1861 Abraham Lincoln signs a bill into law which creates the United States Department of Agriculture
1991 Full sovereignty comes to Germany after the four post-World War II occupying powers (France, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Soviet Union) relinquish all control over the country.
1992 George H. W. Bush becomes the first President of the United States to address the Australian Parliament.
1993 The Great Blizzard of 1993 strikes the eastern United States, causing record snowfall and other extreme weather. It would become the worst winter storm in over 40 years, killing over 160 people.
1994 U.S. President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin sign the Kremlin Accords. The agreement ends the preprogrammed aiming of nuclear missiles toward targets in the United States and Russia.
1994 United States student Shannon Faulkner becomes the first female cadet to attend The Citadel.
1995 A severe heat wave strikes the midwestern United States with temperatures exceeding 104°F (40°C). Over 3,000 people are killed.
1995 A rocket carrying equipment to measure the aurora borealis is launched from the Andøya Rocket Range at Andøy, Norway and is briefly interpreted by the Russian government as an incoming ballistic missile from a United States submarine.
1995 A United States federal jury convicts Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman and nine others of conspiracy to bomb the World Trade Center in 1993.
1996 One of the worst blizzards in United States history strikes the East Coast, killing 154 and causing over $1 billion in damage.
1996 Bill Clinton vetoes the Partial Birth Abortion Act, a bill that would have banned partial-birth abortions in the United States.
1997 Bill Clinton is sworn in for his second term as President of the United States.
1997 Madeleine Albright is sworn in as Secretary of State of the United States. She becomes the woman to ever hold that position in the United States.
1998 A United States warplane flying over a resort near Trento, Italy severs a wire supporting cable cars, causing one car to fall to the mountain below. Nineteen skiers and a cable car operator are killed.
1998 Convicted murderer Karla Faye Tucker is executed in Huntsville, Texas. She becomes the first woman executed in the United States since 1984 and the first to be executed in the state of Texas since the American Civil War.
1998 The presidential line-item veto is declared unconstitutional by a United States District Court Judge. The ruling is later upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States.
1998 The United States Food and Drug Administration approves the popular drug Viagra for the treatment of male impotence.
1998 The final episode of Seinfeld airs in the United States.
1998 Pokémon debuts in the United States.
1999 Monica Lewinsky's book 'Monica's Story' which details the drama that led to the impeachment of Bill Clinton goes on sale in the United States.
1999 The Roth 401(k) is introduced by United States Senator William Roth, Jr.
1999 The United States Senate rejects ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
1999 United States District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson rules that Microsoft has 'monopoly power' over the personal computer operating system industry.
2000 United States Senator Paul Coverdell of Georgia dies.
2000 Hillary Clinton is elected to the United States Senate for the state of New York, becoming the first former First Lady of the United States to win public office.
2000 Bill Clinton becomes the first sitting United States President to visit Vietnam.
2001 The United States submarine USS Greeneville collides with and sinks the Japanese fishing vessel "Ehime-Maru", killing 9 of its crewmembers.
2001 A United States spy plane collides with a Chinese fighter jet in international waters. The Chinese pilot and his plane are lost. The spy plane is damaged and forced to land in Hainan. The crew is taken into custody, marking the start of a tense standoff between the U.S. and China.
2001 Nearly 3,000 people are killed in a series of coordinated terrorist attacks perpetrated by al-Qaeda against the United States. The attacks take place in New York City, Arlington, Virginia, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
2001 The United States and the United Kingdom initiate military operations in Afghanistan intended to remove the Taliban from power.
2001 Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It is the largest bankruptcy in United States history.
2001 United States officials announce the capture of John Walker Lindh.
2001 A United States grand jury indicts Zacarias Moussaoui for his participation in the September 11, 2001 attacks.
2001 United States President George W. Bush gives notice to Russia of its withdrawal from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.
2001 The People's Republic of China is granted permanent normal trade status with the United States.
2002 The United States invades Afghanistan.
2002 Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life in prison without parole for selling United States secrets to Russia.
2002 Former United States president Jimmy Carter becomes the first U.S. President to visit Cuba since the revolution by Fidel Castro in 1959.
2002 The United States State Department releases a report identifying seven state sponsors of terrorism including Syria, North Korea, Iran, Libya, Iraq, Cuba, and Sudan.
2002 WorldCom files for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It is the largest filing of its time in United States history.
2002 The congress of the United States passes a resolution which authorizes the President to use the United States military as he deems necessary and appropriate, against Iraq.
2002 United States President George W. Bush signs the Iraq war resolution.
2002 In Congressional elections in the United States, the Republican Party regains control of the Senate and maintains control of the House of Representatives.
2003 The Letter of the Eight is signed by leaders of eight countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, demonstrating support for the United States' plans to invade Iraq.
2003 United States President George W. Bush declares that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and his sons must leave Iraq within 48 hours, or face military action.
2004 John Kerry wins 9 of 10 democratic primaries and caucuses making him the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party in the United States presidential campaign.
2004 The last Oldsmobile is built. It marks the end of one of the oldest automotive brand names in the United States
2004 The Republican Party gains 4 seats in the United States Senate and 4 seats in the United States House of Representatives in congressional elections in the United States
2004 United States military forces launch a major assault on the city of Fallujah, Iraq in an effort to rid the area of insurgents prior to Iraqi elections in January.
2004 Colin Powell resigns as Secretary of State of the United States.
2004 The Colombian government extradites Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela to the United States.
2005 Tens of thousands of Iraqis protest the United States occupation of Iraq in Firdus Square, where Saddam Hussein's statue was topped following the invasion of Iraq.
2005 A hand grenade is thrown near United States President George W. Bush while he is giving a speech in Tbilisi, Georgia, The grenade failed to detonate.
2005 United States House Majority Leader Tom DeLay is indicted on charges of criminal conspiracy by a Texas grand jury for his alleged involvement in a campaign finance scandal.
2005 The United States and Uruguay governments sign the Bilateral Investment Treaty.
2005 Double murderer Kenneth Boyd becomes the 1,000th person executed in the United States since the re-introduction of capital punishment in 1976.
2005 Scientists in the United States announce that they have created mice with small amounts of human brain tissue to help study neurological disorders.
2005 New York City transit workers go on strike shutting down the largest public transit system in the United States.
2005 United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announces the first in a series of troop reductions in Iraq following the Iraqi elections.
2008 Germany declares war on the United States
