Portal:United States
Parent Portals: Geography / North America / United States
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The United States of America is a federal republic of 50 states, a federal district and 14 territories. It is located mostly in central North America. The U.S. has three land borders, two with Canada and one with Mexico, and has sea borders with Cuba, the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Bermuda and Russia, and is otherwise bounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea, the Arctic Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Of the 50 states, only Alaska and Hawaii are not contiguous with any other state. The U.S. also has a collection of districts, territories, and possessions in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean. Each state has a high level of autonomy according to the system of federalism. The U.S. traces its national origin to the declaration by 13 British colonies in 1776 that they were one free and independent state. They were recognized as such by the Treaty of Paris in 1783. Since then, the nation has grown to become a superpower and exerts a high level of economic, political, military, and cultural influence.
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The Hawaii Sesquicentennial half dollar was struck in 1928 by the United States Bureau of the Mint in honor of the 150th anniversary of Captain James Cook's landing in Hawaii, the first European to reach there. The coin depicts Captain Cook on the obverse and a Hawaiian chieftain on the reverse. Only 10,000 were struck for the public, making the coin rare and valuable.
In 1927, the legislature of the Territory of Hawaii passed a resolution calling on the U.S. government to produce a commemorative coin for the 150th anniversary of Cook's arrival in Hawaii. Treasury Secretary Andrew Mellon thought the occasion important enough that, unusually for him, he did not oppose such an issue. The bill for the Hawaii half dollar passed through Congress without opposition or amendment, and became the Act of March 7, 1928 with the signature of President Calvin Coolidge. (Full article...) -
The Olympic marmot (Marmota olympus) is a rodent in the squirrel family, Sciuridae. It occurs only in the U.S. state of Washington, at the middle elevations of the Olympic Peninsula. The closest relatives of this species are the hoary marmot and the Vancouver Island marmot. In 2009, it was declared the official endemic mammal of Washington state.
This marmot is about the size of a domestic cat, typically weighing about 8 kg (18 lb) in summer. The species shows the greatest sexual dimorphism found in marmots, with adult males weighing on average 23% more than females. It can be identified by a wide head, small eyes and ears, stubby legs, and a long, bushy tail. Its sharp, rounded claws aid in digging burrows. The coat color changes with the season and with age, but an adult marmot's coat is brown all over with small white areas for most of the year. (Full article...) -
Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (French: [ʒilbɛʁ dy mɔtje maʁki d(ə) la fajɛt]; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (/ˌlɑːfiˈɛt, ˌlæf-/ LA(H)F-ee-ET), was a French nobleman and military officer who volunteered to join the Continental Army, led by General George Washington, in the American Revolutionary War. Lafayette was ultimately permitted to command Continental Army troops in the decisive Siege of Yorktown in 1781, the Revolutionary War's final major battle that secured American independence. After returning to France, Lafayette became a key figure in the French Revolution of 1789 and the July Revolution of 1830 and continues to be celebrated as a hero in both France and the United States.
Lafayette was born into a wealthy land-owning family in Chavaniac in the province of Auvergne in south-central France. He followed the family's martial tradition and was commissioned an officer at age 13. He became convinced that the American revolutionary cause was noble, and he traveled to the New World seeking glory in it. He was made a major general at age 19, but he was initially not given American troops to command. He fought with the Continental Army at the Battle of Brandywine near Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, where he was wounded but managed to organize an orderly retreat, and he served with distinction in the Battle of Rhode Island. In the middle of the war, he returned home to France to lobby for an increase in French support for the American Revolution. He returned to America in 1780, and was given senior positions in the Continental Army. In 1781, troops under his command in Virginia blocked a British army led by Lord Cornwallis until other American and French forces could position themselves for the decisive siege of Yorktown. (Full article...) -
The Banker horse is a breed of semi-feral or feral horse (Equus ferus caballus) living on barrier islands in North Carolina's Outer Banks. It is small, hardy, and has a docile temperament, and is genetically related to the Carolina Marsh Tacky of South Carolina and Florida Cracker Horse breeds through their shared Colonial Spanish horse and Iberian horse descent. The current population of wild Banker horses is estimated to be about 400.
