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The Sixties · Major Events

The Sixties: Major Events

The decade that changed America. From Kennedy’s New Frontier and the brink of nuclear war over Cuba, through Johnson’s Great Society and the triumphs of the civil rights movement, to the deepening war in Vietnam and the upheaval at home — the events of the 1960s, year by year.

1960

The decade begins

4

Eras of history

46

Key events

Jump to era

New Frontier Great Society Years of Turmoil Decade Closes

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Our illustration of each year from 1960 to 1969, with the year at a glance. For the year someone was born, married or graduated. From $16.95, printed to order.

Shop a year →1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969

The New Frontier1960 – 1963

1961Bay of Pigs 1961Kennedy-Khrushchev Summit 1961Berlin Crisis 1962First American in Space 1962Steel Prices Rolled Back 1962US Commitment To Vietnam Deepens 1962Prayer Unconstitutional In School 1962Enviromental Movement Launched 1962First Black at University of Mississippi 1962Cuban Missile Crisis 1962Feminine Mystique Published 1963Nuclear Test Ban Treaty 1963University of Alabama Integrated 1963Medgar Evers Slain 1963Kennedy Visits Berlin 1963March On Washington 1963President Kennedy Assassinated

The Great Society1964 – 1966

1964Beatles in America 1964Tonkin Gulf Resolution 1964Warren Commission Report 1964Civil Rights Act 1965War On Poverty Launched 1965Violence In Selma 1965Voting Rights Act Of '65 1965Riots In Watts 1965Medicare 1965Immigration Act Of 1965American Troops Intervene In Dominican Republic 1966Miranda Decision 1966National Organization Of Women Founded

Years of Turmoil1967 – 1968

1967Large Scale War Protest Held 1967Johnson Meets Kosygin 1968Tet Offensive In Vietnam 1968McCarthy Wins 40% Of New Hampshire Vote 1968Johnson Will Not Run For Reelection 1968Martin Luther King Assassinated 1968Robert Kennedy Killed 1968Violence Mars Democratic Convention

The Decade Closes1969 – 1970

1969Landing on the Moon 1969Woodstock 1970Invasion Of Cambodia 1973Spiro Agnew Resigns 1973Arab Oil Embargo 1973Gerald Ford Becomes Vice President 1973Saturday Night Massacre 19741974-Richard Nixon Resigns

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1900–2024, year by year. Pick any year and see the whole world in it: the war, the election, the discovery, the song that was number one.

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