This Day In History

On October 8, 2003, the USPS issued its third Semipostal stamp, which raised funds to help stop family violence.

On October 7, 1891, coin collectors gathered in Chicago to found the American Numismatic Association. Their goal was practical: to connect people who loved coins but lived too far from major cities to easily find new specimens, reliable information, or fellow collectors.

On October 6, 1683, thirty-three Germans arrived in Pennsylvania to establish the first major German settlement in America. The settlement would go on to become the birthplace of the anti-slavery movement, first bank of the United States, and more.

On October 5, 1813, future president William Henry Harrison defeated a British force and its Indigenous allies at the Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada. The victory restored US control of Detroit and the Michigan Territory, weakened Britain’s position in the western Great Lakes region, and brought the death of Shawnee leader Tecumseh.

George Gershwin was born Jacob Gershwine on September 26, 1898, in Brooklyn, New York. A successful composer and pianist, he created beloved orchestral compositions, popular jazz standards, as well as Broadway and Hollywood hits.

Otis Ray Redding Jr. was born on September 9, 1941, in Dawson, Georgia. Despite his brief career, it’s been said that his marriage of traditional R&B with folk music in the 1960s took soul to a new level.

Singer Patsy Cline was born Virginia Patterson Hensley on September 8, 1932, in Winchester, Virginia. When she was 13, she was hospitalized for a throat infection and rheumatic fever, which she said gave her a “booming voice like Kate Smith.”

Lyricist Dorothy Fields was born on July 15, 1904, in Allenhurst, New Jersey. She wrote more than 400 songs for Broadway and film, including “The Way You Look Tonight” and “On the Sunny Side of the Street.”

On October 9, 1825, the small sloop Restauration arrived in the United States, marking what is often considered the first organized emigration from Norway to America. This voyage represented not just a physical journey across the Atlantic, but the beginning of a long and significant chapter in the history of Norwegian-American immigration.

On October 9, 1994, the USPS released its first joint-issue stamps with China. The stamps picture two different species of cranes – one from each country.

On October 9, 1874, some 22 nations met in Bern, Switzerland to form the General Postal Union (later renamed the Universal Postal Union or UPU). The UPU standardized mail service between countries and is one of the world’s oldest international organizations.

On October 9, 1920, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first presidential proclamation of Fire Prevention Day.  Fire Prevention Day is held in October to commemorate and remind us of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.