Bankers are allowed to remain on the islands due to their historical significance even though they can trample plants and ground-nesting animals and are not considered to be indigenous. They survive by grazing on marsh grasses, which supply them with water as well as food, supplemented by temporary freshwater pools. (Full article...) -
Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989) was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yankees. First known as a scrappy infielder who made considerable contributions to the championship Yankee teams of the 1950s, he then built a reputation as a manager who would initially make bad teams good, before ultimately being fired amid dysfunction. In each of his stints with the Yankees he managed them to winning records before being fired by team owner George Steinbrenner or resigning under fire, usually amid a well-publicized scandal such as Martin's involvement in an alcohol-fueled fight.
Martin was born in a working-class section of Berkeley, California. His skill as a baseball player gave him a route out of his home town. Signed by the Pacific Coast League Oakland Oaks, Martin learned much from Casey Stengel, the man who would manage him both in Oakland and in New York, and enjoyed a close relationship with Stengel. Martin's spectacular catch of a wind-blown Jackie Robinson popup late in Game Seven of the 1952 World Series saved that series for the Yankees, and he was the hitting star of the 1953 World Series, earning the Most Valuable Player award in the Yankee victory. He missed most of two seasons, 1954 and 1955, after being drafted into the Army, and his abilities never fully returned; the Yankees traded him after a brawl at the Copacabana club in New York during the 1957 season. Martin bitterly resented being traded, and did not speak to Stengel for years, a time during which Martin completed his playing career with various teams. (Full article...) -
The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, fought during 25–27 October 1942, sometimes referred to as the Battle of Santa Cruz or Third Battle of Solomon Sea, in Japan as the Battle of the South Pacific (Japanese: 南太平洋海戦 Minamitaiheiyō kaisen), was the fourth aircraft carrier battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II. It was also the fourth major naval engagement fought between the United States Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy during the lengthy and strategically important Guadalcanal campaign. As in the battles of the Coral Sea, Midway, and the Eastern Solomons, the ships of the two adversaries were rarely in sight or gun range of each other. Instead, almost all attacks by both sides were mounted by carrier- or land-based aircraft.
In an attempt to drive Allied forces from Guadalcanal and nearby islands and end the stalemate that had existed since September 1942, the Imperial Japanese Army planned a major ground offensive on Guadalcanal for 20–25 October 1942. In support of this offensive, and with the hope of engaging Allied naval forces, Japanese carriers and other large warships moved into a position near the southern Solomon Islands. From this location, the Japanese naval forces hoped to engage and decisively defeat any Allied (primarily U.S.) naval forces, especially carrier forces, that responded to the ground offensive. Allied naval forces also hoped to meet the Japanese naval forces in battle, with the same objectives of breaking the stalemate and decisively defeating their adversary. (Full article...) -
The Standing Liberty quarter is a 25-cent coin that was struck by the United States Mint from 1916 to 1930. It succeeded the Barber quarter, which had been minted since 1892. Featuring the goddess of Liberty on one side and an eagle in flight on the other, the coin was designed by American sculptor Hermon Atkins MacNeil.
In 1915, Director of the Mint Robert W. Woolley began steps to replace the Barber dime, quarter, and half dollar, as he mistakenly believed that the law required new designs. MacNeil submitted a militaristic design that showed Liberty on guard against attacks. The Mint required modifications to the initial design, and MacNeil's revised version included dolphins to represent the oceans. In late 1916, Mint officials made major changes to the design without consulting MacNeil. The sculptor complained about the changes after receiving the new issue in January 1917. The Mint obtained special legislation to allow MacNeil to redesign the coin as he desired. One change made by the sculptor was the addition of a chain mail vest that covered Liberty's formerly bare breast. (Full article...) -
Maya Angelou (/ˈændʒəloʊ/ AN-jə-loh; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.
She became a poet and writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood. These included fry cook, sex worker, nightclub performer, Porgy and Bess cast member, Southern Christian Leadership Conference coordinator, and correspondent in Egypt and Ghana during the decolonization of Africa. Angelou was also an actress, writer, director, and producer of plays, movies, and public television programs. In 1982, she was named the first Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Angelou was active in the Civil Rights Movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Beginning in the 1990s, she made approximately 80 appearances a year on the lecture circuit, something she continued into her eighties. In 1993, Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" (1993) at the first inauguration of Bill Clinton, making her the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at the inauguration of John F. Kennedy in 1961. (Full article...) -
Ed, Edd n Eddy is an animated television series created by Danny Antonucci for Cartoon Network. The series revolves around three friends named Ed, Edd (named "Double D" to avoid confusion with Ed), and Eddy—collectively known as "the Eds"—who are voiced by Matt Hill, Sam Vincent and Tony Sampson respectively. They live in a suburban cul-de-sac in the fictional town of Peach Creek along with fellow neighbourhood children Kevin, Nazz, Sarah, Jimmy, Rolf, Jonny, and the Eds' female adversaries, the Kanker Sisters, Lee, Marie and May. Under the unofficial leadership of Eddy, the trio frequently invents schemes to make money from their peers to purchase their favourite confection, jawbreakers. Their plans usually fail, leaving them in various, often humiliating and painful, predicaments.
