An oldie-but-goodie from a September 2nd a couple of years ago, lightly updated for contemporary references: This post is about one of those "rabbit-holey" things we all (or, or at least, those of us who suffer from the Elephant Child's 'satiable curiosity with an added fillip (which that EC didn't quite manage) that we like… Continue reading The Calendar Riots of 1752: “Give us back our eleven days!”
Tag: george washington
Happy Belated Birthday, George Washington!
So here we are on February 22, 2025, all set to observe George Washington's 293rd birthday. Right? Not so fast. It's true that, for years, February 22 was a national holiday in the United States. Banks were closed. Schools were closed. No mail was delivered. Department stores nationwide celebrated the end of the "white sales"… Continue reading Happy Belated Birthday, George Washington!
Washington Pennsylvania, the First City Named For the First President
Today, September 9, 2023 is the two-hundred-thirty-second anniversary of the naming of a new city, built on federal land, as the capital of the still-very-young United States of America. The city was named after the country's first President, and the District was named "Columbia," a name still occasionally used at that time for the country… Continue reading Washington Pennsylvania, the First City Named For the First President
The Calendar Riots of 1752: “Give us back our eleven days!”
This post is about one of those "rabbit-holey" things we all (or, or at least, those of us who suffer from the Elephant Child's 'satiable curiosity with an added fillip (which EC didn't quite manage) that we like to get things right) get involved in when we're looking up other things. Thus it was with… Continue reading The Calendar Riots of 1752: “Give us back our eleven days!”
Washington, PA, the First City Named For the First President
It’s hard for me to think of a particular place as my hometown: I was born in Birmingham, England, one fall night in 1954. I was raised in Northern Nigeria, and Kaduna, Kano and Sokoto are dear to my heart. I lived in Boston for a year when my family came to the States. I… Continue reading Washington, PA, the First City Named For the First President
Happy (Belated) Birthday, George Washington!
So here we are on February 22, 2021, all set to observe George Washington's 289th birthday. Right? Not so fast. It's true that, for years, February 22 was a national holiday in the United States. Banks were closed. Schools were closed. No mail was delivered. Department stores nationwide celebrated the end of the "white sales"… Continue reading Happy (Belated) Birthday, George Washington!
Occasional Quote of the Day: Article Two, Section One, Clause Eight
“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” — Presidential Oath or Affirmation, United States Constitution Two-hundred-thirty years ago, on April 30, 1789, those words were… Continue reading Occasional Quote of the Day: Article Two, Section One, Clause Eight