July 4: Declaration of Independence signed, 49 and 50th Stars added to flag

July 5, 12:25 AMPortland History ExaminerNatalie Leavitt

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Maine Fast Fact: Maine’s territory was fought over between American and British forces during both the American Revolution and the War of 1812.

Births:

• 1804: Nathaniel Hawthorne, American writer
• 1847: James Anthony Bailey, creator of the modern circus
• 1872: Calvin Coolidge, 30th President of the United States
• 1884: Louis B. Mayer, film producer, co-founder of Hollywood film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
• 1910: Gloria Stuart, American stage, television and film actress, known for her roles in The Invisible Man and as the 100-year-old Rose in Titanic
• 1918: Pauline Phillips, advice columnist, founded the “Dear Abby” column in 1956
• 1930: George Steinbrenner, Baseball owner
• 1943: Geraldo Rivera, American reporter
• 1951: Ralph Johnson, American musician, part of the group Earth, Wind and Fire
• 1998: Malia Ann Obama, daughter of U.S. President Barack Obama

Deaths:

• 1826: John Adams, 2nd President of the United States; Thomas Jefferson, 3rd President of the United States
• 1831: James Monroe, 5th President of the United States
• 1891: Hannibal Hamlin, U.S. Vice President under President Abraham Lincoln from 1861-1865, and Governor of Maine
• 2003: Barry White, American singer

History:

• 1636: The city of Providence, Rhode Island is formed.
• 1754: George Washington surrenders Fort Necessity to French Capitan Louis Coulon de Villiers during the French and Indian War.
• 1776: The United States Declaration of Independence is adopted by the Second Continental Congress during the American Revolution.
• 1802: West Point, the United States Military Academy in New York, opens.
• 1803: The Louisiana Purchase is announced to the citizens of America.
• 1817: Construction on the Erie Canal begins in Rome, New York.
• 1826: The fiftieth anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both signers of the Declaration and the second and third Presidents of the United States, both die.
• 1827: New York State abolishes slavery.
• 1838: The Iowa Territory is organized.
• 1845: Henry David Thoreau begins a two year experiment living a simple life at Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts.
• 1855: The first edition of Walt Whitman’s book of poems, Leaves of Grass, is published.
• 1863: The Siege of Vicksburg takes place in Vicksburg, Mississippi during the Civil War when the Confederate Army surrenders to Ulysses S. Grant after 47 days in siege and 150 miles up the Mississippi River a Confederate Army is defeated at the Battle of Helena, Arkansas.
• 1865: Alice in Wonderland is published.
• 1886: The Statue of Liberty is offered to the United States by the people of France.
• 1913: President Woodrow Wilson makes the American Civil War address to the Veterans of the Civil War at the Great Reunion of 1913.
• 1939: Lou Gehrig, diagnosed with the fatal disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, announces his retirement from major league baseball at Yankee Stadium and considers himself “The luckiest man on the face of the Earth.”
• 1946: The Philippines gain full independence from the United States.
• 1959: The 49-Star flag of the United States makes its debut in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania one year after the admission of Alaska as the 49th U.S. state.
• 1960: The 50th star was added to the American flag to honor the admission of Hawaii as the 50th of the United States.
• 1966: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Freedom of Information Act into law and the act takes effect the next year.
• 1997: NASA’s Pathfinder space probe lands on Mars.
• 2004: The cornerstone of the Freedom Tower is put in on the site of the World Trade Center in New York City.
• 2006: The STS-121 Mission – Space Shuttle Discovery launches.

July 4 is a day of important American history, but don’t forget, everyday is filled with important world, country, state and local history. But this is the day in American history when the Declaration of Independence is adopted, one of the most important days in America. Thanks to the signers and writers and supporters of the Declaration, the founding fathers and mothers of our country and thank you for the freedom of America. So happy Fourth of July!

[photo: Signing of the Declaration of Independence, www.afreeamerican.com]