What was the first American manned spacecraft?

The first American manned spacecraft was Mercury. The Mercury program, initiated in the late 1950s, aimed to assess the capabilities for human spaceflight and lay the groundwork for future manned missions. The first successful manned flight was carried out on May 5, 1961, by astronaut Alan Shepard, who completed a suborbital flight, marking a significant milestone in the U.S. space program.

In contrast to other programs, Mercury focused on the individual astronaut experience and establishing basic human survivability in space. Apollo followed Mercury and was responsible for landing humans on the Moon, while Gemini served as a bridge between Mercury and Apollo, allowing for the development of techniques necessary for lunar missions, such as spacewalks and orbital maneuvers. Skylab, on the other hand, was America's first space station but came much later, well after the initial manned missions were completed. Thus, identifying Mercury as the first manned spacecraft highlights its foundational role in American human space exploration.