On August 10, 1821, President James Monroe signed legislation adding Missouri to the Union as our 24th state. When the US took ownership of Missouri, most of the land had already been explored. Many communities had already been founded, and farming and mineral industries had been developed. Missouri was made a part of Upper Louisiana; then, in 1812, the Missouri Territory was organized.
On August 1, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant signed legislation admitting Colorado to the Union as the Centennial State (it was admitted 28 days after the 100th anniversary of the United States).
William Howard Taft always dreamed of being a Supreme Court justice. After a term as president, the time was finally right for Taft to take his dream job – on July 11, 1921.
Future President John Calvin Coolidge Jr. was born on Independence Day, July 4, 1872. He would serve as America’s 30th president, taking the office upon the unexpected death of President Warren Harding.
America’s 22nd and 24th president, Grover Cleveland, died on June 24, 1908, in Princeton, New Jersey. He was America’s first president to serve two non-consecutive terms and was known for his honesty and integrity.
Robert F. (Bobby) Kennedy was shot by an assassin on June 5, 1968, hours after delivering his victory speech in the California primary. He died from his wounds early the next day.
Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America, was born on June 3, 1808, in Fairview, Kentucky.
On May 23, 1788, South Carolina ratified the Constitution, making it America’s eighth state.
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.