Antonucci, an adult cartoonist, was dared to create a children's cartoon. While designing a commercial, he conceived Ed, Edd n Eddy, designing it to resemble classic cartoons from the 1940s–1970s. When pitching the series to Nickelodeon, the network declined to give him creative control, a deal to which Antonucci did not agree. He then pitched the series to Cartoon Network. A deal was made with the network to commission the series under his control, and it premiered on January 4, 1999. During the show's run, several specials and shorts were produced in addition to the regular television series. The series concluded with a television film, Ed, Edd n Eddy's Big Picture Show, on November 8, 2009. (Full article...) -
The Indiana class was a class of three pre-dreadnought battleships launched in 1893. These were the first battleships built by the United States Navy comparable to contemporary European ships, such as the British HMS Hood. Authorized in 1890 and commissioned between November 1895 and April 1896, these were relatively small battleships with heavy armor and ordnance that pioneered the use of an intermediate battery. Specifically intended for coastal defense, their freeboard was insufficient to deal well with the waves of the open ocean. The turrets lacked counterweights, and the main belt armor was placed too low to be effective under most conditions.
The ships were named Indiana, Massachusetts, and Oregon and were designated Battleship Number 1 through 3. All three served in the Spanish–American War, although Oregon—which was stationed on the West Coast—had to cruise 14,000 nautical miles (26,000 km; 16,000 mi) around South America to the East Coast first. After the war, Oregon returned to the Pacific and participated in the Philippine–American War and Boxer Rebellion, while her sister ships were restricted to training missions in the Atlantic Ocean. After 1903, the obsolete battleships were decommissioned and recommissioned several times, the last time during World War I when Indiana and Massachusetts served as training ships, while Oregon was a transport escort for the Siberian Intervention. (Full article...) -
The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), which occupies the same niche as the bald eagle in the Palearctic. Its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the contiguous United States, and northern Mexico. It is found near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and old-growth trees for nesting.
The bald eagle is an opportunistic feeder which subsists mainly on fish, which it swoops down upon and snatches from the water with its talons. It builds the largest nest of any North American bird and the largest tree nests ever recorded for any animal species, up to 4 m (13 ft) deep, 2.5 m (8.2 ft) wide, and 1 metric ton (1.1 short tons) in weight. Sexual maturity is attained at the age of four to five years. (Full article...) -
Albert Henry Stanley, 1st Baron Ashfield, TD, PC (8 August 1874 – 4 November 1948), born Albert Henry Knattriess, was a British-American businessman who was managing director, then chairman of the Underground Electric Railways Company of London (UERL) from 1910 to 1933 and chairman of the London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) from 1933 to 1947.
Although born in Britain, his early career was in the United States, where, at a young age, he held senior positions in the developing tramway systems of Detroit and New Jersey. In 1898, he served in the United States Navy during the short Spanish–American War. (Full article...) -
Katie Joplin is an American sitcom created by Tom Seeley and Norm Gunzenhauser that aired for one season on The WB Television Network (The WB) from August to September 1999. Park Overall stars as the title character, a single mother who moves from Knoxville to Philadelphia and tries to balance her job as a radio program host with parenting her teenage son Greg (Jesse Head). Supporting characters include Katie's niece Liz Berlin (Ana Reeder) as well as her co-workers, played by Jay Thomas, Jim Rash, and Simon Rex. Majandra Delfino guest-starred in three episodes as the daughter of the radio station's general manager.
