On January 8, 1867, African American men gained the right to vote in the District of Columbia despite the veto of its most powerful resident, President Andrew Johnson.
African American men gain the right to vote in Washington, D.C. Read more
Although individual countries designate their own national parks differently, there is a common idea: the conservation of ‘wild nature’ for posterity and as a symbol of national pride. As of 2023, there are over 6500 national parks worldwide.
The U.S. formally establishes Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first national park Read more
On June 17, 2021 President Joe Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law and Juneteenth became a federally-recognized holiday.
Freed slaves in Galveston, Texas celebrate the first Juneteenth Read more
On September 22, soon after the Union victory at Antietam, he issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, declaring that as of January 1, 1863, all slaves in the rebellious states shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.
Abraham Lincoln delivers Emancipation Proclamation, freeing American slaves Read more
By this act, they repudiated the 1857 opinion of the Supreme Court of the United States in the Dred Scott Case that Congress was powerless to regulate slavery in U.S. territories.
U.S. Congress prohibits slavery in all current and future U.S. territories Read more
It was only in the early 1900s that Moby-Dick gained attention and acclaim. During his lifetime, the novel sold a scant 3,000 copies. In modern times the novel is not only considered a great American classic, it is also heralded as one of greatest novels in the English language.
Hermann Melville publishes Moby-Dick Read more
Fashion magazines from 1850 and 1860 show the cowboy boot with top-stitching, cutouts of geometric or other natural elements and under-slung heel.
Cowboy boots become popular in the United States Read more
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is an 1845 memoir and treatise on abolition written by famous orator and former slave Frederick Douglass. It is generally held to be the most famous of a number of narratives written by former slaves during the same period.
The wrought-iron framed plow had a polished steel share. This made it ideal for the tough soil of the Midwest United States and worked better than other plows.
John Deere invents the first commercially successful steel plow Read more
In an emergency, Morse code can be sent by improvised methods that can be easily “keyed” on and off, making it one of the simplest and most versatile methods of telecommunication.
Samuel Morse invents Morse code Read more
