March 4, 2020

Tomorrow, March 5, marks 250 years since the Boston Massacre took place in Massachusetts in 1770. One of the most famous events of colonial American history, the Boston Massacre was not actually a massacre but rather a street clash that ended in the killing of five colonists by a squad of British soldiers. The name Boston Massacre was invented to rally American colonists against British policies. The massacre was one of the many events that led to the American Revolution.

Crispus Attucks, center, was a leader of the patriot mob that was fired upon by British troops in the Boston Massacre of 1770. Attucks and four other people were killed in the clash. Credit: Granger Collection

To mark the 250th anniversary of the Boston Massacre, the Massachusetts Historical Society is hosting an exhibition called “Fire! Voices From the Boston Massacre.” The exhibition features engravings and personal and published accounts of the confrontation, the aftermath, and the resulting trial of the British soldiers. Tomorrow, on March 5, the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution will lay a wreath at the grave of the victims of the massacre in Boston’s Old Granary Burial Ground. There, the five victims—Crispus Attucks, James Caldwell, Patrick Carr, Samuel Gray, and Samuel Maverick—are buried together.

In 1768, the assignment of British troops to Boston had upset local citizens. A riot began when 50 to 60 people threatened a British sentry. Captain Thomas Preston, a British officer, brought several soldiers to the sentry’s assistance. By that time, the crowd had grown to about 400 people and was pressing close to the soldiers. The soldiers then fired into the crowd, killing three people and wounding eight others, two of whom died later.

The Boston Massacre was an incident that took place on March 5, 1770, when British soldiers fired into a mob, killing five Americans. Patriot propaganda such as this engraving by Paul Revere called the incident a massacre to stir up feeling against the British government. Credit: Detail of “The Boston Massacre, 5th March 1770″ (1770), engraving by Paul Revere; Worcester Art Museum (© Bridgeman Art Library/SuperStock)

The angry citizens of Boston demanded the removal of the British troops and the trial of Captain Preston and his men for murder. British authorities in Boston agreed to these demands. At Preston’s trial, the future president John Adams and Josiah Quincy were counsel for the defense. It could not be proved that Preston ordered his troops to fire, and he was acquitted. Two of Preston’s soldiers were later found guilty of manslaughter. They were branded on their thumbs as punishment. The first shots of the American Revolution were fired five years later at Lexington and Concord, near Boston.

November 4, 2019

Forty years ago today, on Nov. 4, 1979, Iranian revolutionaries seized the United States Embassy in Tehran, Iran’s capital, and took 66 Americans hostage. Islamic revolutionaries had taken control of Iran’s government earlier in the year. The revolutionaries seized the U.S. Embassy after Iran’s former shah (king), Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was admitted into the United States. The revolutionaries wanted the shah returned to Iran to stand trial for crimes allegedly committed during his rule. The shah was not returned, and he died during the crisis. 

Blindfolded American hostages are paraded inside the U.S.
Embassy compound on Nov. 4, 1979. Credit: © Bettmann/Getty Images

The United States and other countries denounced the seizure of the U.S. Embassy as a violation of international law and demanded that the hostages be freed. Thirteen hostages—women and African Americans—were freed within weeks, but the rest (except for one released due to illness) were kept for more than a year. The United States placed harsh economic sanctions on Iran, and after a failed rescue attempt, the death of the shah, and lengthy negotiations, the hostages were at last released on Jan. 20, 1981. 

The Iran hostage crisis ended diplomatic relations between Iran and the United States. Images of the bound and blindfolded hostages dominated media coverage during the 444-day event. For a more detailed account of the international incident, see the World Book article Iran hostage crisis.

September 18, 2019

Tomorrow, September 19, writer Joy Harjo will become the first Native American poet laureate of the United States. The poet laureate, appointed by the librarian of Congress, works to increase the national appreciation and awareness of poetry. Harjo is a member of the Muskogee (also spelled Muscogee or Mvskoke) Creek Nation. Harjo will succeed the American poet Tracy K. Smith, who has served in the position since 2017.

Native American writer Joy Harjo will become poet laureate of the United States on Sept. 19, 2019. Credit: Shawn Miller, Library of Congress

Harjo was born Joy Foster in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on May 9, 1951. Her father was Muskogee Creek, and her mother was of Cherokee and European ancestry. At age 19, Joy became a member of the Muskogee Creek Nation and took the last name of her father’s mother—Harjo—a common last name among the Muskogee. Harjo earned a B.A. degree in creative writing from the University of New Mexico in 1976 and an M.F.A. degree from the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop in 1978. She has since taught at the Institute of American Indian Arts in New Mexico and at universities in several states.

