1598: The Spanish settle New Mexico, the largest and oldest Spanish settlement in the Southwest.

1691: The Spanish establish the province of Texas.

1718: The mission later known as the Alamo is founded in San Antonio.

1769: The first Europeans to reach the site of San Francisco are Don Gaspar de Portolà and Father Juan Crespi who came overland from Mexico. Military and religious settlements are established in the area in 1774.

1836: Mexican forces breach the Alamo in March. In April, the Mexican army is beaten in the 18-minute-long Battle of San Jacinto.

1845: Texas officially becomes US territory although there is conflict over the official border.

1846: In April, Mexico and the United States go to war over disputed territory. The Military Commander of California is forced to sign the Articles of Capitulation, making California an independent republic.

1853: Antonio Lopez Santa Anna, who had led Mexico in the 1830s, becomes President again. During his time in office, he sells land in Arizona and New Mexico to the US.

1862: Congress passes The Homestead Act which allows squatters to settle and claim vacant western lands, much of which is owned by Mexicans.

1902: The US Congress passes the Reclamation Act is passed, stripping many Hispanic Americans of their land.

1917: Congress passes the Immigration Act of 1917, requiring all immigrants to be literate. Mexicans are permitted to work in the US to fill gaps left by American men fighting in World War I. Although they are not eligible to serve in the military, the Selective Service Act obligates Mexican immigrants to register for the draft.

1921: For the first time, the US imposes limits on the number of immigrants entering the country.

1925: Congress creates the Border Patrol.

1929: The US government deports 300,000 to 2,000,000 Mexican immigrants and Mexican Americans during the Great Depression. An estimated 60% of those deported were American citizens, and many families were separated.

1940: Latinos are proportionally the largest ethnic group to serve in World War II. The US Congress passes the Fair Employment Practices Act to end employment discrimination.

1943: Mexicans are permitted to work in the US to fill farm work gaps left by American men fighting in World War II.

1944: Congress passes the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 to provide settlements for veterans, but Mexican American veterans find it difficult to secure their benefits.

1951: The Mexican Farm Labor Supply Program and the Mexican Labor Agreement are established and bring 350,000 Mexicans to work in the US until 1964.

1954: The US Supreme Court finds that Latinos suffer inequality and profound discrimination. The ruling is the first step toward letting Hispanic Americans take legal recourse to fight for their equality. The case, Hernandez v. The State of Texas, was the first argued by Mexican American attorneys before the Supreme Court.

1954: The US government starts Operation Wetback which deports 3.8 undocumented workers of Mexican descent between 1954 and 1958.

1958: West Side Story opens on Broadway. The musical dramatizes racial tensions of the 1940s and 50s.

1962: César Chávez and Dolores Huerta form the National Farm Workers Association.

1963: In his time as president, Lyndon Johnson appoints more Mexican Americans to government positions than any president before.

1964: Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and creates the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to establish affirmative action programs, prohibit discrimination, and prevent job discrimination.

1966: Striking grape workers hold peaceful protests where they are physically and verbally attacked. Cesar Chavez leads a 340-mile walk to Sacramento. Thousands of workers and sympathizers entered the state capital where growers agreed to talk to union leaders.

1970: Chicanos have the largest electoral victories in US history.

1974: Congress passes the Equal Educational Opportunity Act allowing for bilingual education for Spanish-speaking students in public schools.

1986: President Ronald Reagan signs the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) to both control illegal immigration and maintain a stable agricultural work force. It also grants amnesty to almost 3 million, mostly Mexican, immigrants.

1987: The National Hispanic Leadership Institute addresses the underrepresentation of Latinas in business and politics.

1993: President Bill Clinton appoints 28 Hispanics to positions in his administration during his presidency, including Federico Peña (Secretary of Transportation) and Henry Cisneros (Secretary of Housing and Urban Development).

1994: Californians pass Proposition 187. The law prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving public education, welfare, or subsidized health care. It also requires government officials to report suspected or apparent illegal immigrants.

1996: Proposition 187 is ruled unconstitutional on the grounds that federal government alone may regulate immigration.

2003: Hispanics surpass African Americans as the nation’s largest minority group.

2005: A volunteer group in Arizona called the Minutemen begins to patrol the border, reporting unauthorized border crossings to the U.S. Border Patrol.

2010: States begin to enact their own immigration policies in the absence of a comprehensive federal policy. Arizona adopts the toughest immigration law in US history, giving local police unprecedented powers and punishing anyone who employs or protects undocumented immigrants.

2011: Georgia adopts a law that allows anyone stopped without a driver’s license or proof of residency to be turned over to immigration authorities.

2013: Hispanics are about one-sixth of the US population.

2050: The Latino population is projected to be about 30 percent of the US population.