Highway Beautification Act
On October 22, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Highway Beautification Act into law. The law had been spearheaded by his wife, and was even nicknamed after her, called “Lady Bird’s Bill.”
Politics
Washington’s Farewell Address
On September 19, 1796, the American Daily Advertiser published President George Washington’s Farewell Address for the first time. It’s considered one of the most important documents in United States history.
Birth of Patricia Roberts Harris
Patricia Roberts Harris was born on May 31, 1924, in Mattoon, Illinois. Harris achieved several firsts in her life. She was the first black woman to serve as an American ambassador, serve in the US Cabinet, be dean of a law school, and sit on the board of directors of a Fortune 500 company.
Kansas-Nebraska Act
On May 30, 1854, President Franklin Pierce signed the Kansas-Nebraska Act into law. The act had been created to settle tensions over slavery and open new lands for development, but instead only proved to create more division and move America closer to Civil War.
First Presidential Veto
On April 5, 1792, George Washington used the first presidential veto in our country’s history. It was to turn down a bill that he felt unconstitutionally gave some states more members in the House of Representatives than the Constitution would allow.
Birth of Earl Warren
US Chief Justice Earl Warren was born on March 19, 1891, in Los Angeles, California. He’s considered one of the nation’s most influential Supreme Court justices, with his time on the court referred to as a “Constitutional Revolution.”
Birth of Oswald Garrison Villard
Journalist and civil rights activist Oswald Garrison Villard was born on March 13, 1872, in Wiesbaden, Germany. He was an editor of the New York Evening Post and a founding member of the NAACP.
Birth of Oveta Culp Hobby
Oveta Culp Hobby was born on January 19, 1905, in Killeen, Texas.
First Woman Elected to the U.S. Senate
On January 12, 1932, Hattie Caraway became the first women elected to serve in the United States Senate.