In 1975, Harjo published her first collection of poems in a short book called The Last Song. Her first full-length volume of poetry was What Moon Drove Me to This? (1979). Her poetry became well known with such collections as She Had Some Horses (1983), In Mad Love and War (1990), and The Woman Who Fell from the Sky (1994). Her forceful, intimate style draws on both natural and spiritual influences. Her poems often incorporate elements of Native American mythology and imagery. Harjo’s later collections include A Map to the Next World (2000), How We Became Human (2002), Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings (2015), and An American Sunrise (2019). She has won many awards for her work.

Harjo also wrote The Good Luck Cat (2000), a children’s picture book about a girl who worries about her lucky cat, which has used up eight of its nine lives. A poetic picture book for young adults called For a Girl Becoming (2009) celebrates the birth of a baby girl and the girl’s path to adulthood. Harjo’s memoir, Crazy Brave (2012), describes her own youth and her discovery of her creative voice.

Harjo has written screenplays for television and contributed, as a writer or narrator, to several documentaries on aspects of Native American culture. As an accomplished musician and saxophone player, she has released several recordings. She also is an activist for Native American and other causes.

September 4, 2019

Tomorrow night, September 5, the Green Bay Packers will play their old rivals, the Chicago Bears, to open the 100th season of the National Football League (NFL). The NFL, the major professional football league in the United States, played its first season in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association (APFA). In 1922, the association was renamed the National Football League. Since then, the NFL has gained wide popularity, and the league championship—the Super Bowl—is one of the biggest one-day events in American sports.

The National Football League (NFL) is celebrating its 100th season in 2019. Credit: © National Football League

The NFL will mark its 100th season in a variety of ways. The NFL has produced television series that will fill the rosters of the “NFL’s All-Time Team” as well the “NFL 100 Greatest” players. The league will also broadcast a series of interviews with current NFL stars and members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. An NFL program called “Huddle for 100″ will encourage fans to join players and coaches in giving at least 100 minutes of time to help local charities.

The APFA was formed in Canton, Ohio, and included 14 teams based in the Midwest and in New York. The association’s first president was the legendary athlete Jim Thorpe, who also starred for and coached the APFA’s Canton Bulldogs. The Dayton Triangles hosted the first APFA game on Oct. 3, 1920, when they defeated the Columbus Panhandles 14-0. The Akron Professionals won the first APFA championship. Only two teams from that first APFA season, the Racine (Chicago) Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals) and the Decatur Staleys (now the Bears), remain as NFL teams.

Jim Thorpe, seen here in his Canton Bulldogs uniform, was the first president of the American Professional Football Association, the forerunner of the National Football League. Credit: UPI/Bettmann

The 1922 NFL had 18 teams. The number of teams has since varied as the league has expanded and retracted. In 1933, the 10-team NFL split into two divisions. Later that year, the Bears, the Western Division champion, hosted the New York Giants, the Eastern Division champion, at Chicago’s Wrigley Field in the first official NFL Championship Game. (Before 1933, the team with the best season record was named league champion.) The Bears, led by head coach George Halas, fullback Bronco Nagurski, and halfback Red Grange, beat the Giants 23-21.

The first NFL draft of college players took place in February 1936. In October 1939, the first locally televised NFL game featured the Brooklyn Dodgers (not to be confused with the baseball team) and the Philadelphia Eagles. In December 1951, the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cleveland Browns 24-17 in the first nationally televised NFL Championship Game.

The creation of the American Football League (AFL) in 1960 meant new competition for the NFL. To eliminate bidding wars between the two leagues for players, the AFL and NFL established a common draft in 1966. As an outgrowth of this agreement, the first Super Bowl was played in 1967, with the NFL champion Packers defeating the AFL champion Kansas City Chiefs. After continuing to operate separately through 1969, the leagues reached a merger agreement. Under the agreement, all AFL teams entered the NFL in 1970. The expanded NFL consisted of two 13-team conferences. The NFL now consists of 32 teams divided into the American Football Conference and the National Football Conference.

August 23, 2019

This weekend, August 23 to 25, a somber anniversary is taking place at the Chesapeake Bay city of Hampton, Virginia. It was there, at the town once known as Point Comfort, that African slaves were first brought to England’s American colonies in August 1619. Those first slaves, captured from Portuguese slave traders, were brought to Virginia 400 years ago in the English ship White Lion. Colonial officials traded food and supplies for the “20 and odd” Africans, beginning an ugly legacy of slavery. Slavery did not end in the United States until 1865, and its effects are felt to this day.

