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Historical Period
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The internet, 9/11, financial crisis, and a divided nation.

Use the timeline below to navigate through major events and milestones.

Contemporary America · 1991-Present
Digital Age · 1991-Present

Contemporary America

From the unipolar moment after the Cold War and the rise of the internet, through the September 11 attacks and their wars, the financial crisis, and the historic election of Barack Obama, to the smartphone era, the COVID-19 pandemic, and deepening political division. Slide across the years to explore the America of our own time.

1991 AD
The Unipolar Moment
1 / 7

Gulf War and the sole superpower

A U.S.-led coalition drives Iraq out of Kuwait in the Gulf War, and with the Soviet collapse the United States stands unrivaled at the head of a new world order.

1991 AD

The Unipolar Moment
  • Military

    Gulf War and the sole superpower

    A U.S.-led coalition drives Iraq out of Kuwait in the Gulf War, and with the Soviet collapse the United States stands unrivaled at the head of a new world order.

7 milestones

Meanwhile

Around 1991 AD

Full Chronicle

Contemporary America

From the unipolar moment after the Cold War and the rise of the internet, through the September 11 attacks and their wars, the financial crisis, and the historic election of Barack Obama, to the smartphone era, the COVID-19 pandemic, and deepening political division. Slide across the years to explore the America of our own time.

  1. The Unipolar Moment

    • Gulf War and the sole superpower

      A U.S.-led coalition drives Iraq out of Kuwait in the Gulf War, and with the Soviet collapse the United States stands unrivaled at the head of a new world order.

  2. The Digital Dawn

    • The internet and the tech boom

      The World Wide Web goes mainstream and a booming Silicon Valley reshapes the economy, launching an information revolution centered in the United States.

  3. September 11

    • The September 11 attacks

      Al-Qaeda hijackers destroy the World Trade Center and strike the Pentagon, killing nearly three thousand and launching the War on Terror and the invasion of Afghanistan.

  4. Crisis and Change

    • Financial crisis and Obama's election

      The collapse of the housing market triggers the worst financial crisis since the Depression; that November, Barack Obama is elected the first Black president.

  5. A Connected Nation

    • Smartphones and social media

      Smartphones and social media transform daily life, politics, and business, even as they deepen the divisions and disruptions of the digital age.

  6. Pandemic and Division

    • The COVID-19 pandemic

      The coronavirus pandemic kills more than a million Americans, upends the economy, and unfolds amid deep political polarization and a contested presidential election.

  7. A Republic Tested

    • The Capitol riot and a divided nation

      A mob storms the U.S. Capitol on January 6 seeking to overturn the election, a stark sign of the political divisions confronting American democracy in the 2020s.