Asa Philip Randolph was born on April 15, 1889, in Crescent City, Florida. Randolph was a respected and outspoken proponent of the rights of minority labor. He was greatly feared by his opponents, not because of his temperament, but because of his power to create change.
April 14, 1866 was the earliest known usage of the first US mourning stamp, which honored Abraham Lincoln. It was issued a year after his assassination, during a critical time in US history, when the country was attempting to heal from the bloody Civil War.
Charles Evans Hughes was born on April 11, 1862, in Glens Falls, New York. As governor of New York he fought political corruption. He also served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court for 11 years, during the Great Depression and Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal.
On April 4, 1818, President James Monroe signed a flag act that changed the way the US flag was updated when new states joined the Union. This act has affected every US flag issued since…
On April 1, 1954, President Dwight Eisenhower created the Air Force Academy to train officers. During its more than 60 year history, the academy has had over 52,000 graduates move on to become US Air Force officers.
On March 29, 1867, Independence, Missouri, was founded. Known as the “Queen City of the Trails,” it became the starting point for several trails that carried thousands of settlers to the West.
On March 21, 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. led the third (and finally successful) march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, to protest for voting rights.
On March 14, 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt signed legislation creating Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, the first such protective area in America. Today, the National Wildlife Refuge System contains more than 560 protected areas, covering over 150 million acres.
On March 13, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced the Alliance for Progress to provide economic and social aid to Latin America.