A historical marker details the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in English North America at Point Comfort, Virginia, in August 1619. Credit: National Park Service

Commemorative events in Hampton begin today with a ceremony at the Tucker Family Cemetery, where William Tucker, the first child born (in 1624) of those first slaves, is buried. William was the son of Anthony and Isabella, who, like their fellow captives, had been brought from the Kingdom of Ndongo in what is now the southwest African nation of Angola. Tomorrow, a new Commemoration and Visitor Center telling the story of those first slaves will open at Fort Monroe, the historic army fort in Hampton that is now a national monument. There will also be Black Heritage Tours, an educational African Landing Day Program, and a Commemoration Concert at the Hampton Coliseum. Sunday, a gospel music festival will highlight a “Day of Healing,” and the ceremonies will end with the release of butterflies and a nationwide ringing of bells. In addition, the Hampton History Museum is hosting events, and its traveling exhibit “1619: Arrival of the First Africans” is making its way around churches, community groups, libraries, and schools in Virginia.

Slaves were sold at public auctions in the southern United States. Pictures of blacks being sold like merchandise stirred much resentment in the North against slavery. Credit: Detail of The Slave Auction (1862), an oil painting on canvas by Eyre Crowe; Kennedy Galleries, Inc., New York City

That first group of captive Africans in Virginia were classed along with indentured servants, because the colony did not yet have rules regarding slavery. Most indentured servants had a contract to work without wages for a master for four to seven years, after which they became free. Blacks brought in as slaves, however, had no right to eventual freedom, and they were sold at auction. Some Africans did gain their freedom, however, settling in the colonies and buying property. But racial prejudice among white colonists forced most free blacks to remain in the lowest levels of colonial society.

The slave population in America increased rapidly during the 1700′s as newly established colonies in the South created a great demand for plantation workers. By 1750, about 200,000 slaves lived mostly in the southern American colonies. The American Revolution (1775-1783) led to the birth of the United States, but all Americans were not yet considered “created equal.” By the early 1800′s, most Northern states had taken steps to end slavery, but more than 700,000 slaves lived in the South, and the numbers continued to increase. By 1860, the South held some 4 million slaves.

Many white Americans grew to feel that slavery was evil and violated the ideals of democracy. Such ideas were particularly widespread in the North, where slavery was less common. However, plantation owners and other supporters of slavery regarded it as natural to the Southern way of life. The North and the South thereby became increasingly divided over slavery. Eventually, the South rebelled against the North, starting the American Civil War (1861-1865). In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in the rebellious Southern states, and, in December 1865—after the South had surrendered—the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States officially ended slavery throughout the nation.

Racial prejudice against African Americans did not end there, however, and the decades after the Civil War were a constant struggle for equality. It was not until the civil rights movement of the 1950′s and 1960′s that acts, amendments, and laws formally banned racial discrimination. Racial prejudice persists in much of America, however, and the struggle for fair treatment continues.

August 7, 2019

To people with a cat in the family, every day may seem like “cat day.” But tomorrow, August 8, is officially International Cat Day, a holiday that celebrates felines of all forms and temperaments and encourages people to love, help, and protect the animals. Started by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) in 2002, International Cat Day is celebrated in cat-obsessed cultures around the world. IFAW is one of the world’s largest animal welfare and conservation charities.

August 8 is International Cat Day. Credit: © Shutterstock

People celebrate International Cat Day in a wide variety of ways. Sometimes as particular as cats themselves, cat lovers may pamper their pets, donate to animal charities, or flood social media with cat images and videos (more than they do already). Cat parades and parties are organized, people visit cat cafés, and international names are bestowed upon cats for the day. Mister Whiskers and Fluffy become Señor Bigotes and Peluche in Spanish, Simba becomes Lion in the translation from Swahili, and little Lucy gains international flare as Lou-lou, Lucette, Lucia, or Lucinda. However you choose to celebrate the holiday, it is an excuse to take a cat nap with your pet and give the critter a little extra love and attention.

Benjamin Fink of the United States Navy holds President Calvin Coolidge’s cat, Tiger, at the White House on March 25, 1924. “Tige” had made a brief departure from the White House grounds, but was promptly returned by Fink. Credit: Library of Congress

No one knows exactly when the first cats were domesticated, but archaeologists discovered a cat buried alongside a human in a 9,500-year-old grave in Cyprus. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the earliest known recorded pet cat name was Nedjem (loosely translated as Sweetie or Precious) during the reign of Thutmose III (1479-1425 B.C.). Thutmose was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt, where cats were considered sacred.

