This Day, 1845: Congress said that future presidential elections would be held on "the Tuesday after the first Monday in November." It is a badly outdated law today (more)
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It was decided that voting would occur on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November because this was most convenient for farmers - in the largely agrarian U.S. economy of the mid-19th century. Folks often had to travel a whole day to vote, and Sunday was church
It was decided that voting would occur on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November because this was most convenient for farmers - in the largely agrarian U.S. economy of the mid-19th century. Folks often had to travel a whole day to vote, and Sunday was church
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Congress didn't want voting to interfere w/planting season, so Spring & early Summer were out. And voting couldn't interfere with the harvest, so early Autumn was also out. Thus the 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November. Sunday: was church, Monday travel, Tuesday: vote
Congress didn't want voting to interfere w/planting season, so Spring & early Summer were out. And voting couldn't interfere with the harvest, so early Autumn was also out. Thus the 1st Tuesday after the 1st Monday in November. Sunday: was church, Monday travel, Tuesday: vote
Even after leaving the presidency, Harry Truman was still complaining about reporters. "When will they quit? he wrote in his diary, this day in 1953 - three days after leaving the White House 
A U.S. spy ship - the USS Pueblo - was seized by North Korea this day in 1968. One of the 83-man U.S. crew was killed. The others were held hostage for 11 months, a crisis that nearly led to a resumption of the Korean War (more)
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Even as it was preoccupied with the war in Vietnam - at its peak in 1968 - the U.S. considered using nuclear weapons against North Korea because of the Pueblo seizure
Even as it was preoccupied with the war in Vietnam - at its peak in 1968 - the U.S. considered using nuclear weapons against North Korea because of the Pueblo seizure
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The Americans held hostage for 11 months by North Korea were tortured and subjected to mock executions. Forced to make propaganda appearances on TV, they flipped off their captors - who didn't understand the middle-finger gesture
The Americans held hostage for 11 months by North Korea were tortured and subjected to mock executions. Forced to make propaganda appearances on TV, they flipped off their captors - who didn't understand the middle-finger gesture
A landmark Supreme Court case - Roe v. Wade - wasn't the biggest story this day in 1973; the death of Lyndon Johnson was. There was another big story that day as well (more)
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also This Day in 1973: Pool crowded into the Oval ahead of Richard Nixon's announcement that the Vietnam War was over. At the time, it was the longest war in American history; it is now the third-longest
also This Day in 1973: Pool crowded into the Oval ahead of Richard Nixon's announcement that the Vietnam War was over. At the time, it was the longest war in American history; it is now the third-longest
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The end of the Vietnam War marked the end of a terrible chapter in American history: Some 58,209 Americans were killed in 8 1/2 years (Context: #covid19 is linked with 8x as many U.S. deaths in 1/8 the time)
The end of the Vietnam War marked the end of a terrible chapter in American history: Some 58,209 Americans were killed in 8 1/2 years (Context: #covid19 is linked with 8x as many U.S. deaths in 1/8 the time)
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