Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
On December 2, 1980, President Jimmy Carter established Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska. Today the park is part of one of the world’s largest international protected areas.
Franklin Roosevelt
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Honorable Discharge
On November 29, 1944, the War Department officially adopted the Honorable Discharge Emblem, a small but meaningful symbol worn by millions of service members returning home from World War II. For many veterans, it represented not only their service, but also their safe return after years of sacrifice.
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Washington & Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Celebrations
On November 26, 1789, Americans celebrated Thanksgiving for the first time under a presidential proclamation. Although people in the colonies had held harvest celebrations of thanks since the 1600s, the idea of a single, nationwide holiday did not yet exist. For more than two centuries, different communities held their own thanksgiving observances at various times of the year, often tied to local harvests, military victories, or special religious moments. It would take national leadership—and eventually the influence of several presidents—to turn Thanksgiving into the unified holiday we know today.
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FDR Elected to Record Fourth Term
On November 7, 1944, Franklin D. Roosevelt made history as the first—and only—US president elected to a fourth term. His remarkable political career reshaped both the country’s government and its role in the world.
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The Alaska Highway
On October 28, 1942, construction was completed on one of the most ambitious engineering projects of World War II — the 1,700-mile Alaska Highway. What began as a desperate military necessity became one of the great infrastructure achievements of the 20th century, linking Alaska to the continental United States for the first time by land.
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Passage of the Presidential Libraries Act
On August 12, 1955, the Presidential Libraries Act was passed, providing for the organized transfer of presidential papers and other items to the federal government.
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West Virginia Becomes 35th State
On June 20, 1863, West Virginia joined the Union as the 35th state. It had formed from the western counties of Virginia which disagreed with the state’s decision to secede during the Civil War.
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National Industrial Recovery Act
On June 16, 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt signed legislation passing the National Industrial Recovery Act. It was a bold and ambitious attempt to fix a broken economy during one of the hardest times in American history.
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Birth of Harry Truman
President Harry S. Truman was born in Lamar, Missouri on May 8, 1884. America’s 33rd president, he led America through the final months of WWII and the early years of the Cold War.
