Apr 01
Who created the $ dollar sign?
April 1, 1778 — Louisiana businessman Oliver Pollock created the dollar sign as the symbol we know today. Pollock immigrated to America in 1760 from Ireland at age 25. He began a career as a merchant in the West Indies and was headquarters in...
Apr 01
Who popularized the tradition of April Fools’ Day?
April 1, 1700 — Today, English pranksters began popularizing the annual tradition of April Fools’ Day by playing practical jokes on each other. Also called All Fools’ Day, this holiday has been celebrated for centuries by different cultures. Some historians speculate the concept dates...
Apr 02
What commonplace American invention was first manufactured today?
April 2, 1827 — Although the use of pencils dates back to ancient Rome when a stylus (a thin metal rod) was used — today marks the start of day when inventor Joseph Dixon first began manufacturing lead pencils. Although the name...
Apr 03
What US President received an honorary law degree from Harvard University?
April 3, 1776 — George Washington received an honorary law degree from Harvard University today. This was also the first law degree that Harvard awarded. Washington was honored because of his service to the University when he drove the British...
Apr 03
Which mail service started today?
April 3, 1860 — The Pony Express! This mail delivery service started a route between St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California on April 3, 1860. The men left on horseback simultaneously from St. Joseph and Sacramento with saddlebags full of...
Apr 04
Who assumed the role of President after the death of William Henry Harrison?
April 4, 1841— Vice President John Tyler (pictured) became the 10th President of the United States today, following the death of William Henry Harrison. Harrison had grown ill from a cold, which turned into pneumonia. He was the first president to die...
Apr 05
Which president exercised the first veto?
April 5, 1792 — George Washington issued the first presidential veto of a Congressional bill today that introduced a new plan to increased the amount of seats for northern states in the House of Representatives. Washington had a politically divided Cabinet, which...
Apr 06
Which government organization met for the first time today?
April 6, 1789 — The United States Congress — consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives — met for the first time today at Federal Hall in New York City. Later, they met in Congress Hall in Philadelphia...
Apr 06
When was the first Summer Olympics held? And when did it come to the US?
April 6, 1896 — The first Summer Olympics was held today. Officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, was a multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece, through April 15. It was the first international Olympic Games held in the modern...
Apr 07
What famous symphony was conducted in public for the first time today?
April 7, 1805 — Today was the public premiere of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Eroica," which he conducted at Vienna’s Theater an der Wien. Beethoven (1770-1827) began working on the first sketches for this Symphony No. 3 in the summer of 1802, and finished in the...
Apr 08
Which US president spent time in Paris as the Minister to France?
April 8, 1778 — Today, future US President John Adams (1735-1826) arrived in Paris to replace Silas Deane as the American commissioner representing the interests of the United States. A former Continental Congress member, Deane’s assignment was to bribe Indians to cooperate...
Apr 09
Where is the first tax-supported library located?
April 9, 1833 — The Peterborough Library opened today in New Hampshire, making it the nation's first first tax-supported library. However, it will take another 19 years for the Boston Public Library (pictured below) to open. What took so long? The process began...
Apr 10
How much did it cost to purchase the first patent?
April 10, 1790 — The US Patent system formed today when President George Washington signed the bill that gave inventors rights to their creations. The absolute power to grant a patent went to the first board members — Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of...
Apr 11
What four pivotal events happened on this day in history?
April 11 marks three important events in Colonial America, and around the world. In 1771 — The last execution for witchcraft took place in Germany. On this day in 1783 — Hostilities formally ceased in the American Revolutionary War. On April 11, 1814 — French Emperor Napoleon Bonapart abdicated unconditionally....
Apr 12
What is the Townshend Act?
April 12, 1770 — Today, the British parliament repealed the Townshend Act on all goods but tea in order to underscore the supremacy of parliament. Pressure from British merchants was partially responsible for the change. The issue: On March 5, 1770...
Apr 13
What is the name of the pachyderm that arrived in NYC today in 1976?
April 13, 1796 — The first elephant arrived today in the United States from India. Captain Jacob Crowninshield brought it aboard the America, which set sail from Calcutta for New York on December 3, 1795. Upon speculation, he had purchased the pachyderm in...
Apr 13
Happy Birthday Thomas Jefferson!
Thomas Jefferson was born today, on April 13, 1743, in Shadwell, Virginia. The author of the Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, Jefferson was the third president of the United States, and the founder of the University of...
Apr 14
Why was John Wilkes Booth so determined to kill President Lincoln?
April 14, 1865 — On this fateful day in history, John Wilkes Booth, an actor and Confederate sympathizer, shot President Abraham Lincoln at a play at Ford’s Theater in Washington, DC. The attack came only five days after Confederate General...
Apr 15
A Day of Mourning
April 15, 1865 — At 7:22 a.m. today, Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, died from a bullet wound inflicted the night before by John Wilkes Booth, an actor and Confederate sympathizer. The president’s death came only six...