Warner Bros. Television produced the series, and its premise was developed from a pitch that Overall gave to The WB. The network initially optioned the show as a potential mid-season replacement for the 1998–1999 television season, but it was delayed for a year due to production issues. Production on Katie Joplin was halted in October 1998 because The WB and Warner Bros. Television were disappointed with its development. (Full article...) -
Lady Blue is an American detective and action-adventure television series. Produced by David Gerber, it originally aired for one season on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network from September 15, 1985, to January 25, 1986. It was picked up by ABC after its pilot aired as a television film on April 15, 1985. The show revolves around Chicago detective Katy Mahoney (Jamie Rose) and her violent methods of handling cases. The supporting cast includes Danny Aiello, Ron Dean, Diane Dorsey, Bruce A. Young, Nan Woods, and Ricardo Gutierrez. Johnny Depp also guest-starred on the series in one of his earliest roles. With cinematography by Jack Priestley, the episodes were filmed on location in Chicago. Television critics noted Lady Blue's emphasis on violence, calling Mahoney "Dirty Harriet" (after Clint Eastwood's character Dirty Harry). Rose said she joined the project after being drawn to its genre. She prepared for the role by watching Eastwood's films, received advice from Eastwood on how to handle a gun, and practiced at a shooting range.
After the pilot aired, Lady Blue was criticized by several watchdog organizations (particularly the National Coalition on Television Violence) as the most violent show on television. ABC moved the series from Thursdays to Saturdays before cancelling it in early 1986, partially due to the complaints about excessive violence. Critical reception to the series was primarily negative during its run, but television studies author Cary O'Dell questions whether that stemmed from contemporary sexism. Lady Blue has not been released on DVD, Blu-ray, or an online streaming service. The series' rights are owned by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer, but there are no plans for future home releases. (Full article...) -
USS Massachusetts was an Indiana-class, pre-dreadnought battleship and the second United States Navy ship comparable to foreign battleships of its time. Authorized in 1890, and commissioned six years later, she was a small battleship, though with heavy armor and ordnance. The ship class also pioneered the use of an intermediate battery. She was designed for coastal defense and as a result, her decks were not safe from high waves on the open ocean.
Massachusetts served in the Spanish–American War as part of the Flying Squadron and took part in the blockades of Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba. She missed the decisive Battle of Santiago de Cuba after steaming to Guantánamo Bay the night before to resupply coal. After the war she served with the North Atlantic Squadron, performing training maneuvers and gunnery practice. During this period she suffered an explosion in an 8-inch (203 mm) gun turret, killing nine, and ran aground twice, requiring several months of repair both times. She was decommissioned in 1906, for modernization. (Full article...) -
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a U.S. senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and was the Republican Party's nominee in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.
McCain was a son of Admiral John S. McCain Jr. and grandson of Admiral John S. McCain Sr. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1958 and received a commission in the U.S. Navy. McCain became a naval aviator and flew ground-attack aircraft from aircraft carriers. During the Vietnam War, he almost died in the 1967 USS Forrestal fire. While on a bombing mission during Operation Rolling Thunder over Hanoi in October 1967, McCain was shot down, seriously injured, and captured by the North Vietnamese. He was a prisoner of war until 1973. McCain experienced episodes of torture and refused an out-of-sequence early release. He sustained wounds that left him with lifelong physical disabilities. McCain retired from the Navy as a captain in 1981 and moved to Arizona. (Full article...) -
The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government in Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once before becoming ineligible for four years. Throughout the state's history, four men have served two non-consecutive terms as governor, and four others have served two consecutive terms, the most recent being current governor Andy Beshear, who was re-elected to a second term on November 7, 2023. Kentucky is one of only five U.S. states that hold gubernatorial elections in odd-numbered years.
The governor's powers are enumerated in the state constitution. There have been four constitutions of Kentucky—adopted in 1792, 1799, 1850, and 1891, respectively—and each has enlarged the governor's authority. Among the powers assigned to the governor in the constitution are the ability to grant pardons, veto legislation, and call the legislature into session. The governor serves as commander-in-chief of the state's military forces and is empowered to enforce all laws of the state. The officeholder is given broad statutory authority to make appointments to the various cabinets and departments of the executive branch, limited somewhat by the adoption of a merit system for state employees in 1960. Because Kentucky's governor controls so many appointments to commissions, the office has been historically considered one of the most powerful state executive positions in the United States. Additionally, the governor's influence has been augmented by wide discretion in awarding state contracts and significant influence over the legislature, although the latter has been waning since the mid-1970s. (Full article...) -
Thomas Jerome Hudner Jr. (August 31, 1924 – November 13, 2017) was a United States Navy officer and naval aviator. He rose to the rank of captain, and received the Medal of Honor for his actions in trying to save the life of his wingman, Ensign Jesse L. Brown, during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the Korean War.
