Short answers, pulled from the story.
The first human footprints on North American soil may have been pressed into the earth 90,000 years ago. This finding shatters the long-held belief that migration occurred only 40,000 years ago. Archaeologists debate whether these early migrants crossed the Beringia land bridge or traveled down the Pacific coast.
The Maya civilization developed a writing system and created a complex calendar that included the concept of zero 500 years before anyone in the Old World. This culture was present in Central America when the Spanish arrived. The Mayan culture eventually gave way to the Aztec Empire further north.
The Norse or Vikings founded a colony on Greenland in 985 CE. Erik the Red's son, Leif Eriksson, is believed to have reached the Island of Newfoundland and named the discovery Vinland. The only Norse site outside of Greenland yet discovered in North America is at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The first successful Spanish settlement in continental North America was Veracruz founded by Hernán Cortés in 1519. This settlement marked the beginning of European colonization of the Americas. The Spanish later gained control of most of the largest islands in the Caribbean and conquered the Aztec empire.
Independence was declared in 1810 by Miguel Hidalgo, starting the Mexican War of Independence. Spain finally recognized Mexico's independence in 1821. José María Morelos and the Congress of Anáhuac signed the Solemn Act of the Declaration of Independence of Northern America in 1813.
Four of the Canadian colonies agreed to federate in 1867, creating the Dominion of Canada. With the addition of British Columbia, Canada would expand to the Pacific by 1871. The nation established a transcontinental railway, the Canadian Pacific, by 1885.