Apr 16
What is the Rush-Bagot Pact?
April 16, 1818 — The US Senate today ratified the Rush-Bagot Pact — an agreement between the United States and Great Britain to eliminate their fleets from the Great Lakes. The Convention of 1818 set the boundary between the Missouri...
Apr 17
Who was the first African-American man to graduate from a US college?
April 17, 1758 — Francis Williams today became the first US black college graduate. A poet, he was born around 1700 to John and Dorothy Williams, a free black couple in Jamaica. John Williams had been freed by the will of...
Apr 18
What was the route of what historians consider the most infamous midnight ride in the Revolutionary War?
April 18, 1775 — Today in history, Paul Revere rode from Charleston to Lexington warning the "regulars are coming!" Revere was sent by Dr. Joseph Warren, who instructed him to ride to Lexington, Massachusetts, to warn Samuel Adams and John Hancock that British...
Apr 19
What is the story behind the infamous “shot heard round the world”?
April 19, 1775 — It’s around 5 a.m., and about 700 British troops have just set out on a mission to capture Patriot leaders and seize a Patriot arsenal. Soon after, they march into Lexington to find 77 armed minutemen under Captain...
Apr 19
What famous siege ended today?
April 19, 1775 — A battle began today that didn't end until March 17, 1776 when the British finally fled Boston by sea. The 11-month battle started when British troops retreated to Massachusetts after the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Here's what happened: American militiamen...
Apr 20
What happened during the 11-month siege of Boston that began today?
April 20, 1775 — Today begins the 11-month siege of Boston, which started when British troops retreated to Massachusetts after the Battles of Lexington and Concord. American militiamen blocked off Boston neck and Charlestown neck, the thin strips of land connecting the Boston and Charlestown... Apr 21
Who was sworn into office first — John Adams or George Washington?
April 21, 1789 — John Adams was sworn in today as the first US vice president — 9 days before Washington was inaugurated. Adams served as VP from 1789 to 1797, and as president of the United States from 1797 to 1801....
Apr 22
When did the circus come to America?
April 22, 1793 — This afternoon in Philadelphia, President George Washington attended the opening of the first circus in the United States. Circus owner Bill Ricketts had recently acquired horses in Pennsylvania and traveled to New York City to erect a stage on Broadway,...
Apr 23
Which general was named commander of Virginia Confederate forces today?
April 23, 1861 — Robert E. Lee was named commander of Virginia Confederate forces in the US Civil War today. Earlier this month, President Abraham Lincoln offered Lee the command of the Federal forces because of his reputation as one of the finest...
Apr 24
What was the first successful newspaper in the US?
April 24, 1704 — Formed today was the Boston News-Letter, the first successful newspaper in the North American colonies. A small single sheet of 8x12 inches, articles were printed on both sides; it was published weekly until 1776. Its editor and publisher was John Campbell, a...
Apr 25
What was the Thornton Affair?
April 25, 1846 — The Thornton Affair began today when Mexican troops attacked a squadron of US dragoons commanded by Captain Seth Thornton near Fort Texas (modern-day Brownsville). The engagement left 16 US troops killed. Capt. Thornton, who was knocked unconscious when he fell off his...
Apr 26
What 16-year-old rode from NY to CT today to rally her father’s militia?
April 26, 1777 — Sybil Ludington, 16, rode from New York to Connecticut tonight, rallying her father's militia. Her heroic ride took her twice the distance of Paul Revere's. The eldest of 12 children, Sybil's father was Colonel Henry Ludington, commander of the 7th Regiment of...
Apr 27
What inspired the Sons of Liberty to throw 342 chests of tea overboard today in 1773?
April 27, 1773 — British Parliament passed the Tea Act today. The bill — designed to save the faltering East India Company from bankruptcy by greatly lowering the tea tax it paid to the British government — granted it a de facto...
Apr 28
What is the history of the Mutiny on the Bounty?
April 28, 1789 — A famous mutiny occurred today aboard the Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty. Led by Fletcher Christian against Lieutenant William Bligh, sailors were motivated by alleged harsh treatment by Bligh — who they set afloat in a small boat with about 20 crew loyal to him. To avoid detection and...
Apr 29
Who is the first African-American to open a law practice in the US?
April 29, 1845 — Attorney Macon B. Allen is known to be the first African-American to open a law practice. The Massachusetts-based lawyer was born in 1816 in Indiana. He grew up a free man, learning to read and write on his on his own and...
Apr 30
Which president closed “the land deal of the millennium” today in 1803?
April 30, 1803 — President Thomas Jefferson signed the land deal for the Louisiana Purchase today. The swath ran from the Mississippi River in the east, to the Rocky Mountains in the west, and from the Gulf of Mexico in the south...
