On February 18, 1939, the Golden Gate International Exposition opened in San Francisco, California. Initially planned to honor the completion of the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge, it was expanded to honor all the countries and continents surrounding the Pacific.
Poet Julia de Burgos García was born on February 17, 1914, in Carolina, Puerto Rico. A poet, civil rights activist, and Puerto Rican nationalist, de Burgos defied convention before feminism was accepted in her culture.
On February 16, 1804, Stephen Decatur led a surprise assault on the captured USS Philadelphia in Tripoli. Part of the First Barbary War, the assault was intended to keep the Tripolitans from salvaging the damaged ship for their own use.
On February 15, 1943, the famed Rosie the Riveter “We Can Do It” poster was first displayed in Westinghouse factories.
On February 14, 1998, the first National Donor Day was held in the US. The annual event is held to raise awareness of the need for organ and tissue donations and to honor those who have donated, those who have received donations, and those we lost before donations became available.
World Radio Day was established in 2011 to commemorate the creation of United Nations Radio on February 13, 1946. The UN created its radio service believing it was important for the people of the world to be “fully informed of its aims and activities.”
Alden Partridge was born on February 12, 1785, in Norwich, Vermont. Partridge was a distinguished professor and superintendent of West Point, surveyor, and founder of Norwich University, the nation’s oldest private military college.
On February 11, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation establishing Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. The 33,677-acre park protects ancient pueblo structures and is home to a notable Civilian Conservation Corp district.
On February 10, 1941, the first Highway Post Office began service in the United States. These Highway Post Offices provided mail service to areas that didn’t have passenger train service to bring in the mail.