jan 1, 1900 - Annexation of Hawaii

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The Pacific islands of Hawaii had long been desired by American expansionists who, in 1893, helped to overthrow the Hawaiian monarch, Queen Liliuokalani. At first, the expansionist Republicans’ attempts to annex Hawaii were shot down by anti-imperialist President Cleveland. However, the Republicans found more success when McKinley ascended to the presidency, and in 1900, under the pretext of the war that broke out in the Philippines in 1898, Congress and the president agreed to annex Hawaii as a U.S. territory. In August 1959 it would become the 50th state.

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