This Day In History

On May 29, 1790, Rhode Island became the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the US Constitution. The vote was close, but it brought the smallest state into the new nation as the 13th state.

On May 28, 1892, John Muir and a small group of California conservationists founded the Sierra Club in San Francisco. Their goal was practical as well as poetic: bring people into the mountains, then organize them to protect the wild places they had come to love.

On May 27, 2006, the USPS issued a colorful stamp sheet honoring 40 American natural and man-made superlatives. Called Wonders of America: Land of Superlatives, the pane celebrated record-setting places, plants, animals, and structures from across the country.

Asa “Al” Jolson said he did not know his true birthday, but he later chose May 26, 1886, as the date he would use. From a poor immigrant childhood, he rose to become one of America’s biggest entertainers and the star of the film that helped bring sound to the movies.

Asa “Al” Jolson said he did not know his true birthday, but he later chose May 26, 1886, as the date he would use. From a poor immigrant childhood, he rose to become one of America’s biggest entertainers and the star of the film that helped bring sound to the movies.

On May 24, 1978, the USPS issued the first stamp in the Performing Arts Series, honoring Jimmie Rodgers. Issued from 1978 to 1991, the 12-stamp Performing Arts Series honored singers, composers, actors, comedians, dancers, and other entertainers whose careers spanned nearly a century of American stage, screen, and musical history.

Lyman Frank Baum was born on May 15, 1856, in Chittenango, New York, about 30 miles from Mystic’s home in Camden. Long before he created Dorothy, Toto, and the Yellow Brick Road, Baum followed a winding path through printing, stamps, poultry, theater, newspapers, sales work, and children’s books.

On May 14, 1897, John Philip Sousa’s band officially debuted his march “Stars and Stripes Forever” in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It quickly became a hit, with calls for it to replace the “Star Spangled Banner” as the national anthem. Instead, it was made the national march in 1987.

On May 30, 1911, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway held its first 200-lap, 500-mile race, dubbed the Indianapolis (or Indy) 500. Today, the speedway is the world’s largest sports facility, hosting “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”

On May 30, 1922, William Howard Taft dedicated the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC. The memorial houses the massive 19-foot seated Lincoln statue

On May 30, 1962, the USS Arizona Memorial was officially opened to the public. A tribute to those who lost their lives at Pearl Harbor, it’s visited by two million people per year and is a National Historic Landmark.

On May 30, 1868, the first Memorial Day, then called Decoration Day, was held in the United States.  It’s grown to become a federal holiday dedicated to remembering the sacrifices of our fallen soldiers.