Born in Fall River, Massachusetts, Hudner attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and the United States Naval Academy. Initially uninterested in aviation, he eventually took up flying and joined Fighter Squadron 32, flying the F4U Corsair at the outbreak of the Korean War. Arriving near Korea in October 1950, he flew support missions from the aircraft carrier USS Leyte. (Full article...) -
The Battle of Lake Providence was fought on June 9, 1863, during the Vicksburg campaign of the American Civil War. Confederate troops from the Trans-Mississippi Department were trying to relieve Union pressure during the Siege of Vicksburg. Major General Richard Taylor, primarily using Walker's Greyhounds, prepared a three-pronged attack against Union positions at Milliken's Bend, Young's Point, and Lake Providence, which was scheduled to take place on June 7. The strike against Lake Providence was conducted by 900 men led by Colonel Frank Bartlett.
Bartlett's force crossed Bayou Macon two days late. The Confederates encountered a Union picket force six miles (10 km) from their destination. The Union pickets withdrew, alerted Union commander Brigadier General Hugh T. Reid, and while withdrawing burned the bridge over Bayou Tensas. The Confederates were halted at Bayou Tensas by the wrecked bridge, and before the structure could be rebuilt, Reid arrived with his main force. A Confederate cannon was driven off by Union fire, and Bartlett withdrew his men at dusk. The attack against Lake Providence accomplished little, the strike against Milliken's Bend was defeated in the Battle of Milliken's Bend, and little came of the movement against Young's Point. Vicksburg surrendered on July 4. (Full article...) -
SS Choctaw was a steel-hulled American freighter in service between 1892 and 1915, on the Great Lakes of North America. She was a so-called monitor vessel, containing elements of traditional lake freighters and the whaleback ships designed by Alexander McDougall. Choctaw was built in 1892 by the Cleveland Shipbuilding Company in Cleveland, Ohio, and was originally owned by the Lake Superior Iron Company. She was sold to the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Company in 1894 and spent the rest of her working life with it. On her regular route between Detroit, Escanaba, Marquette (all in Michigan), and Cleveland, she carried iron ore downbound, and coal upbound.
On July 11, 1915, in foggy conditions, Choctaw was upbound for Marquette on Lake Huron with a cargo of coal from Cleveland. East of Presque Isle Light, the freighter was rammed by the downbound Canadian canaller Wahcondah. Although Choctaw sank in only 17 minutes, her crew of 22 escaped, and was picked up by Wahcondah. (Full article...) -
Greed is an American television game show that aired on Fox for one season. Chuck Woolery was the show's host while Mark Thompson was its announcer. The series format consisted of a team of contestants who answered a set of up to eight multiple-choice questions (the first set of four containing one right answer and the second set of four containing four right answers) for a potential prize of up to $2,000,000 (equivalent to $3,658,000 in 2023).
Dick Clark and Bob Boden of Dick Clark Productions created the series in response to the success of ABC's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. Production was rushed in an effort to launch the show before Millionaire's new season, and the show premiered less than two months after it was initially pitched. A pilot episode was omitted, and Fox aired its first episode of Greed on November 4, 1999. (Full article...) -
The Battle of the Tenaru, sometimes called the Battle of the Ilu River or the Battle of Alligator Creek, was a land battle between the Imperial Japanese Army and Allied ground forces that took place on 21 August 1942, on the island of Guadalcanal during the Pacific campaign of World War II. The battle was the first major Japanese land offensive during the Guadalcanal campaign.
In the battle, U.S. Marines, under the overall command of U.S. Major General Alexander Vandegrift, repulsed an assault by the "First Element" of the "Ichiki" Regiment, under the command of Japanese Colonel Kiyonao Ichiki. The Marines were defending the Lunga perimeter, which guarded Henderson Field, which had been captured by the Allies in landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August. Ichiki's unit was sent to Guadalcanal, in response to the Allied landings there, with the mission of recapturing the airfield and driving the Allied forces off the island. (Full article...) -
"Did You Hear What Happened to Charlotte King?" is the seventh episode of the fourth season of the American television medical drama Private Practice and the show's 61st episode overall. Written by Shonda Rhimes and directed by Allison Liddi-Brown, the episode was originally broadcast on ABC in the United States on November 4, 2010. Private Practice centers on a group of young doctors working in a private medical practice, and this episode deals with the immediate aftermath of Charlotte King's rape.
