T he SS SAVANNAH left MAY 22, 1819, from Savannah, Georgia, and 25 days later arrived in Liverpool, England, completing the first trans-Atlantic voyage by steamship. To pay tribute to the American Merchant Marine, President Franklin Roosevelt designated MAY 22, 1933, as NATIONAL MARITIME DAY. Ronald Reagan commented, May 20, 1986: “When steam-powered vessels began to eclipse sailing ships in the latter part of the 19th century, […]

T he American Red Cross was organized MAY 21, 1881, by a schoolteacher namedClara Barton. The first woman to be a clerk at the U.S. Patent Office, Clara Barton moved to Washington at the outbreak of the Civil War. She distributed relief supplies to wounded soldiers and, at the request of President Lincoln, aided for nearly four years in searching for missing soldiers. After attempting to carry a wounded soldier off thebattlefield of […]

On midnight, MAY 14, 1948, the State of Israel came into being and was immediately recognized by the United States and the Soviet Union. A homeland for the thousands of Jews who were persecuted and displaced during World War II, Israel was attacked the next day by the Transjordanian Army, the Arab Legion, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. Against all […]

Mothers’ Day was held in Boston in 1872 at the suggestion of Julia Ward Howe, writer of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” But it was Anna Jarvis, daughter of a Methodist minister in Grafton, West Virginia, who made it a national event. During the Civil War, Anna Jarvis’ mother organized Mothers’ Day Work Clubs to care for wounded soldiers, both Union and Confederate. She raised money for medicine, […]

T he son of a rabbi, he was born MAY 11, 1888. At 4-years-old, he immigrated with his family from Russia to New York. Falling in love with America, he served as a U.S. infantry sergeant in World War I. He later wrote some of the nation’s most popular songs, including: “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas”; “Remember”; “Always”; “Alexander’s Ragtime Band”; “There’s No Business like Show […]

W hen Muslim Turks conquered the land trade routes from Europe to Asia, Europeans explored sea routes. These attempts were initially financed by kings and wealthy private individuals, and later through the new invention of “companies.” “Companies” have a significant history. During the Middle Ages, there were tradesmen, partnerships, merchant guilds, craft guilds,and religious guilds , but these did not have large amounts of capital […]

Eleven of the twelve apostles were martyred, with the 12th, John, being reportedly thrown into a boiling pot of oil, but miraculously survived. The traditional histories are: Peter preached in Rome and was crucified upside down in 66 AD; Andrew preached in Asia Minor, modern-day Greece and Turkey, before being crucified on a sideways “Saint Andrew’s Cross” around 60 AD; Thomas preached east […]

Ten years before William Shakespeare died, the Colony of Virginia was named for the “Virgin Queen” Elizabeth. Virginia’s First Charter stated, April 10, 1606: “Greatly commending … their Desires for the Furtherance of so noble a Work, which may, by the Providence of Almighty God, hereafter tend to the Glory of His Divine Majesty, in propagating of Christian Religion to […]

The LIBRARY OF CONGRESS is the largest library in the world with over 118 million items on more than 500 miles of shelves. It began APRIL 24, 1800, during President John Adams’ administration, with a $5,000 grant from Congress. Originally located inside the Capitol Building, its purpose was to help legislators write laws. It was proposed by James Madison in […]

On APRIL 15, 1865, President Lincoln died. He was shot the night before in Ford’s Theater. On APRIL 15, 1912, the Titanic sank. It struck an iceberg the night before. 1,514 lives were lost, including millionaires John Jacob Astor IV, Benjamin Guggenheim and Isa Strauss, all of whom were vocal opponents of the Federal Reserve Act. In 1954, APRIL 15 […]

“The Greatest Show on Earth” was owned by P.T. Barnum, who died APRIL 7, 1891. Selling millions of tickets, the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus had big draws including General Tom Thumb, a man only 25 inches tall, and elephant “Jumbo,” whose name entered the dictionary. Barnum, who was received by President Lincoln and gave a command performance for Queen Victoria, stated: “Most persons, on the whole, are […]

“The Great War”began in 1914 between Germany and its allies, and England and France and their allies. Battles were fought in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Pacific Islands, China and off the coast of South and North America. One of the reasons for World War I was access to Middle East oil. In the article “Falling Empires and their Currencies” (Centre for Research on […]

A speech that ignited independence! The Declaration of Independence states: “… But when a long train of abuses and usurpations … to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.”​ The Declaration listed 27 “abuses and usurpations” by King George III, […]

On MARCH 22, 1758, Princeton University President Jonathan Edwards died from a smallpox inoculation. He had been the valedictorian of his class at Yale. He was ordained in 1727 as a minister in Northampton, Massachusetts, serving as assistant to his grandfather Solomon Stoddard. In 1727, Rev. Jonathan Edwards married Sarah Pierpont, whose father, Rev. James Pierpont, was a founder of Yale University. Sarah’s great-grandfather […]

Special thanks to Judy for reminding us. On MARCH 22, 1758, Princeton University President Jonathan Edwards died from a smallpox inoculation. He had been the valedictorian of his class at Yale. Edwards was ordained in 1727 as a minister in Northampton, Massachusetts, serving as assistant to his grandfather Solomon Stoddard. In 1727, Rev. Jonathan Edwards married Sarah Pierpont, whose father, […]

Juliette Low had chronic ear infections as a child, which made one ear deaf. A grain of rice thrown at her wedding lodged in her other ear, which was punctured by the procedure to remove it. Juliette Low’s father, a U.S. Army General, was previously a Civil War Confederate captain. In the Spanish-American War, Juliette Low and her mother organized […]

James Madison introduced the First Amendment in the first session of Congress. He has been referred to as the “Chief Architect of the Constitution,” for his role in the Constitutional Convention, and he wrote many of the Federalist Papers which helped convince the States to ratify it. James Madison, who was born MARCH 16, 1751, wrote to a college friend William Bradford, November 9, 1772: […]

“Old Ironsides” is the nickname of the three-masted frigate USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned ship in the world still afloat. Muslim Barbary Pirates of North Africa had captured the American ships Polly, Betsey, Maria, Dauphin, and Philadelphia. The USS Constitution was sent to fight the Muslim pirates in the First Barbary War, 1803, the Battle of Tripoli Harbor, 1804, and […]

Furious at the Tea Party, the King punished Boston. The King approved the Boston Port Act, MARCH 7, 1774, effectively closing their harbor to all commerce and ruining their economy. Surrounding towns rallied by sending food. William Prescott, who later commanded at Bunker Hill, wrote: “If we submit to these regulations, all is gone… Our forefathers passed the vast Atlantic, […]

The French and Indian War ended in 1763 with the French losing Canada and all their land east of the Mississippi River to the British. British General Gage also had to put down the Indian uprising of Pontiac’s Rebellion. King George III decided to leave troops in the American colonies in case of future French incursions or native uprisings. British troops were to […]