1859     African American leader W.E.B. Du Bois illuminates black history, dreams, and concerns in The Souls of Black Folk.

1907     Auto manufacturer Henry Ford releases the Model T, fondly known as the Tin Lizzie, which will be much loved by the public for its reliability and low price tag.

1914     World War I begins in Europe. The results will be devastating, for an estimated ten million soldiers will be killed and twenty million wounded, while millions of civilians will also die from hunger and rapidly spreading diseases like influenza.

May 1915     The German navy sinks the British passenger ship Lusitania, killing more than one thousand passengers, including more than one hundred U.S. citizens. President Woodrow Wilson issues a warning to Germany.

April 1917     The United States enters World War I.

November 11, 1918     World War I ends.

1919     An epidemic of influenza spreads across the globe. About four hundred...