The episode, written in collaboration with the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), revolved around KaDee Strickland's character, Charlotte, and was intended to accurately portray a victim's recovery from rape. Nicholas Brendon guest-starred as Lee McHenry, and Blue Deckert appeared as detective Joe Price. "Did You Hear What Happened to Charlotte King?" earned Rhimes, Strickland, and the series several awards and nominations and was well received by critics, with Strickland's character and performance praised. The initial broadcast was viewed by 10.18 million people, received a 3.9/11 Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic, and had the fifth-highest number of viewers that night. (Full article...) -
The Puerto Rican amazon (Amazona vittata), also known as the Puerto Rican parrot (Spanish: cotorra puertorriqueña) or iguaca (Taíno), is the only extant parrot endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico, and belongs to the Neotropical genus Amazona. Measuring 28–30 cm (11.0–11.8 in), the bird is a predominantly green parrot with a red forehead and white rings around the eyes. Its closest relatives are believed to be the Cuban amazon (Amazona leucocephala) and the Hispaniolan amazon (Amazona ventralis).
The Puerto Rican amazon reaches sexual maturity at between three and four years of age. It reproduces once a year and is a cavity nester. Once the female lays eggs she will remain in the nest and continuously incubate them until hatching. The chicks are fed by both parents and will fledge 60 to 65 days after hatching. This parrot's diet is varied and consists of flowers, fruits, leaves, bark and nectar obtained from the forest canopy. (Full article...) -
1945 portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower
The Draft Eisenhower movement was a widespread political movement that eventually persuaded Dwight D. Eisenhower, former Chief of Staff of the United States Army, to contest the presidency of the United States.
During the 1948 presidential election, despite being asked repeatedly by various organizations and politicians, including former president Franklin D. Roosevelt's son James, Eisenhower rejected all requests to enter politics. Even after his refusal, Democratic state organizations in Georgia and Virginia openly endorsed him. A week before the 1948 Democratic National Convention, Roosevelt sent telegrams to all 1,592 delegates voting for the party nomination, asking them to arrive in Philadelphia two days early for a special Draft Eisenhower caucus attempting to make a strong joint appeal to Eisenhower. Despite attempts by several prominent Democratic politicians, Eisenhower refused to accept the nomination, which went to incumbent President Harry S. Truman. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that many participants in the 2021 U.S. Capitol attack have been charged with obstructing an official proceeding, a crime that was created in response to the 2001 Enron accounting scandal?
- ... that the Los Angeles Salsa, from the United States, attempted to join a Mexican soccer league?
- ... that Pete Johnson was the first Republican to hold statewide office in Mississippi since the Reconstruction era?
- ... that the United States severed diplomatic ties with Finland in 1944 because of a personal letter sent to Hitler?
- ... that Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, protected as a national monument since March 21, 2023, is a significant habitat of Joshua trees and threatened desert tortoises?
- ... that Roland Jefferson, the first African-American botanist to work at the U.S. National Arboretum, helped preserve the famous flowering cherry trees in Washington, D.C.?
- ... that the chief editor of the United States' Telegraph allegedly gouged a rival reporter's eyes inside a Senate office?
- ... that after reading American Writers, William Lloyd Garrison told John Neal to be on guard should he return to the United States?
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Born in Midland, Texas, Bush graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in education, and took a job as a second grade teacher. After attaining her master's degree in library science at the University of Texas at Austin, she was employed as a librarian.
Bush met her future husband, George W. Bush, in 1977, and they were married later that year. The couple had twin daughters in 1981. Bush's political involvement began during her marriage. She campaigned with her husband during his unsuccessful 1978 run for the United States Congress, and later for his successful Texas gubernatorial campaign.
As First Lady of Texas, Bush implemented many initiatives focused on health, education, and literacy. In 1999–2000, she aided her husband in campaigning for the presidency in a number of ways, such as delivering a keynote address at the 2000 Republican National Convention, which gained her national attention. She became first lady after her husband was inaugurated as president on January 20, 2001. (Full article...)
