Today in History–August 7–the Library of Congress features Revolutionary War hero Nathanael Greene, born on this day in 1742. A West Point commander, Green replaced the disgraced Benedict Arnold and played a significant part in the defeat of British General Lord Cornwallis at Cowpens, South Carolina. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to access…
Today in History–August 6–the Library of Congress features Cy Young, who pitched in his first professional baseball game on this day in 1890, helping the Cleveland Spiders to beat the Chicago Colts. Young’s real name was Denton but Cy, after cyclone, is how he is best known. Young earned a place in the baseball Hall of Fame in…
Today in History–August 3–the Library of Congress features Christopher Columbus, who set sail for what would later be known as the new world on this day in 1492. Columbus had the most modern maritime tools on his ship, including a mariner’s compass, an astrolabe, a cross-staff, and a quadrant and, quite possibly, the popular mariner map Ptolemy’s Geography or Cosmography. A little…
Today in History–July 31–the Library of Congress features Georgetown University, which inaugurated Patrick Francis Healy as President on this day in 1874. Healy was the son of an Irish-immigrant planter and a mulatto slave and is credited with transforming Georgetown from a small school into a modern university. Find out more about Healy and the university founded by John Carroll in…
Today in History–July 30–the Library of Congress features the Olympic Games, which opened on this day in 1932 in Los Angeles, California. It was the tenth Olympiad of the modern era and the first to have an Olympic Village where athletes were housed and fed. Learn more by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to access more primary…
Today in History–July 27–the Library of Congress features avant-garde writer Gertrude Stein, who died on this day in 1947. Stein was also an astute collector of fine art and well known for entertaining the artists she favored. Find out more by visiting the Today in History. For more insight into her character, take a look at the resources below Gertrude Stein portraits…
Today in History–July 26–the Library of Congress features Liberia, declared an independent republic on this day in 1847. Formerly a colony of the American Colonization Society—organized in 1817 to resettle free black Americans in West Africa—Joseph Jenkins Roberts was elected the first president of the republic in 1848. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to…
Today in History–July 24–the Library of Congress features Brigham Young and the Mormon pioneers, who arrived in Salt Lake City, Utah on this day in 1847. The weary group was happy to find their “promised land” after traveling some 1,000 miles from the Mormon settlement in Nauvoo, Illinois. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to…
Today in History–July 23–the Library of Congress features the invention of the ice cream cone, purportedly conceived by Charles E. Menches on this day in 1904 . This confectioner was one of several who were given credit for this delectable invention and who participated in the 1904 St. Louis World Fair. Find out more about the invention of ice cream…
Today in History–July 20–the Library of Congress features Anne Marbury Hutchinson, baptized on this day in 1591 (according to the Old, or Julian, Calendar). This well-educated daughter of an outspoken clergyman silenced for criticizing the Church of England emigrated to the American colonies where she was later persecuted for her own outspoken religious beliefs. Find out more by visiting the Today in History section, then click…
Today in History–July 19–the Library of Congress features naturalist John Muir, who captured his experience of awakening in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California on this day in 1869. Read his thoughts and find out more about the subsequent founder of the Sierra Club by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to access more related resources. Books…
Today in History–July 17–the Library of Congress features Columbia University, first opened as King’s College in New York on this day in 1754. There were quite a few influential men among its first students and trustees, including Gouverneur Morris, a primary author of the Constitution; Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Paper author and the nation’s first Secretary of the Treasury; and John Jay,…