at a Country’s History, you can locate events or eras that shapes the country it is in the Present. These Events can shape the country’s socially, culturally, politically, economically, and religiously. Some events that shaped the United States of America was the Virginia House of Burgesses in the 17th Century, The Cotton Gin in the 18th Century and, The War of 1812 in the 19th Century.

The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first democratically-elected legislative body in British North America. This group of representatives first met in 1619 till 1776. The members were called burgesses and were elected from each county in Virginia with each county sending two representatives. The House of Burgesses is important because this idea lead the way how we are represented now. In the present we are represented in Congress by our elected representatives in our districts for the House of Representatives and as a state we elect two senators that represents us in the Senate. The Establishment of the Virginia House of Burgesses in the 17th Century helped politically guide the way to how we are represented today.

In the Late 18th century, Eli Whitney’s invention The Cotton Gin gave birth to mass production in America and did so much good for the country. Before the gin, slavery’s profitability was slowly dying off, leading Abolitionists to believe Congress would eventually be able to abolish slavery in the United States. Slaves cost money to maintain, that the plantation owners were suffering loss of profit since tobacco was being overproduced. With the cotton gin, cotton would be refined easily, but plantation owners still needed labor to pick the cotton, causing increase of the need for slaves. Numbers of slaves skyrocketed in America after the cotton gin’s invention. The birth of mass production shaped the United States economically and socially since it increased money flow and increased slave numbers.

In the early 19th Century, The War of 1812 was the second conflict in which America and Britain were involved. The war was a result of trade restrictions imposed by Britain and the British support of Native Americans resisting the United States in the western territories. The War of 1812 was an important event in United Stated history because it established America’s dominance. With Britain’s defeat in 1814 and the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, the U.S. was able to begin to establish a stricter foreign policy. This eventually led to the Monroe Doctrine in 1823. The War of 1812 secured America a place in the world economy and was the last war fought between the U.S. and Britain. Following the war an Era of Good Feelings developed. The Era of Good Feelings helped the nation to expand and build. Partisan politics diminished at the time and much more could be accomplished, allowing the United States of America to develop as a country in all aspects.

The Virginia House of Burgesses in the 17th Century, The Cotton Gin in the 18th Century and, The War of 1812 in the 19th Century Helped shape the United States that we know today. These Events shaped the country socially, culturally, politically and, economically. If one of these events didn’t happen, the Untied States of America could be totally different in many ways. Each part of history no matter small or big impacts the present in some way. The House of Burgesses impacted us Politically, the Cotton Gin affected us economically and culturally, and the War of 1812 impacted us in many ways.

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