On May 13, 1846, Congress declared war on Mexico, beginning the two-year Mexican-American War. The spark for this conflict began 18 days earlier, with a skirmish on April 25 called “the Thornton Affair.” From the Mexican perspective, the war was an act of American aggression, flimsily based on a pretext that Mexico began the hostilities. The United States, on the other hand, claimed that Mexico truly was the aggressor. Which nation is responsible for provoking the war’s bloodshed is disputed to this day. read more...
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Although it was not unanimous, the majority of the American press and public approved Congress’ declaration on April 25, 1898, that a state of war existed with Spain. Animosity toward Spain had been growing throughout the 1890s as reports circulated in the American press about Spanish atrocities in its colony of Cuba, just 90 miles offshore of Florida. Here is a range of newspaper reactions at the beginning of the Spanish-American War. read more...
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The U.S. rationale for the Spanish-American War was a desire to intervene in Spain’s harsh rule of its colony Cuba, just 90 miles offshore from Florida. The American public grew increasingly angry as stories of Spanish atrocities circulated in the U.S. press during the 1890s. When the U.S. battleship Maine sank in Havana harbor under mysterious circumstances on Feb. 15, 1898, American war fever grew to a crescendo, and the administration of President William McKinley knew it had to take action. read more...
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After seven long years of frustrating delays—caused first by budget woes and technical difficulties, then by the fatalities of the 1986 space shuttle Challenger disaster—the Hubble Space Telescope was finally launched into space on April 24, 1990, carried aloft by the space shuttle Discovery. read more...
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April 22 is Earth Day, a global celebration of the Earth’s intricacy, beauty and fertility, and a call for greater environmental awareness and protection. First held in 1970, this special event was instantly a rousing success, and has gained momentum and adherents ever since. Along with Earth Day, there is now an Earth Week, and a U.N.-sponsored World Environment Day. read more...
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The Republic of Texas won its independence with one of the most lopsided victories in the annals of warfare: the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, when Gen. Samuel (“Sam”) Houston’s Texas army defeated the larger Mexican army led by Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The victory was a stunning upset, achieved by the element of complete surprise made possible by the arrogance of Santa Anna. read more...
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When Virginia voted to secede from the Union on April 17, 1861, the decision caused much anguish and soul-searching among many of the state’s leading men, torn between their fierce love and pride for Virginia, and allegiance to the nation that their Virginia ancestors played a leading role in founding. Perhaps no single individual was more torn than Colonel Robert Edward Lee, owner of a distinguished 32-year career in the U.S. Army and of a lineage with ties to George Washington. read more...
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The first Civil War deaths caused by fighting did not happen during the war’s first battle, the attack on Fort Sumter—but actually occurred in a federal city between Union troops and civilians, when the Baltimore Riot of April 19, 1861, killed 4 soldiers and 12 civilians, with dozens more wounded. The troops were marching through Baltimore to board a train for passage to Washington, D.C., when a pro-Southern mob gathered to obstruct them. read more...
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The Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, with the firing of the first mortar at 4:30 on the morning of April 12, 1861, began the Civil War. Major Robert Anderson’s Union garrison in the embattled fort surrendered the next day, and men in both the North and South rushed forward to volunteer for military service. Enthusiasm was certainly not lacking in Louisiana, as the following letter shows. read more...
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Alone except for an attending nurse keeping vigil, the remarkable life of the great physicist Albert Einstein came to a quiet end in a Princeton hospital room early in the morning of April 18, 1955. In 1999 Time magazine named this brilliant scientist “Person of the Century.” His many groundbreaking scientific theories, especially his theory of relativity, dazzled his colleagues and earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921. The following two newspaper articles were published on the day of his death, providing many details of his full life and unprecedented career. read more...
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I understand that when writing a blog, it’s necessary to show a picture and say a few words about yourself, so that people don’t think a nameless, faceless committee or advisory board is running the show. Here I am, a real person. My name is Tony Pettinato, and I live in Deerfield, Mass. I did my undergraduate studies in English at Oberlin College, my graduate work in Journalism at UC Berkeley, and have been a reporter for six newspapers. For the past fourteen years I have worked at NewsBank, six of those as a managing editor for the U.S. Congressional Serial Set project – NewsBank’s acclaimed effort that digitized and indexed twelve million pages of primary source documents – that gratified my lifelong interest in American history. And that led me to editing this history blog!
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