James Wilson Marshall, a foreman at John Sutter’s lumber mill near Coloma, California, was on the edge of the American River when he spotted something glittering in the sun on Jan. 24, 1848. When he brought the shiny flakes to his boss, Sutter ordered him to be quiet while they secretly tested the material. As Sutter feared, Marshall had found gold. The two men did not know it yet, but California’s fabled Gold Rush was about to explode, and California and the United States would change forever. read more...
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For Americans, the rest of the world, and most Japanese, World War II ended when Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s surrender in a radio address to his people on Aug. 15, 1945. The formal surrender ceremony took place 18 days later, on September 2, in Tokyo Bay on the deck of the U.S. battleship Missouri. There were some isolated Japanese soldiers, however, cut off from communications and scattered on various Pacific islands, who did not know the war was over. Their surrender was to come years—even decades—later. read more...
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When Elizabeth Blackwell became the first female doctor in U.S. history, receiving her Medical Degree from Geneva Medical College on Jan. 23, 1849, it troubled many members of the press, medical establishment, and the general public. These critics worried about the implications of a female doctor, and vented their displeasure at “proprieties” being upset. Others, however, came forward to support Blackwell’s efforts and applaud her achievement. read more...
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Elizabeth Blackwell, an important figure in both the history of medicine and the women’s rights movement, achieved a historic triumph on Jan. 23, 1849, when she was awarded her Medical Degree by Geneva Medical College in New York. With that distinction she became the first woman doctor in U.S. history. She would go on to practice medicine, open the New York Infirmary for Indigent Women and Children, establish women’s medical schools in both England and the U.S., and write about the rights of women to be educated and to enter the medical profession. read more...
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Perhaps no other ruling in the long history of the U.S. Supreme Court has been as controversial and divisive as the Roe v. Wade decision of Jan. 22, 1973, that legalized abortion. Using the doctrine of judicial review first enacted by the Marshall Court in 1803, the Supreme Court decided that laws restricting a woman’s right to abortion were unconstitutional, ruling that such laws invaded a woman’s right to privacy as protected by the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. read more...
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On Jan. 21, 1861, Senator Jefferson Davis of Mississippi officially resigned from the U.S. Senate because his state had seceded from the Union. Davis had argued against secession on numerous occasions, but as a strong supporter of states’ rights he acknowledged the legality of secession. On January 9 Mississippi became the second state (after South Carolina) to secede from the Union, and when Davis received official notification he submitted his resignation. In his farewell speech he commented: “I am sure I feel no hostility toward you, Senators of the North. read more...
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As the nation celebrates the national holiday Martin Luther King, Jr. Day today, honoring the slain civil rights leader, many newspaper editorialists will comment on King’s legacy. Almost all will praise the man and his work, although a few will slip in some criticism. King was a controversial figure when alive, and remains so nearly 45 years after his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. read more...
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Today the United States celebrates the national holiday Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, continuing to honor the slain civil rights leader nearly 45 years after his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. This famous advocate of nonviolence helped raise the civil rights movement to national prominence, forever changing American society. He also was a champion for economic justice for the nation’s poor, and was becoming a leader in the anti-Vietnam War protest movement when he was murdered. King won the Noble Peace Prize in 1964. read more...
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On March 28, 1953, in a modest house trailer in Lomita, Calif., a broken-down, impoverished alcoholic died, ending the life of arguably the greatest athlete in American history. Jim Thorpe, a Native American of the Sac-Fox nation, was an Olympic champion track star and an amazing athlete who played professional baseball, basketball and football. Yet despite his remarkable athletic prowess and success in various arenas, fields and courts, Thorpe died a tragic figure, in ill health, financially broke, and largely forgotten. On Jan. read more...
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There was no going back for Modoc Chief Kintpuash (“Captain Jack”) and his 52 warriors; they were determined to fight. For one thing, they were back on their ancestral homeland. For another, they were defending more than 100 women, children and elderly people. Every Modoc knew the U.S. Army had assembled a large, powerful force to defeat them, but the defenders were unwavering. 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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