A Maine Coon cat needs extra brushing on International Cat Day. Credit: © Linn Currie, Shutterstock

Throughout history, people have valued cats for their skill at hunting and killing mice, rats, and snakes. Cats help keep farms, homes, and businesses free of these animals. People in many societies believe cats bring good fortune. The grace and beauty of cats have made them favorite subjects of artists, and cats have been featured in almost every type of literature. They appear in the mythology of ancient Greece and Rome, and Asian writers have praised cats in their stories and poems for many centuries. Cats are also commonly mentioned in the fairy tales, folklore, and legends of many countries. In modern times, cats are commonly featured in books, comic strips, motion pictures, musicals, and television programs.

Cat holidays are not limited to August 8. October 29 is National Cat Day in the United States, and March 1 is World Cat Day in Russia. In Japan, February 22 was chosen as Cat Day because in Japanese, the number 2 (二) is pronounced ni, so the date 2/22 reads as ni ni ni, similar to the way cats “talk” (nyan nyan nyan, or meow meow meow) in that country.

July 10, 2019

On Sunday, July 7, at the Stade de Lyon in Décines-Charpieu, France, the United States Women’s National Team defeated the Netherlands 2-0 to win the FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer championship. It was the fourth world title for the U.S. women, who first won the tournament in 1991, the year it was first held. For the Netherlands, it was the team’s first trip to the World Cup final. FIFA stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association (International Federation of Association Football). Soccer is called football or association football in much of the world. FIFA is soccer’s world governing body. Held every four years, the Women’s World Cup is the world’s most important and prestigious women’s soccer tournament.

Members of the United States Women’s National Team celebrate winning the FIFA Women’s World Cup on July 7, 2019, at the Stade de Lyon in France. Credit: © Philippe Desmazes, AFP/Getty Images

The United States, the defending champions, entered the 2019 World Cup as heavy favorites. The team thumped Thailand to open the group stage, 13-0—the largest winning margin in World Cup history (men or women). They then took down Chile, Sweden, and Spain on their way to the quarterfinals, where the U.S. women eliminated host France, 2-1. A tough 2-1 semifinal victory over England sent the Americans to the title match against the Netherlands. The Dutch women, playing in the team’s second World Cup, also rolled through the tournament undefeated. The Oranje (Orange) allowed just three total goals in their wins over New Zealand, Cameroon, Canada, Japan, Italy, and Sweden before reaching La Grande Finale in suburban Lyon.

Before 57,900 fans crammed into the Stade de Lyon, the Dutch did what no other team had yet accomplished: they held the vaunted U.S. offense scoreless in the first half (45 minutes of play). A penalty in the 58th minute, however, gave U.S. star Megan Rapinoe the opportunity to break a 0-0 tie. Sporting a pinkish-purple mop of normally blonde hair, the veteran midfielder calmly stuck home a penalty kick to give the Americans a 1-0 advantage at the 61-minute mark. Eight minutes later, U.S. midfielder Rose Lavelle drilled a left-footed strike into the net for what turned out to be an insurmountable 2-0 lead. Emotions built on the U.S. sideline as the clock steadily counted toward 90, and after the final whistle blew, the U.S. women rushed the field for a joyous celebration.

The 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup was played in nine stadiums in various French cities. The 24 entrants included 4 teams making their Women’s World Cup debuts: Chile, Jamaica, Scotland, and South Africa. The opening group stage of the World Cup divided the entrants into six groups of four. The top two teams of each group advanced after playing the other three teams in their group, as did the four best third-place teams. The round of 16 then trimmed the field to 8, and the quarterfinals reduced the tournament to a final 4. The United States downed England in the semifinals, and the Netherlands beat Sweden. The day before the United States took the final, Sweden beat England 2-1 in the anticlimactic battle for third place. All four semifinalists received automatic bids to the women’s soccer tournament at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Japan.

U.S. manager Jill Ellis, who also led the 2015 championship squad, became the first head coach to win two Women’s World Cup titles. The U.S. team set a record by scoring 26 goals during the tournament. Rapinoe earned the Golden Boot Award as the leading goal scorer (6), and she was awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player. Sari van Veenendaal of the Netherlands earned the Golden Glove Award as the World Cup’s top goalkeeper. The U.S. Women’s National Team returned home to cheers and numerous honors, including a ticker tape parade down a section of Broadway in New York City known as the “Canyon of Heroes.”

Sunday, July 7, was a busy soccer day elsewhere in the world, too. Shortly after the end of the Women’s World Cup, the Brazilian national men’s team defeated Peru 3-1 to win the Copa América, the championship of South American soccer, at the Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro. That night, at Soldier Field in Chicago, the Mexican national men’s team beat the United States 1-0 to win the Gold Cup, the championship of Caribbean, Central American, and North American soccer.

