This Week In American History

March 23 1839 The initials “O.K.” were first published in The Boston Morning Post. Meant as an abbreviation for “oll korrect,” a popular slang misspelling of “all correct” at the...

March 16 1802 The United States Military Academy—the first military school in the United States and often simply referred to as West Point—was founded by Congress for the purpose of...

March 9 1862 One of the most famous naval battles in American history occurred as two ironclads, the U.S.S. Monitor and the C.S.S. Virginia, fight to a draw off Hampton...

March 2 1904 Theodor Geisel, better known to the world as Dr. Seuss, the author and illustrator of such children’s books as “The Cat in the Hat” and “Green Eggs...

February 23 1940 Folk singer Woody Guthrie wrote one of his best-known songs, “This Land is Your Land.” The song reflected not only Guthrie’s support for the common folk, but...

February 16 1804 In 1803, the U.S. frigate Philadelphia ran aground near Tripoli and was captured by Tripolitan gunboats. The Americans feared that the well-constructed warship would be both a...

February 9 1950 During a speech in Wheeling, West Virginia, Senator Joseph McCarthy (Republican-Wisconsin) claimed that he has a list with the names of over 200 members of the Department...

February 2 1848 The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed, ending the Mexican-American War in favor of the United States. The Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo added an additional 525,000 square...

January 26    1970 U.S. Navy Lt. Everett Alvarez Jr. spent his 2,000th day in captivity in Southeast Asia. First taken prisoner when his plane was shot down on August...

January 19 1840 During an exploring expedition, Captain Charles Wilkes sighted the coast of eastern Antarctica and claimed it for the United States. Wilkes’ group had set out in 1838,...

January 12 1962 The United States Air Force launched Operation Ranch Hand, a “modern technological area-denial technique” designed to expose the roads and trails used by the Viet Cong. Flying...

January 5 1920 The New York Yankees major league baseball club announced its purchase of the heavy-hitting outfielder George Herman “Babe” Ruth from the Boston Red Sox for the sum...