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Cartoon credit: Henry Mayer; restored by Adam CuerdenThis is a cartoon by the German-American cartoonist and animator Henry Mayer (1868–1954), entitled The Awakening, which first appeared in the magazine Puck in February 1915. Published in support of women's suffrage in the United States, the cartoon depicts Lady Liberty wearing a cape labeled "Votes for Women" and standing astride the states (colored white) that had granted women the right to vote. A poem by Alice Duer Miller is printed beneath. -
Photo credit: Clarence JackA 1909 panorama of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tulsa was first settled during the 1830s by the Creek Native American tribe. Shortly before Oklahoma's statehood on November 16, 1907, oil was discovered nearby and the city played a major role as one of the most important hubs for the American oil industry, eventually giving the city the nickname "Oil Capital of the World". -
Engraving credit: Bureau of Engraving and Printing; restored by Andrew ShivaZachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was the 12th president of the United States, serving from March 4, 1849, until his death in office the following year. He was previously a career officer in the United States Army, rose to the rank of major general and became a national hero as a result of his victories in the Mexican–American War. As a result, he won election to the White House despite his vague political beliefs.
On July 4, 1850, Taylor reportedly consumed copious amounts of raw fruit and iced milk while attending holiday celebrations during a fundraising event at the Washington Monument. Over the course of several days, he became severely ill with an unknown digestive ailment, several of his cabinet members being similarly affected. Despite treatment, Taylor died five days later. His vice-president Millard Fillmore assumed the presidency and completed his term in office. -
Engraving credit: W. W. Rice, after Robert Walter Weir; restored by Andrew ShivaArtists producing art and engraving on United States banknotes began experimenting with copper plates as an alternative to wood engraving in the early 18th century. Applied to the production of paper currency, copper-plate engraving, and later steel engraving, enabled banknote design and printing to rapidly advance during the 19th century. This vignette, engraved by W. W. Rice, appeared on certain United States fifty-dollar bills issued in 1875. Produced for the Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the engraving is of Robert Walter Weir's painting Embarkation of the Pilgrims, which hangs in the United States Capitol rotunda. It depicts the Pilgrims on the deck of the ship Speedwell as they depart Delfshaven in South Holland on July 22, 1620. They met additional colonists at Southampton, England, and transferred to the Mayflower before sailing to the New World. -
Lithograph: Thaddeus Mortimer Fowler; restoration: Adam CuerdenA bird's eye view of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in a 1902 lithograph by Thaddeus Mortimer Fowler. At this point in its history, Pittsburgh was an industrial and commercial powerhouse, with extensive railroad connections to the rest of the United States. Together with the rest of Allegheny County, it produced massive amounts of steel and steel products: by 1911 they reached 24% of the national output of pig iron, 34% of Bessemer steel, 44% of open hearth steel, 53% of crucible steel, 24% of steel rail, and 59% of structural shape. -
Photograph credit: George HurrellJane Russell (June 21, 1921 – February 28, 2011) was an American actress, singer, and model who became one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s. This publicity still, depicting Russell reclining on a bed of hay and holding a pistol, was taken by George Hurrell for her film debut in Howard Hughes's film The Outlaw (1943), which launched her career. She went on to star in more than twenty films, including opposite Marilyn Monroe in the hugely successful Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). -
A collection of hand-painted tiles adorns this fence in Greenwich Village in Manhattan as a memorial for the attacks of September 11, 2001. Recurring themes within these pieces of art include world peace, American patriotism, and appreciation of the heroism of the FDNY and NYPD. -
Photograph credit: James & Bushnell; restored by Adam CuerdenEmma Smith DeVoe (August 22, 1848 – September 3, 1927) was a leading advocate for women's suffrage in the United States in the early 20th century. She was inspired as a child by hearing a speech by Susan B. Anthony, and became an excellent public speaker over time, being mentored by Anthony herself. After campaigning in South Dakota and successfully obtaining the vote for women in Idaho, the National American Woman Suffrage Association sent her to Kentucky, and she eventually made speeches and organized new suffrage groups in 28 states and territories. Moving to Washington, she was made president of the Washington Equal Suffrage Association; in 1910, the state became the fifth in the country to grant women suffrage. -
Photograph credit: UnknownBessie Coleman (1892–1926) was a civil aviator. On June 15, 1921, she became the first African-American woman and the first Native American to earn an aviation pilot's license. Denied opportunity in the United States because of her race and sex, she had to go to France to learn to fly. Her career involved stunt flying and performing in air shows, and was cut short in 1926 when she was thrown from a plane in mid-air. Her death meant that her ambition to establish a school for young black aviators went unaccomplished, but her pioneering achievements served as an inspiration for a generation of African-American men and women. -
