Democrat John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts elected President of the United States, the first from that state since John Quincy Adams in 1824.

The United States severed ties with communist Cuba and later in the year supported an invasion which became a disaster known as the “Bay of Pigs.”

President Kennedy announced the Apollo Space Program to put a man on the moon.

“Freedom Riders” bussed across the south; race riots broke out in several states, many arrests for disturbing the peace.

The first Wal-Mart store opened in Rogers, Arkansas.

Russian missile bases were spotted in Cuba, triggering the Cuban missile crisis; the U.S. and USSR went to the brink of war over the issue, before it was resolved with Russia backing down.

President John Kennedy assassinated in Dallas, Texas, the fourth President to die at the hands of an assassin, allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald. The controversy over the extent of the conspiracy to kill the President rages unabated to this day.

Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, who became President upon the assassination of Kennedy, was elected in his own right.

Winston Churchill, one of the greatest statesman in all human history, is laid to rest as the world mourns.

Battle of Ia Drang, memorialized in the book and film We Were Soldiers Once and Young, and many other fights occur across Vietnam.

Lockheed SR-71 Spy plane enters service

In Miranda vs. Arizona, the Supreme Court ruled that police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them.

Actor Ronald Reagan elected Governor of California

The first ever Super Bowl is played pitting the Green Bay Packers against the Kansas City Chiefs. Packers win 35-10

Martin Luther King denounces the Vietnam War, linking together the “civil rights movement and war protest.”

Race riots break out in Newark, New Jersey, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Detroit, Michigan, Washington D. C.

Astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell & William Anders become the first humans ever to see the far side of the moon and the earth as a whole. The crew are so awed by the experience that they recite the creation story from Genesis.

Republican Richard M. Nixon of California elected President of the United States.

Martin Luther King, leader of the Civil Rights Movement and presidential candidate Robert Kennedy are both assassinated.

Astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human being to set foot on the moon as the entire human race stood transfixed in wonder.

Ohio National Guardsmen killed four students and wounded nine, protesting the War at Kent State University, which caused national outrage and increased protests around the nation.

United States ground forces entered Cambodia.

The first female army generals in American history received commissions.

President Nixon announced the first major troop withdrawals from Vietnam, touting the successes if his “Vietnamization” policy.

President Nixon takes the United States off the Gold Standard,

The Libertarian party was founded as a free-market alternative to the two major political parties.

The “equal rights” amendment was sent by Congress to the states for ratification. It failed to receive the states’ approval every time it was brought back for ratification.

Republican Richard Nixon reelected President of the United States in a landslide, but only 55% of the electorate actually voted, the lowest turnout since 1948.

Troop levels down to 27,000 in Vietnam after peaking at about 550,000 in 1969.

President Nixon visited China, thus opening a diplomatic door that had been shut since the communist revolution there in 1949.

The “Watergate scandal” brought together all the enemies of the President to bring about the end of the presidency of Richard Nixon.

Vice-President Spiro Agnew resigned and Michigan Senator Gerald Ford confirmed as his replacement.

Due to the Watergate Scandal, President Nixon became the first President of the United States to resign from office. He was replaced by Vice-President Gerald Ford.