This Day In History

Sun Yat-Sen was born on November 12, 1866, in Xiangshan County, Guangdong, China. For his work to modernize China, Sun has been called the “Father of the Nation” of the Republic of China. He is unique in Chinese history, as he is revered by both communist China and Taiwan.

On November 11, 1889, Washington was admitted to the Union. Ever since, it has stood at the forefront of exploration, commerce, and progress in the American West.

Martin Luther was born on November 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Germany. He would grow up to challenge one of the most powerful institutions in the world—the Roman Catholic Church—and ignite the Protestant Reformation, a movement that forever changed Christianity and European society.

On November 9, 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt made history when he visited the Panama Canal Zone—becoming the first sitting US president ever to travel outside the country while in office. His trip symbolized not only his hands-on leadership style but also America’s growing role as a global power in the early 20th century.

On November 8, 1900, future novelist Margaret Munnerlyn Mitchell was born in Atlanta, Georgia. Decades later, she would capture the world’s imagination with her sweeping Civil War epic Gone With the Wind.

William Penn Adair Rogers was born on November 4, 1879, in Oologah, Cherokee Nation (present-day Oklahoma). A popular actor and humorist, he was called “Oklahoma’s Favorite Son” and “America’s Favorite Cowboy.”

James Francis Cagney was born on July 17, 1899, in New York City, New York. Best known for playing gangsters, he was also a talented dancer and had excellent comic timing.

American actress, singer, and dancer Judy Garland was born on June 10, 1922, in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Best known as Dorothy from Wizard of Oz, she received many awards during her life and was the first woman to win the Grammy for Album of the Year.

Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis was born on November 13, 1856, in Louisville, Kentucky. As a lawyer and supreme court justice, he helped establish new precedents in the right to privacy and the use of expert testimony in court cases – both of which have had lasting effects.

On November 13, 1982, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was officially dedicated in Washington, DC. It stands as a tribute to the thousands of Americans who gave their lives in the conflict.

The Civil Rights Movement took a major step forward on November 13, 1956, when the Supreme Court ruled that the bus segregation in Montgomery, Alabama, was unconstitutional.

On November 13, 1989, the 20th Universal Postal Union Congress opened in Washington, DC.  It was the first time the Congress convened in the US since 1897.