July 3, 2019

Tomorrow, July 4, people across the United States will celebrate the nation’s 243rd birthday, Independence Day. On July 4, 1776, delegates to the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, adopted the Declaration of Independence. The delegates represented the 13 British colonies, which had come to resent the ever-increasing taxes and restrictions that King George III sought to impose on them. In April 1775, British troops had clashed with colonial militia at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts, in effect signaling the outbreak of the American Revolution. In July 1775, the colonists had sent a final petition to the king, declaring their loyalty to the British Crown and asking him to address their complaints. In reply, the king declared the colonies to be in rebellion.

The Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Credit: Declaration of Independence(1817), oil on canvas by John Trumbull; Architect of the Capitol

The Declaration of Independence explained the reasons for the colonists’ rejection of British rule, detailed the ways in which the British government had violated American rights, and declared the freedom of the American colonies from Britain. It was written by Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, with some minor changes by Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and John Adams of Massachusetts. The document begins with the stirring words, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

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The Declaration of Independence is the document in which the American colonies declared their freedom from the United Kingdom. Credit: © Thinkstock

On July 4, 1776, John Hancock, president of the Second Continental Congress, and Charles Thomson, the Congress’s secretary, signed the declaration. Fifty-six other delegates signed a specially engrossed (written in script) copy one month or more later. In 1783, after years of bloodshed,  the Treaty of Paris officially ended the American Revolution. The treaty also recognized the independence of the United States and established the new nation’s borders–which were soon to expand.

As Americans celebrate their freedom tomorrow, the country is much changed. In 1783, about 3 million people lived in the colonies, most of them in rural areas. Today, some 334 million people call America home, and most of them live in cities, some of which are among the largest in the world. In 1783, the new nation stretched from the Atlantic Coast to the Mississippi River. By the mid-1800′s, the United States had grown to reach the Pacific Coast, and by 1898 Alaska and Hawaii were included as well.

Additional World Book articles:

• United Kingdom, History of the
• United States, History of the

May 10, 2019

On May 10, 1869, 150 years ago today, the world’s first transcontinental railroad was completed in the Rocky Mountain state of Utah. On the momentous occasion, a celebratory final golden spike was driven to complete a transportation network connecting the east and west coasts of the United States. The coast-to-coast railroad revolutionized the settlement and economy of the American West, allowing for the fast and inexpensive transport of passengers and goods. Before the train, transcontinental travel by horse and wagon often took more than four months. By 1876, the rail journey from New York City to San Francisco took just three and a half days.

Railroad workers meet to drive the final spike in the world’s first transcontinental rail line on May 10, 1869, at Promontory, Utah. Credit: Union Pacific Railroad

The transcontinental railroad came together at Promontory, an area of high ground about 66 miles (106 kilometers) northwest of Salt Lake City. In 2019, northern Utah’s “Spike 150” sesquicentennial celebration includes a festival and other activities at Promontory, excursions on vintage trains, exhibitions of historical artifacts and photographs, and tours of recreated workers camps that highlight the immigrants and others responsible for building the railroad.

Beginning about 1830, the first steam locomotives began serving passengers in the United States. By 1850, rail lines served every U.S. state east of the Mississippi River. In 1857, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reached from Baltimore, on the East Coast, to St. Louis, just west of the Mississippi.

The Utah state quarter features images that highlight the region’s role in linking the railroad systems of the United States. The transcontinental link was completed by the celebratory driving of a golden spike, which appears at the center of the coin. Credit: U.S. Mint

In the early 1860′s, the U.S. government decided to extend rail lines across the country. The proposed route roughly followed the 42nd parallel from Omaha, Nebraska, to Sacramento, California. Eastern rail lines were to extend westward from Chicago to meet the new railroad at Omaha. The Pacific Railroad Act, passed by Congress in 1862, gave two companies responsibility for building the railroad between Omaha and Sacramento. The Union Pacific was to start laying track westward from Omaha, and the Central Pacific Railroad was to lay track eastward from Sacramento. Congress granted both railroads large tracts of land and millions of dollars in government loans.

Work began on the Central Pacific track in 1863 and, after a slow start, on the Union Pacific track in 1865. The railroads faced the task of crossing the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. The Central Pacific hired thousands of Chinese immigrants to work on the railroad. Thousands of European immigrants, hundreds of African Americans, and many former American Civil War  soldiers worked on the Union Pacific.

North America was the first continent to have a rail line from coast to coast. The Canadian Pacific Railway completed Canada’s first transcontinental line in 1885. Extensive rail networks were also built in other parts of the world in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. The railroads opened up vast regions to settlement, farming, and trade.