Engraving credit: Bureau of Engraving and Printing; restored by Andrew ShivaJames Buchanan (April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868) served as President of the United States for a single term from 1857 to 1861. He was unable to calm the growing sectional crisis that would divide the nation. In the midst of the growing chasm between slave states and free states, the Panic of 1857 occurred, causing widespread business failures and high unemployment. After Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860, seven Southern states declared their secession from the Union, a crisis which culminated in the outbreak of the American Civil War shortly after Buchanan left office. Buchanan is consistently ranked as one of the worst presidents in the country's history. -
The 1933 double eagle is a gold coin of the United States with a $20 face value. 445,500 specimens of this Saint-Gaudens double eagle were minted in 1933, the last year of production for the double eagle, but no specimens ever officially circulated, and nearly all were melted down due to the discontinuance of the domestic gold standard in 1933. It currently holds the record for the highest price paid at auction for a single U.S. coin, having been sold for $7.59 million. -
Photograph: Warren K. Leffler; restoration: Adam CuerdenVivian Malone entering Foster Auditorium on June 11, 1963, to register for classes at the University of Alabama through a crowd that includes photographers, National Guard members, and Deputy U.S. Attorney General Nicholas Katzenbach. During the Stand in the Schoolhouse Door, George Wallace, the Democratic Governor of Alabama, stood at the door of the auditorium to try to block the entry of two black students, Malone and James Hood. Intended by Wallace as a symbolic attempt to keep his inaugural promise of "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever", the stand ended when President John F. Kennedy federalized the Alabama National Guard and Guard General Henry Graham commanded Wallace to step aside. -
Photo credit: Mila ZinkovaA surfer off the coast of Santa Cruz, California, is performing a "cutback", or very sharp turn. Santa Cruz and the surrounding Northern California coastline is a popular surfing destination; however, the year-round low temperature of the Pacific Ocean in that region (averaging 57 °F or 14 °C) necessitates the use of wetsuits. -
Destruction caused by a natural gas pipeline explosion, which took place on September 9, 2010, in San Bruno, California, a suburb of San Francisco. Defective welds in the pipeline caused the gas to leak, which then caused the explosion. The resulting fire was fed by the natural gas, hampering emergency efforts, and the fire was not contained until the following day. -
Photo: Alexander Gardner; Restoration: Lise BroerOn July 7, 1865, at Fort McNair in Washington, D.C., Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold, and George Atzerodt (shown left-to-right) were hanged for their roles in the assassination of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. Eight people were convicted for the crime; three others were sentenced to life imprisonment, with the last receiving a six-year sentence. Mary Surratt's son John was able to escape and was never convicted for his role. His mother was the first woman to be executed by the United States federal government.
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Selected culture biography -
Since 1994, Dylan has published three books of drawings and paintings, and his work has been exhibited in major art galleries. As a songwriter and musician, Dylan has received numerous awards over the years including Grammy, Golden Globe, and Academy Awards; he has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2008, a Bob Dylan Pathway was opened in the singer's honor in his birthplace of Duluth, Minnesota. The Pulitzer Prize jury in 2008 awarded him a special citation for "his profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power."
Selected location -
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Anniversaries for November 20
- 1776 – American Revolutionary War: British forces land at the Palisades and then attack Fort Lee. The Continental Army starts to retreat across New Jersey.
- 1789 – New Jersey becomes the first U.S. state to ratify the Bill of Rights.
- 1861 – American Civil War: Secession ordinance is filed by Kentucky's Confederate government.
- 1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis: In response to the Soviet Union agreeing to remove its missiles from Cuba, U.S. President John F. Kennedy ends the blockade of the Caribbean nation.
Selected cuisines, dishes and foods -
The cuisine of Hawaii incorporates five distinct styles of food, reflecting the diverse food history of settlement and immigration in the Hawaiian Islands, primarily originating from Polynesian, North American and East Asian cuisines.[a] (Full article...)
Selected panorama -
1909 Panoramic view of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
More did you know? -
- ... that completion of the Howard A. Hanson Dam (pictured) in 1961 ended a 70-year era of flooding in the Green River Valley, and by 1996, the dam had prevented an estimated US$694 million in flood damages?
- ... that the commanding officer of American soldier Matthias W. Day wanted to court-martial him for the actions that instead won him the Medal of Honor during the Indian Wars?
- ... that Elihu Embree published the first newspaper in the United States devoted to abolishing slavery until his death in 1820?
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